[Federal Register Volume 63, Number 102 (Thursday, May 28, 1998)]
[Notices]
[Pages 29213-29216]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 98-14092]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION


Notice of Public Information Collection(s) being Reviewed by the 
Federal Communications Commission

May 15, 1998.

SUMMARY: The Federal Communications Commission, as part of its 
continuing effort to reduce paperwork burden

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invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this 
opportunity to comment on the following information collection(s), as 
required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. An 
agency may not conduct or sponsor a collection of information unless it 
displays a currently valid control number. No person shall be subject 
to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) that does not display a 
valid control number. Comments are requested concerning (a) whether the 
proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper 
performance of the functions of the Commission, including whether the 
information shall have practical utility; (b) the accuracy of the 
Commission's burden estimate; (c) ways to enhance the quality, utility, 
and clarity of the information collected; and (d) ways to minimize the 
burden of the collection of information on the respondents, including 
the use of automated collection techniques or other forms of 
information technology.

DATES: Written comments should be submitted on or before July 27, 1998. 
If you anticipate that you will be submitting comments, but find it 
difficult to do so within the period of time allowed by this notice, 
you should advise the contact listed below as soon as possible.

ADDRESSES: Direct all comments to Les Smith, Federal Communications 
Commission, Room 234, 1919 M St., NW., Washington, DC 20554 or via 
internet to [email protected].

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For additional information or copies 
of the information collection(s), contact Les Smith at 202-418-0217 or 
via internet at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
OMB Approval Number: 3060-0419.
    Title: Sections 76.94, 76.95, 76.155, 76.156, 76.157, and 76.159, 
Syndicated Exclusivity and Network Non-Duplication Rights.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Business and other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 5,392 (1,141 commercial television stations 
+ 4,251 cable television stations).
    Estimated Time Per Response: .5 - 2 hours.
    Total Annual Burden: 178,640 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On Occasion.
    Cost to Respondents:  $192,132 (operation and maintenance costs for 
notifications and responses).
    Needs and Uses: Sections 76.94(a) and 76.155(a) require television 
stations and program distributors to notify cable television system 
operators of non-duplication protection and exclusivity rights being 
sought. The notification shall include (1) the name and address of the 
party requesting non-duplication protection/exclusivity rights and the 
television broadcast station holding the non-duplication right; (2) the 
name of the program or series for which protection is sought; and (3) 
the dates on which protection is to begin and end.
    Section 76.94(b) requires broadcasters entering into contracts 
providing for network non-duplication protection to notify cable 
systems within 60 days of the signing of such a contract. If they are 
unable to provide notices as provided for in Section 74.94(a), they 
must provide modified notices that contain the name of the network 
which has extended non-duplication protection, the time periods by time 
of day and by network for each day of the week that the broadcaster 
will be broadcasting programs from that network, and the duration and 
extent of the protection.
    Section 76.94(d) requires broadcasters to provide the following 
information to cable television systems under the following 
circumstances: (1) In the event the protection specified in the notices 
described in paragraphs (a) or (b) of this section has been limited or 
ended prior to the time specified in the notice, or in the event a time 
period, as identified to the cable system in a notice pursuant to 
paragraph (b) of this section, for which a broadcaster has obtained 
protection is shifted to another time of day or another day (but not 
expanded), the broadcaster shall, as soon as possible, inform each 
cable television system operator that has previously received the 
notice of all changes from the original notice. Notice to be furnished 
``as soon as possible'' under this subsection shall be furnished by 
telephone, telegraph, facsimile, overnight mail or other similar 
expedient means. (2) In the event the protection specified in the 
modified notices described in paragraph (b) of this section has been 
expanded, the broadcaster shall, at least 60 calendar days prior to 
broadcast of a protected program entitled to such expanded protection, 
notify each cable system operator that has previously received notice 
of all changes from the original notice.
    Section 76.155(d) requires that in the event the exclusivity 
specified in paragraph (a) of this section has been limited or has 
ended prior to the time specified in the notice, the distributor or 
broadcaster who has supplied the original notice shall, as soon as 
possible, inform each cable television system operator that has 
previously received the notice of all changes from the original notice. 
In the event the original notice specified contingent dates on which 
exclusivity is to begin and/or end, the distributor or broadcaster 
shall, as soon as possible, notify the cable television system operator 
of the occurrence of the relevant contingency. Notice to be furnished 
``as soon as possible'' under this subsection shall be furnished by 
telephone, telegraph, facsimile, overnight mail or other similar 
expedient means.
    Sections 76.94(e)(2) and 76.155(c)(2) states that if a cable 
television system asks a television station for information about its 
program schedule, the television station shall answer the request.
    Sections 76.94(f) and 76.157 require a distributor or broadcaster 
exercising exclusivity to provide to the cable system, upon request, an 
exact copy of those portions of the contracts, such portions to be 
signed by both the network and the broadcaster, setting forth in full 
the provisions pertinent to the duration, nature, and extent of the 
non-duplication terms concerning broadcast signal exhibition to which 
the parties have agreed. Providing copies of relevant portions of the 
contracts is assumed to be accomplished in the notification process set 
forth in Sections 76.94 and 76.155.
    Section 76.159 (requirements for invocation of protection) requires 
broadcasters to obtain amended contracts when existing contracts have 
ambiguous language. We assume all broadcasters that have enforceable 
syndicated rights in their contracts have by now amended their existing 
contracts. Any contracts entered into after August 18, 1988, would 
contain the required language set forth in this section.
    Section 76.95(a) states that network non-duplication provisions of 
Sections 76.92 through 76.94 shall not apply to cable systems serving 
fewer than 1,000 subscribers. Within 60 days following the provision of 
service to 1,000 subscribers, the operator of each system shall file a 
notice to that effect with the Commission, and serve a copy of that 
notice on every television station that would be entitled to exercise 
network non-duplication protection against it.
    Section 76.156(b) states that the provisions of Sections 76.151 
through 76.155 shall not apply to a cable system serving fewer than 
1,000 subscribers. Within 60 days following the provision of service to 
1,000 subscribers, the operator of each such system shall file

