FCC's Delay on Comcast/TWC Seen Strengthening Calls for Delay in California, New York Reviews
The FCC Media Bureau’s temporary suspension of pleading schedules for AT&T's planned buy of DirecTV and Comcast/Time Warner Cable (see 1410220058) is likely to strengthen the cases of those calling for delays of Comcast/TWC reviews at the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) and New York Public Service Commission (PSC), parties in those states’ reviews told us. The CPUC is evaluating a new timeline for its review based on recommendations from its Office of Ratepayer Advocates and public interest groups (see 1410150092), while the New York PSC is to vote on its review Nov. 13. Public interest groups in California and New York are concerned that programmers’ objections to the disclosure of confidential documents will preclude the groups from effectively participating in the reviews. The FCC cited similar concerns at the federal level as the main reason to suspend its pleading cycle for the deal.
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The FCC’s Wednesday order doesn’t fundamentally change CPUC consideration of a new timeline because it had already temporarily paused its Comcast/TWC review, said Greenlining Institute Legal Counsel Paul Goodman. The CPUC had delayed its review in response to the FCC’s pause earlier this month of the Comcast/TWC shot clock. A CPUC administrative law judge ruled last week on some aspects of the dispute over the scope of document requests, but declined to set a new schedule for the review (see 1410170049). “We anticipated that the FCC would extend the timeline” and expect the CPUC will “follow suit,” Goodman said. “The FCC really can't move until the spat over programming-related documents is resolved,” and the state body doesn't want to get ahead of the federal agency, he said. Greenlining and others have advocated for the CPUC to revise its schedule so it would rule on Comcast/TWC by mid-April on the expectation that FCC review would end by May, something Greenlining still expects will happen, Goodman said.
The FCC order is “essentially open-ended,” so it doesn’t provide much certainty to how the CPUC will revise its schedule in response, said Media Alliance Executive Director Tracy Rosenberg. The situation pits Comcast’s desire for quick reviews at the federal and state levels against its handling of confidentiality concerns, she said. “Comcast and the other telcos have some options about how big a deal they want to make out of these issues, but at least from our perspective a delay is desirable.” A Comcast spokeswoman said she couldn’t speak specifically to the effect the FCC schedule would have on the CPUC and PSC reviews, but said the FCC and state reviews involve “many issues outside of the programming agreements” that will continue to get regulatory review.
Common Cause New York is hoping the PSC will again delay a decision on its Comcast/TWC review, a spokeswoman said. “We’d like to see them hold off on their decision and not get ahead of the FCC." The PSC is to vote on its Comcast/TWC decision Nov. 13 and issue a final order Nov. 19, but disputes about document confidentiality are ongoing (see 1410210041). A PSC spokesman didn’t comment.