[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 164 (Wednesday, August 25, 1999)] [Notices] [Pages 46392-46394] From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] [FR Doc No: 99-22016] ======================================================================= ----------------------------------------------------------------------- FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION Agency Information Collection Activities; Proposed Collection: Comment Request AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission (FTC). ACTION: Notice. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- SUMMARY: On June 1, 1999, the President of the United States requested that the Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice conduct a study on the marketing practices of the entertainment industry to determine whether and to what extent the industry markets age- restricted violent material to children. Before gathering this information, the FTC is soliciting public comments on proposed information requests to members of the following industries: (1) Motion picture; (2) recording; and (3) video, personal computer, and coin operated games. The FTC also is soliciting public comments on proposed consumer research. Comments will be considered before the FTC submits a request for Office of Management and Budget (OMB) review under the Paperwork Reduction Act. DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before October 25, 1999. ADDRESSES: Send written comments to Secretary, Federal Trade Commission, Room H-159, 600 Pennsylvania [[Page 46393]] Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580, or by e-mail to <[email protected]>. The submissions should include the submitter's name, address, telephone number, and , if available, FAX number and e-mail address. All submissions should be captioned ``Entertainment Industry Study''-FTC File No. P994511.'' FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Requests for additional information should be addressed to Sally Forman Pitofsky, Attorney, Division of Financial Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission, 600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20580. Telephone: (202) 326-3318, E-mail <[email protected]>. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The FTC invites comments on: (1) Whether the proposed collections of information are necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the FTC, including whether the information will have practical utility; (2) the accuracy of the FTC's estimate of the burden of the proposed collections of information; (3) ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and (4) ways to minimize the burden of collecting information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submission of responses. The FTC will submit the proposed information collection requirements to OMB for review, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, as amended). A. Survey of the Motion Picture, Recording, and Video Game Industries 1. Description of the Collection of Information and Proposed Use The FTC proposes to send information requests to approximately 60 to 75 members of the motion picture industry, the recording industry, and the video, personal computer, and coin operated game industry (``industry members'') to examine: (1) The voluntary systems used by industry members to rate or designate violent content in movies, recordings, and video or computer games; (2) how industry members market or advertise movies, recordings, and video or computer games with violent content; and (3) whether industry members have policies or procedures to restrict access by children or teenagers under 18 to movies, recordings, and video or computer games having violent content. The information sought will be obtained by interviews and document requests. The information will be sought on a voluntary basis, although the FTC has authority to compel production of this information under Section 6(b) of the FTC Act, 15 U.S.C. 46(b). 2. Estimated Hours Burden a. Interviews Staff will conduct initial and follow-up interviews with individual industry members. The interviews will focus on the subject areas (1)-- (3) above. The interviews should total no more than 20 hours for each industry member, for a maximum total of approximately 1,500 hours. b. Document Requests Staff will also ask each industry member to submit documents relating to the above subject areas. Because the members within each of the industries will necessarily vary in size, we have provided a range of the estimated hours burden. This range is between 225 hours and 450 hours per member depending on the size of each. The total estimated burden of producing such documents per member is based on the following: Organize document retrieval--25-50 hours Identify requested information--100-200 hours Retrieve responsive information--50-100 hours Copy requested information--50-100 hours Thus, the cumulative hours burden to produce documents sought will be between: 16,875 (225 hours x 75 members) to 33,750 (450 hours x 75 members) 3. Estimated Cost Burden a. Interviews We have assumed that mid-management level personnel will handle the responses to interviews and have applied an average hourly wage of $150/hour for their labor. Thus, the total cost per member for the interviews should not exceed $3,000 or $225,000 for the 75 respondents. Staff further estimates that the capital costs associated with the industry interviews are minimal. The interviews are likely to require