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a notice to that effect with the Commission, and serve a copy of that 
notice on every television station that would be entitled to exercise 
syndicated exclusivity protection against it.
    The purpose of the various notification and disclosure requirements 
accounted for in this collection is to protect broadcasters who 
purchase the exclusive rights to transmit syndicated programming in 
their recognized market areas. The Commission's syndicated exclusivity 
rules permit, but do not require, broadcasters and program distributors 
to obtain the same enforceable exclusive distribution rights for 
syndicated programming that all other video programming distributors 
possess.
OMB Approval Number: 3060-0547.
    Title: Section 76.61 Disputes concerning carriage and Section 76.7 
Special relief and must-carry procedures.
    Form Number: N/A
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Business and other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 600 (include petitioning and opposing 
parties for Sections 76.61 and 76.7).
    Estimated Time Per Response: 5-40 hours.
    Total Annual Burden: 18,000 hours. 
    Frequency of Response: On Occasion.
    Cost to Respondents: $198,000 ($192,000 for filing fees at $960 per 
fee; postage and stationary costs).
    Needs and Uses: This information collection accounts for the 
paperwork burden associated with disputes concerning carriage contained 
in Section 76.61 as well as must-carry complaints and other petitions 
for special relief contained in Section 76.7.
    Section 76.61 states that whenever a local commercial television or 
qualified low power television station believes that a cable operator 
has failed to meet its carriage or channel positioning obligations, 
such station shall notify the cable operator, in writing, of the 
alleged failure and identify its reasons for believing that the cable 
operator is obligated to carry the signal of such station or position 
such signal on a particular channel. The cable operator then must 
respond in writing within 30 days to the notification and either 
commence to carry the station or state its reasons for believing it is 
not obligated to carry such signal. The television or low power 
television station may then file a ``must-carry'' complaint in 
accordance with procedures set forth in Section 76.7. Qualified local 
noncommercial educational television stations may also file ``must-
carry'' complaints with the Commission in accordance with procedures 
set forth in Section 76.7. Must-carry complaints shall specifically 
allege the manner in which the cable operator failed to meet its 
obligations and the basis for such allegations.
    Section 76.7 states that on petition by a cable television system 
operator, a franchising authority, an applicant, permittee, or licensee 
of a television broadcast or translator station, or by any other 
interested person, the Commission may waive any provision of the rules 
relating to cable television systems, impose additional of different 
requirements, or issue a ruling on a complaint or disputed question. 
The petition for special relief or must-carry complaint may be 
submitted informally, by letter, but shall be accompanied by a 
certificate of service on any cable television operator, franchising 
authority, station licensee, permittee, or applicant, or other 
interested person who may be directly affected if the relief requested 
is granted. Interested parties may submit comments or oppositions to a 
petition for special relief or a must-carry complaint within twenty 
days after the date of public notice of the filing of such petition or 
complaint. The petitioner or complainant may file a reply to the 
comments or oppositions within 10 days after their submission.
OMB Approval Number: 3060-0548.
    Title: Section 76.302 Required recordkeeping for Must-Carry 
purposes and Section 76.56 Signal Carriage obligations.
    Form Number: N/A
    Type of Review: Extension of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents: Business and other for-profit.
    Number of Respondents: 11,000
    Estimated Time Per Response: .5 hours - 1 hour.
    Total Annual Burden: 66,000 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On Occasion.
    Cost to Respondents: $110,000 (postage and stationary).
    Needs and Uses: Section 76.302 requires the operator of every cable 
television system to maintain a public inspection file containing a 
list of all broadcast television stations carried by its system in 
fulfillment of the must-carry requirements pursuant to Section 76.56 
and the designation and location of its principal headend. Sections 
76.302 and 76.56(e) state that upon written request from any person, a 
cable operator is required to provide the list of must-carried signals 
in writing within 30 days of receipt of such request. Additionally, 
Section 76.56(d)(3) states that if a cable operator authorizes 
subscribers to install additional receiver connections, but does not 
provide the subscriber with such connections, or with the equipment and 
materials for such connections, the operator shall notify such 
subscribers of all broadcast stations carried on the cable system which 
cannot be viewed via cable without a converter box and shall offer to 
sell or lease such a converter box to such subscribers. The notice, 
which may be included in routine billing statements, shall identify the 
signals that are unavailable without an additional connection, the 
manner for obtaining such additional connection, and instructions for 
installation. These notification and recordkeeping requirements ensure 
that subscribers are aware of which channels cannot be viewed without 
converter boxes and which channels are defined as must-carry. The 
records kept by cable television systems are reviewed by Commission 
staff during field inspections and by local public officials to assess 
the systems' compliance with applicable rules and regulations.
OMB Approval Number:  3060-0652.
    Title: Section 76.309 Customer Service Obligations and Section 
76.964 Notice to Subscribers.
    Form Number: N/A.
    Type of Review:  Revision of a currently approved collection.
    Respondents:  Businesses or other for-profit; State, local and 
tribal governments.
    Number of Respondents: 11,365 cable systems, 10 franchise 
authorities.
    Estimated Time Per Response:  10 minutes - 1 hour.
    Total Annual Burden:  33,975 hours.
    Frequency of Response: On occasion.
    Cost To Respondents: $100,000 (postage and stationary costs).
    Needs and Uses: Sections 76.309 and 76.964 set forth various 
customer service obligations and notification requirements for changes 
in rates, programming services and channel positions.
    Section 76.309(a) states that franchise authorities must provide 
affected cable operators 90 days written notice of its intent to 
enforce customer services standards set forth in Section 76.309(c).
    Section 76.309(c)(3)(i)(A) states that cable operators shall 
provide written information on each of the following areas at the time 
of installation of service, at least annually to all subscribers, and 
at any time upon request: (1) Products and services offered; (2) Prices 
and options for programming services and conditions of subscription to 
programming and other services; (3) Installation and service 
maintenance policies; (4) Instructions on how to use the cable service; 
(5)

