Senate Panel to Scrutinize SHVIA Renewal

[Chris Blount]

On Tuesday, the Senate Commerce Committee will hold a hearing on reauthorization of the Satellite Home Viewer Improvement Act. The committee's chair - Arizona Republican John McCain - will preside over the event.

Those scheduled to testify are EchoStar Chairman and CEO Charles Ergen, Barrington Broadcasting CEO Jim Yager, DirecTV Vice Chairman Eddy Hartenstein, Telemundo Vice President and General Manager Araceli De Leo, and Public Knowledge President and Co-Founder Gigi B. Sohn.

Tuesday's hearing will be the first for the Senate concerning SHVIA matters. Two House subcommittees - the Telecommunications and Internet Subcommittee and Courts, Internet and Intellectual Property Subcommittee - have held hearings on SHVIA's renewal.

http://www.skyreport.com (Used with permission)

[Frank Z]

Chris,
Give me your best guess. Will we see E* broadcasting national feeds (HD) to subscribers that do not have a local station broadcasting a DTV signal? From what liitle I've read it looks bleak, but I'm hoping for a more enlightened opinion.

[FTA Michael]

My best guess, whenever I'm guessing about the outcome of deliberations in Congress, starts with the question: Which outcome will most benefit large businesses? In this case, the largest business/lobbying group involved is the NAB.

Sometimes this algorithm is wrong, which makes for a pleasant surprise. :)

[Nick]

Who are these other (non-DBS) people who will try to influence Congress on what we can and can't watch on TV? I subscribe to the old maxim that we should 'hold our friends close, and our enemies even closer'.

http://www.mediamanagementcenter.org/center/web/inside/directories/advisory/pix/yager.jpg
Jim Yager (http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA375427?display=Top+of+the+Week), Bankruptcy (http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA205383?display=Top+of+the+Week), Bio with bankruptcy omitted (http://www.mediamanagementcenter.org/center/web/inside/directories/advisory/yager.htm), 1999 testimony on SHVA (http://www.nab.org/Newsroom/Issues/shva/yager1.asp)

Yager is an attack dog for the NAB.


http://images.google.com/images?q=tbn:gdMA89jlP64J:www.current.org/dtv/dtv903a2.gif
Gigi Sohn (www.publicknowledge.org/about-us/staff.html#gigi) www.publicknowledge.com

Although PublicKnowledge.Org. purports itself to be an industry watchdog, defending the public airwaves, I have yet to determine what their real agenda is. Why Ms. Sohn is slated to testify, I don't know. Reauthorization of SHVIA isn't currently listed on the PK.Org website as an "issue", or even as "pending legislation". The organization's interests ostensibly tend toward digital copyright issues and defense of the public domain.

One current issue PK has aggressively taken on in the public interest is the SDMCA (http://www.publicknowledge.org/content/policy-papers/sdmca-grassroots-toolkit/view). If you don't know what that is, you better read up. It could potentially adversely affect your right to purchase and use consumer electronics products.


Araceli De Leo, Vice President and General Manager of Telemundo (www.telemundo.com). No information found.