Believe it or not, the date by which all radio stations must have their complete public files online is now less than six months away. Television stations have been dealing with this reality for several years now, as have large stations in large markets for the past couple of years. Now, every radio station, both … Continue Reading
Main Studio and Paper Rules on the Chopping Block, AM Revitalization on the Way It’s shaping up to be a busy few months for FCC Chairman Ajit Pai. And did you know September is Modernization Month? Well, at least according to Chairman Pai it is. Today, the Chairman announced a new initiative to curtail, or … Continue Reading
Just a week after Hurricane Harvey wreaked havoc in Texas and Louisiana, Hurricane Irma, a Category 5 storm, has already hit parts of the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico. This is a major storm, with wind gusts measured at 155 mph in Barbuda. This weekend Irma is set to make its way into Florida … Continue Reading
Now that summer and beach season is over, the Commission has finally released the final listing of regulatory fees for 2017 and their due date. While it might not be as big of news as a Taylor Swift release, this is an important time for the Commission which has announced the final amounts due for … Continue Reading
The FCC on Sept. 1 postponed the due date for the submission of 2017 biennial broadcast ownership reports to the FCC until March 2, 2018. Biennial ownership reports are required to be filed every two years by all commercial and (starting this year) noncommercial AM, FM, TV, Class A, and LPTV stations and entities holding … Continue Reading
Time to mark your calendars for FCC filing deadlines for broadcasting and telecommunications. Find our list of upcoming deadlines in the industry below. Note our list is not comprehensive. Other proceedings may apply to you. Please do not hesitate to contact FHH if you have any questions. September 1, 2017: Local Telephone Competition and Broadband Report – Facilities-based … Continue Reading
Even if you are not living in the direct path, you are likely aware that many areas in Louisiana and Texas are preparing for Hurricane Harvey. As local citizens prepare for a Class 3 Hurricane expected to bring dangerous flooding, wind and rain, broadcasters and other communications providers in that region will also need make … Continue Reading
With the October 1 deadline looming, FHH’s Dan Kirkpatrick and Paul Feldman held a webinar to help industry leaders navigate the waters regarding must-carry/retransmission consent. If you missed the webinar, or just want a refresher, never fear: you can catch it in re-runs. We’ve posted a recording of the show here – all audio and slides … Continue Reading
This is a reminder that on Tuesday, August 22 from 2:00-3:15 p.m. (EDT), FHH carriage gurus Dan Kirkpatrick and Paul Feldman will present a FREE webinar entitled “Must-Carry and Retransmission Consent 2017.” Free registration for the webinar is available here. The industry faces an October 1, 2017 deadline requiring all full-power television stations to make … Continue Reading
The Federal Emergency Management Agency and the FCC have announced that a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) will take place on September 27, 2017, at 2:20 PM EDT. As a precursor to this test, all EAS Participants (which includes most broadcast stations and cable and DBS operators) must file a “Form 1” … Continue Reading
Tuesday, August 22, 2017 – 2:00-3:15 p.m. (EDT) For all full power TV stations, October 1, 2017 is a critical deadline for electing between must-carry and retransmission consent for the next three years. What should you consider before electing must-carry or retransmission consent? What has changed in the three years since elections were last made? … Continue Reading
(New procedures require all filers to register in the FCC’s updated CORES system) On June 26, 2017, the Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau (PSHSB) of the Federal Communications Commission released instructions as to how Emergency Alert System (EAS) Participants must register for access to the 2017 EAS Test Reporting System (ETRS). The PSHSB also … Continue Reading
As Egon said in Ghosbusters, “print is dead.” Okay, that may be a bit of an overstatement. But at least as to many broadcast stations’ local public inspection files, it is essentially true as of today. Back in January, the FCC voted to do away with the requirement that commercial broadcast stations retain in their … Continue Reading
Last month, the FCC launched a new proceeding with an extremely broad goal of modernizing its media regulations. The very brief (less than three page) Public Notice launching the proceeding, which Chairman Pai previewed in his speech at the NAB Show in Las Vegas, asks for comment on almost any media regulation considered “outdated, unnecessary, … Continue Reading
Just in time for the unofficial start of summer, the FCC has issued its 2017 Regulatory Fee Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), beginning a process that culminates with the payment of regulatory fees sometime between late August and the end of September.… Continue Reading
Ninth Circuit is the latest to say that Internet-based services are not cable systems. Remember Aereo? Sure you do, if you were a regular CommLawBlog reader pretty much anytime between 2012 and 2015. Aereo was the upstart looking to revolutionize the way cord-cutters watched TV: its dime-sized antennas were designed to receive and capture local … Continue Reading
Commercial broadcasters soon will not need to keep paper copies of viewer and listener correspondence about station operations in their public inspection files. The FCC voted 3-0 on Tuesday to eliminate the requirements at its first public meeting under new Chairman Ajit Pai. The Order also resolves a security issue for stations because they will … Continue Reading
The FCC plans to vote on the last vestiges of the paper public file at its January open meeting on the 31st — a Report and Order resolving a May 2016 proposal to eliminate the requirement that commercial broadcast stations retain copies of letters and emails from the public concerning their station operation in their … Continue Reading
On Friday, January 7, after the sun had set and the FCC’s doors were locked for the night, the agency released two decisions addressing complaints that a dozen TV stations did not provide sufficiently complete information about political advertising in their public inspection files during the 2016 Presidential campaign. That sounds kind of like a … Continue Reading
As we reported a few days ago, most large market radio stations are required to have their complete (but for a few exceptions) local public inspection files posted online by no later than Christmas Eve. Perhaps moved by the spirit of the holidays, the Commission has now granted a narrow exception to that requirement for … Continue Reading
FCC extends waiver of Form 740 import declarations As we’ve reported here and here, the Commission is proposing to modify some of its import declaration rules (i.e. Sections 2.1203 and 2.1205). These require, in part, that importers of RF equipment into the United States make certain certifications either electronically or on paper. The proposed rule … Continue Reading
For the past few months, business owners have been frantically preparing for a major change in the Department of Labor (DOL) regulations implementing the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) which would greatly increase the number of employees eligible to receive overtime pay for work in excess of 40 hour per week. These changes, were due … Continue Reading
But EAS Participants have a year to advise their SECCs of what, if anything, they’re doing to provide EAS alerts to non-English speaking audiences. As we reported last spring, the FCC declined to require that non-English language announcements be provided by Emergency Alert System participants. But the Commission did decide that all State EAS Plans … Continue Reading
Input sought on revised catalog of likely repack expenses As we all know, TV stations forced by the Incentive Auction/spectrum repack process to modify their facilities will be entitled to reimbursement of their reasonable repacking-related costs. And as we reported a couple of years ago, to give everybody – FCC and affected broadcasters (and MVPDs) … Continue Reading