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Channel positions programming carried on the system; and, (6) Billing 
and complaint procedures, including the address and telephone number of 
the local franchise authority's cable office.
    Section 76.309(c)(3)(i)(B) states that customers will be notified 
of any changes in rates, programming services or channel positions as 
soon as possible in writing. Notice must be given to subscribers a 
minimum of thirty (30) days in advance of such changes if the change is 
within the control of the cable operator. In addition, the cable 
operator shall notify subscribers 30 days in advance of any significant 
changes in the other information required by Section 
76.309(c)(3)(i)(A).
    Section 76.964 states that in addition to the requirement set forth 
in Section 76.309(c)(3)(i)(B) regarding advance notification to 
customers of any changes in rates, programming services or channel 
positions, cable systems shall give 30 days written notice to both 
subscribers and local franchising authorities before implementing any 
rate or service change. Such notice shall state the precise amount of 
any rate change and briefly explain in readily understandable fashion 
the cause of the rate change (e.g. inflation, changes in external costs 
or the addition/deletion of channels). When the change involves the 
addition or deletion of channels, each channel added or deleted must be 
separately identified. Notices to subscribers shall inform them of 
their right to file complaints about changes in cable programming 
service tier rates and services, shall state that the subscriber may 
file the complaint within 90 days of the effective date of the rate 
change, and shall provide the address and phone number of the local 
franchising authority.
    Section 76.309(c)(3)(ii)(B) states that in case of a billing 
dispute, the cable operator must respond to a written complaint from a 
subscriber within 30 days.
    Since the last OMB clearance for this collection, it has been 
revised in two ways. First, the Section 76.309(a) requirement that 
franchise authorities must provide affected cable operators 90 days 
written notice of intent to enforce customer services standards was not 
previously accounted for in this collection. We now seek clearance for 
it as part of this collection. Second, a revision to Section 
76.309(c)(3)(i)(B) no longer requires cable operators to provide notice 
of any rate change that is the result of a regulatory fee, franchise 
fee, or any other fee, tax, assessment, or charge of any kind imposed 
by any Federal agency, State, or franchising authority on the 
transaction between operators and their subscribers. We revise this 
collection accordingly.The Commission requires the various disclosure 
and notifications contained in this collection as a means of consumer 
protection to ensure that subscribers and franchising authorities are 
knowledgeable of cable operators' business practices, current rates, 
rate changes for programming, service and equipment, and channel line-
up changes.

Federal Communications Commission.
Magalie Roman Salas,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. 98-14092 Filed 5-27-98; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-F