LEDE: Pencils down! Tuesday was the deadline for people submitting comments to the Federal Communications Commission on the Charter Communications-Time Warner Cable merger — bringing last minute filings from opponents of the deal.
Among the opponents of the deal is Dish, which said in a filing that “[by] and large, the proposed transaction would be no better for the public interest than the one proposed between Comcast and TWC.” That puts them at odds with supporters of the deal, including Netflix.
{mosads}Opposition also came from public interest groups. Free Press filed a petition to deny the merger based on what it said would be detrimental effects on the online video market. Public Knowledge, Common Cause, Consumer Watchdog and Open MIC joined on a petition to deny as well.
“Like it did in the failed Comcast/Time Warner Cable merger proposal, the FCC must ensure that the increased market power this deal would give Charter would not harm competition, diversity of programming, or the public interest,” said Public Knowledge’s John Bergmayer in a statement.
In addition to some companies, Charter has support from a range of non-profits. It has donated to some of the organizations, leading many to draw a comparison with Comcast’s effort to lobby regulators when it was trying to buy Time Warner.
Others have urged the FCC to pause its consideration of the deal. That includes the National Association of Broadcasters, who asked the commission to wait on its merger review until it finishes its own survey of media ownership
But the comments process still has a few more weeks to go. Officially, Nov. 2 is the deadline for reply comments — and the petition filers have until Nov. 12 to offer their counter arguments.
CONGRESS PRESSES ADMINISTRATION ON SAFE HARBOR DEAL: A group of more than 55 senators and House members are pressing the Commerce Department and Federal Trade Commission to finalize a long negotiated agreement with the European Union that authorizes tech companies to transfer data between nations. With a sense of urgency after a European court recently struck down the previous safe harbor agreement, the lawmakers also urged the administration to outline interim guidance to companies until the final agreement is in place. The letter sent Wednesday was signed by bipartisan leaders of the House and Senate Commerce committees.
JUDGE QUESTIONS ‘BALLOT SELFIE’ LAW: A federal judge this week seemed critical of an Indiana law that bans voters from taking a photo of their own ballot, according to USA Today. Those “ballot selfie” prohibitions have received periodic media attention as smartphones become ubiquitous. Judge Sarah Evans Barker held a hearing this week after the American Civil Liberties Union filed a lawsuit, charging that the law violates the First Amendment.
TRUMP COULD TRIGGER TIME REQUIREMENTS: Donald Trump’s plan to host Saturday Night Live Next month will likely trigger the Federal Communications Commission’s equal opportunities clause, according to Broadcasting and Cable. The clause requires TV stations to give candidates an equal opportunity to get on air, when one candidate appears on a non-news program. The report notes the clause is a different from the so-called fairness doctrine, which was scrapped in 2011.
ZUCKERBERG CALLS FOR PRISON REFORM: Mark Zuckerberg said in a post on Tuesday night that he had visited a coding program at California’s San Quentin prison and called for reform to America’s incarceration system. “Making our criminal justice system fairer and more effective is a huge challenge for our country,” he wrote. “I’m going to keep learning about this topic, but some things are already clear. We can’t jail our way to a just society, and our current system isn’t working.” The program he visited, Code.7370, gives prisoners a chance to learn about programming.
THE VIRTUAL REALITY DEBATE: Virtual reality is not quite ready — that was the takeaway from one Wired reporter who watched the entire CNN Democratic debate with a headset designed by Gear VR and synced with cameras on the stage. Aside from the subpar picture, the reporter noted that he missed everything else happening on social media and the web because he was trapped inside the headset. But the company behind the gear said it is working on adding more features to combat that criticism.
MARK YOUR CALENDARS: House E&C hearing on broadcast ownership rules will reconvene on October 21 at 2 p.m. The committee’s last attempt to hold the hearing was interrupted by the surprise announcement that Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) would vacate his post.
BERNIE’S BIG TWITTER AD BUY: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who is running for president as a Democrat, paid six figures to buy Twitter’s top trending hashtag during Tuesday’s debate, the Wall Street Journal confirmed on Wednesday. Twitter has made a big push to political advertisers this year, and part of that has been pushing their tools for targeting voters who are watching live television events like debates.
SQUARE FILES FOR IPO: Jack Dorsey’s payments company is going public, as expected. The company plans to trade on the NYSE with the symbol SQ. One of the risks listed for the company is that “Jack Dorsey, our co-founder, President, and Chief Executive Officer, also serves as Chief Executive Officer of Twitter. This may at times adversely affect his ability to devote time, attention, and effort to Square.” View the S-1 here.
ON TAP:
At 9 a.m., the Atlantic Council hosts an event on cyber risks.
At noon, GW hosts an event on zero-rating and net neutrality.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
Major technology companies on Wednesday suggested a number of best practices for removing or addressing so-called revenge porn on their platforms.
It only takes a small number of comments on social media to catch the attention of Capitol Hill, according to a survey of congressional staffers released on Wednesday.
Researchers might have uncovered Volkswagen’s deceptive emissions software sooner if not for a portion of copyright law, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wrote in an op-ed this week.
Librarians are warning that a cybersecurity bill about to hit the Senate floor could help the government spy on people using library computers.
Satellite TV provider Dish Network has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to block the merger of Time Warner Cable and Charter Communications.
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