FCC March Meeting Agenda Includes Votes on New EAS & Cable Pricing Initiates

By George Winslow
published

Other items on the tentative agenda for the March 14 meeting include “re-defining ‘high-speed’ internet to match market realities”

FCC
FCC's Washington headquarters (Image credit: SMITHGROUPJJR)

WASHINGTON, D.C.—Federal Communications Commission chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has announced a tentative agenda for the March Open Commission Meeting scheduled for Thursday, March 14, 2024 that includes items relating to emergency alerts, cable and satellite pricing and a possible redefinition of what constitutes “high-speed” internet services. 

More specifically, the FCC’s tentative agenda includes these items: 

  • ‘All-In’ Cable and Satellite TV Pricing – The Commission will consider a Report and Order to require cable and satellite TV providers to specify the “all-in” price for video programming services in promotional materials and on subscribers’ bills in order to allow consumers to make informed choices.  (MB Docket No. 23-203)
  • Missing and Endangered Persons' Emergency Alert Code – The Commission will consider a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would propose to facilitate the more efficient and widespread dissemination of alerts and coordinated responses to incidents involving missing and endangered persons, an issue that is particularly prevalent in Tribal communities.  (PS Docket Nos. 15-91, 15-94)
  • Re-Defining ‘High-Speed’ Internet to Match Market Realities – The Commission will consider the draft 2024 Section 706 Report, which, if adopted, would fulfill the Commission’s statutory responsibility under section 706 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and raise the fixed speed benchmark for advanced telecommunications capability to 100/20 Mbps.  (GN Docket No. 22-270)
  • Cybersecurity Labeling Program for Smart Products - The Commission will consider a Report and Order to create a voluntary cybersecurity labeling program for wireless consumer Internet of Things (IoT) products, which would help consumers make informed purchasing decisions, differentiate trustworthy products in the marketplace, and create incentives for manufacturers to meet higher cybersecurity standards. (PS Docket No. 23-239)
  • Single Network Future: Supplemental Coverage from Space – The Commission will consider a Report and Order and Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that would advance the Commission’s vision for a single network future in which satellite and terrestrial networks work seamlessly together to provide coverage for consumer handsets that neither network can achieve on its own.  (GN Docket No. 23-65; IB Docket No. 22-271)

More information is available at the FCC’s Open Meeting page: www.fcc.gov/openmeeting.  

The Open Meeting is scheduled to commence at 10:30 a.m. ET on March 14 in the Commission Meeting Room of the Federal Communications Commission, 45 L Street, N.E., Washington, D.C.  Open Meetings are streamed live at www.fcc.gov/live. 

George Winslow
George Winslow

George Winslow is the senior content producer for TV Tech. He has written about the television, media and technology industries for nearly 30 years for such publications as Broadcasting & Cable, Multichannel News and TV Tech. Over the years, he has edited a number of magazines, including Multichannel News International and World Screen, and moderated panels at such major industry events as NAB and MIP TV. He has published two books and dozens of encyclopedia articles on such subjects as the media, New York City history and economics.