no capital expenditures. b. Document Production It is not possible to calculate with precision labor costs associated with this document production as they entail varying compensation levels of management, and/or support staff among many companies of different sizes and in different industries. Individuals among some or all of those labor categories may be involved in the information collection process. Nonetheless, we have assumed that mid- management level personnel will handle most of the tasks involved in gathering and producing responsive information, and have applied an average hourly wage of $150/hour for their labor. We also have applied an average hourly wage of $10 for the labor of clerical employees who will copy the responsive materials. Thus, the total labor cost per member should range between $26,750 and $53,500 per member depending on the size of each: $26,750 (175 hours to assemble and review the production x $150 per hour +50 hours for copying x $10 per hour) to $53,500 (350 hours to assemble and review the production x $150 per hour + 100 hours for copying x $10 per hour). Accordingly, the total labor costs for the 75 members should range between approximately $2 million and $4 million. Staff estimates that the capital or other non-labor costs associated with the information requests are minimal. While the information requests may necessitate that industry members store copies of the requested information provided to the Commission, industry members should already have in place the means to do so. Even if an industry member should find it necessary to purchase a storage device-- which conceivably might be served by a cardboard box or comparable item--the cost of any such device annualized over its useful life likely would be very minimal. In addition, industry members may have to purchase office supplies such as file folders, computer diskettes, photocopier toner, or paper in order to comply with the Commission's information requests. Staff estimates that each industry member would spend $500 for such costs regarding the information requests, for a total additional non-labor cost burden of $37,500 ($500 x 75 members). B. Consumer Research 1. Description of the Collection of Information and Proposed Use The FTC also proposes to conduct focus groups of 150 children between the ages of 13 and 16, and survey 1,000 parents having a child between the ages of 7 and 17 in order to gather specific information on their perceptions of the entertainment rating or labeling systems. This information will be collected on a voluntary basis, and the identities of the consumers will remain confidential. The FTC will contract with a consumer research firm to identify [[Page 46394]] consumers and conduct the focus groups and the survey. The results will assist the FTC in determining whether and how consumers use the rating or labeling systems of the motion picture, recording, and video, computer, and coin operated game industries. 2. Estimated Hours Burden The FTC will contract with a survey firm to: (1) Identify and conduct focus groups on 150 children between the ages of 13 and 16; and (2) identify and survey 1,000 parents with children between the ages of 7 and 17. For the focus groups, the contractor will identify respondents either by drawing names from a pre-assembled teen list or by conducting telephone screening within the general population. If telephone screening, the contractor would contact parents and ask whether a child in the household between the ages of 13 and 16 will participate in a focus group. Staff estimates that the screener will be asked of approximately 2,500 respondents in order to obtain a large enough random sample for the focus groups. For the parental telephone survey, the contractor will first identify respondents using a screening question in its monthly omnibus telephone survey and then ask whether respondents, with a child between the ages of 7 and 17, would participate in the survey. Allowing for non-response, the screener question will be asked of approximately 3,500 respondents, as screening that number will provide a large enough random sample for this survey. The FTC staff estimates that the screening for the focus groups and the survey will consume no more than two minutes of each respondent's time. Thus, cumulatively, screening should require approximately 200 hours (6,000 total respondents x 2 minutes for each). The FTC will pretest the parental survey on 24 respondents to ensure that all questions are easily understood. This pretest will take approximately 15 minutes per person. The hours burden imposed by the pretest will be approximately 6 hours (24 respondents x 15 minutes per survey). Participating in the focus groups will take approximately one hour per respondent, with a total burden of 150 hours. Answering the parental survey will impose a burden per respondent of approximately 15 minutes, totaling 250 hours for all respondents to the survey (1,000 respondents x 15 minutes per survey). Thus, total hours burden attributable to the consumer research will approximate 606 hours (200 + 6 + 150 + 250). 3. Estimated Cost Burden The cost per respondent should be negligible. Participation is voluntary, and will not require any labor expenditures by respondents. There are no capital, start-up, operation, maintenance, or other similar costs to the respondents. By direction of the Commission. Donald S. Clark, Secretary. [FR Doc. 99-22016 Filed 8-24-99; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6750-01-P