Just in time for the Memorial Day weekend, the FCC has released its proposed regulatory fees for 2015. Now we all have something to mull over during all those boring parades, fireworks shows, baseball games and cook-outs. Lucky us! As usual, the propos...
Paying regulatory fees is a part of the yearly calendar for broadcasters and other entities that do business before the FCC. These fees are usually due in August or September, to be paid before the start of the FCC’s fiscal year on October 1. And each year, about this time, the FCC puts out a… Continue Reading
One million dollars is still a big fine, even though the FCC has been handing out fines for that amount, or more, many times in recent months. But fines rarely hit these levels for broadcasters. But, yesterday, the FCC issued such a fine – hitting iHeart Media with a $1 Million fine as part of… Continue Reading
A one-time only broadcast leads to a “multi-state cascade” of false alarms … and a big penalty We have previously reported on the FCC’s crackdown on the misuse of EAS tones, a crackdown that has thus far resulted in more than $...
The FCC announced this afternoon that it has reached an agreement with iHeartCommunications resolving “an investigation into the misuse of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) tones….” As we’ve noted before on numerous occasions, the federal government is very touchy about the use of an EAS alerting tone when there isn’t a test or actual emergency. […]
Last week, the FCC formally announced its receipt of a proposal from REC Networks to raise the maximum power for LPFM stations from 100 watts to 250 watts, to give them equivalent power levels with FM translator stations. REC suggests that these higher power levels are necessary to allow LPFM stations to overcome the effects… Continue Reading
The FCC plays an important, if little known, role in railroad safety. In the aftermath of this week’s tragic Amtrak train derailment in Philadelphia, the issue of Positive Train Control (PTC) – previously a subject familiar only to relative...
We recently reported that the destination of the appeal of the FCC’s “Open Internet” decision might be up in the air because parties had sought review in three different U.S. Courts of Appeals. That would normally mean that a ra...
While the road to hell may be paved with good intentions, the path to any government objective is usually paved with forms and paperwork. We were reminded of that today when the FCC released a Public Notice reminding full power and Class A television stations of the May 29 Pre-Auction Licensing Deadline. Only those facilities […]