Groups representing the deaf and hard of hearing told the FCC it needs to mandate that emergency alerts appear on wireless devices, and recommends that streaming services like Netflix and Hulu carry them as well.

That came in comments on the FCC's inquiry into how to improve its EAS emergency alert system.

The FCC is under orders from Congress to report back on the feasibility of extending the EAS mandate to over-the-top video given the rise in popularity of video streaming services.

The groups focused mainly on wireless and the need for those who have cut the TV cord to be able to get alerts via their smartphones, but in a footnote they also said: "It is also recommended that messages be sent through streaming services so as to be accessible even for consumers who have cut the cord."

They also put in a pitch for government grants to nonprofits (like themselves) "that have direct engagement with the disability community," so that they can "encourage further training and awareness on how to enhance emergency communications, awareness, preparation, and responses."

Among the 20 groups joining in the comments were Telecommunications for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc. (“TDI”), AccesSOS, American Deafness and Rehabilitation Association (ADARA), and the Clear2Connect Coalition.

Streamers have argued their OTT services should not be required to participate in that system, saying it would not appreciably increase the number of people who get such alerts, but would appreciably increase the burden on streamers if they were required to deliver them. And the obligation would not just be on the major streaming video services, they said, but Peleton, and even online instructional yoga videos.

Broadcasters and cable operators agree that streaming companies should not be required to carry the alerts.

Cable broadband operators have told the FCC that the combination of already-required broadcast, cable and wireless alerts "are more than sufficient to convey timely and relevant emergency and public safety information to the public." ■

It's always sunny in Washington these days when it comes to FCC meeting votes as the commissioners continued to vote on noncontroversial items this week--there were plenty of commissioner "thank yous" and mutual congratulations at the December 14 public meeting--even as the fate of Democratic nominee Gigi Sohn, who would be the majority vote in decisions on politically divisive issues like media and broadband access reregulation, got cloudier.

At its December public meeting, the commissioners unanimously approved items 1) seeking comment on improving the competitive bidding process for E-rate broadband subsidy money, 2) seeking to make it easier to launch low-earth-orbit-satellites that could provide broadband service with higher speeds and lower latencies, and 3) proposing to "improve the clarity and descriptiveness" of visual elements of emergency alerts--and potentially the amount of visual information--and to require broadcasters, cable operators and other Emergency Alert System 9EAS) users to prioritize using the internet-based delivery version of the alerts rather then the legacy "over-the-air" versions," given the internet-based version's superior quality.

Until the FCC is no longer at a political 2-2 tie, chairperson Jessica Rosenworcel won't be able to tackle issues like restoring net neutrality rules against blocking, throttling and paid prioritization, as she has signaled she would like to do, and the Biden Administration supports, or restoring some of the media ownership regulations eliminated by the former, Republican majority, FCC.

Also: Streamers Say They Should Not Have EAS Mandate

The EAS item took on added import given the tornadoes that tore through the South last week leaving many dead and homeless. 

"It is hard to know what kind of warning is adequate when freak weather like this comes along," said Rosenworcel at the meeting. "But we do know that we are seeing these kinds of storms with greater frequency.  And I think we have a responsibility to improve the warning systems we have, to get people the news they need in an emergency.....[T]he agency’s Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau has been in close contact with FEMA, state and local emergency managers, carriers, and broadcasters in the states the tornado visited last week," she said. "We know that improving outreach is vital and that keeping our alerting practices up-to-date is essential—and that is what we seek to do here."

The FCC on Tuesday (December 14) activated its voluntary Disaster Information Reporting System (DIRS) for the Kentucky tornadoes asking that service providers--broadcast, cable, telco--provide outages and disruptions in the counties of Breckinridge, Bullitt, Caldwell, Fulton, Graves, Grayson, Hickman, Hopkins, Lyon, Marshall, Meade, Muhlenberg, Ohio, Shelby, Spencer, Taylor, Warren.

The FCC wants the reports by 10 a.m. Wednesday (December 15) and every subsequent day until it deactivates DIRS.

On the Sohn nomination front, Law 360 was reporting that a coalition of Hispanic organizations was preparing to urge the President to pick a Hispanic nominee if Sohn's nomination is withdrawn.

The League of Latin American Citizens (LULAC) last month wrote Senate Commerce chairwoman Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.) asking her to oppose Sohn's nomination citing her support from some conservative media outlets. Those outlets had benefitted from her advocacy for carriage of more diverse independent voices on large distribution platforms, including conservative voices with which she strongly disagreed. 

Supporters believe she still has the Democratic Senate votes for approval, but Republicans have been pushing back hard citing her past positions as head of advocacy group Public Knowledge, some of her Tweets about Fox News, and her support for Title II-based net neutrality rules, which she advocated for as a top aide to then FCC chair Tom Wheeler.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) has pledged to put a hold on the nomination if need be, after asking that the nomination be withdrawn.

Sohn would be the first openly gay FCC commissioner, a point President Biden made when he nominated her. ■

The FCC has proposed to fine ESPN $20,000 for violating, apparently willfully it said, the rules against transmitting a false emergency alert system (EAS) code or signal or a simulation.

The proposed fine--ESPN can still dispute it--stems from an Oct. 27 30 for 30: Roll Tide/War Eagle program about the rivalry between Alabama and Auburn.

ESPN admitted that it had included a portion of the EAS signal "in association with the depiction of a weather event “for storytelling purposes," pointed out that it could not have triggered any automated response and that it only lasted 1.83 seconds.

The FCC said that although the show may have only used a portion of the alert, it was still a willful violation of its rules that deserved a forfeiture.

While the FCC's base fine is $8,000 per violation, it decided to adjust it upward based in part on what it said was ESPN's a history of noncompliance with the EAS rules, pointing to a 2015 $280,000 forfeiture for transmitting unauthorized EAS tones, saying: "We find ESPN’s prior history of violations to be a significant factor to consider in determining the proposed forfeiture in this case."

Cable broadband operators said the FCC should not extend emergency alert system (EAS) warning requirements to Internet service providers or streaming services, arguing that the combination of already-required broadcast, cable and wireless alerts "are more than sufficient to convey timely and relevant emergency and public safety information to the public."

The FCC is under orders from Congress to report back on the feasibility of extending the EAS mandate to over-the-top video given the rise in popularity of video streaming services.

Also Read: Video Streamers Say They Shouldn't Have EAS Mandate

NCTA-the Internet & Television Association told the FCC in comments on that the current system is sufficiently robust to "ensure that consumers nationwide receive accurate and timely information without any need to extend the existing EAS regime to the Internet or Internet Service Providers (ISPs)."

"Today’s WEA (wireless alert) and EAS regimes effectively inform consumers, complement each other well, and provide critical information well-tailored to their respective environments," NCTA told the commission, which should "continue to promote the existing EAS and WEA alert regimes and recommend that Congress refrain from extending legacy EAS obligations to the Internet or to ISPs."

NCTA said that, beyond the EAS alerts cable operators already deliver to their traditional video subs, at least in some limited contexts operators can also deliver alerts to cable subscribers accessing third party streaming services through cable set-tops. That would be through traditional video infrastructure so it wouldn't extend to broadband-only subscribers or cable customers accessing streaming services on other devices.

NCTA said any requirement for ISPs to provide EAS in those circumstances is "technically infeasible," which echoed earlier comments by the National Association of Broadcasters in comments.

"[T]here is no need to extend the legacy EAS model to the Internet or ISPs, whether via an obligation on broadband networks, online services, or otherwise," NCTA said.

One "otherwise" suggestion -- offered up by network TV station affiliates -- would be a TV-station carriage mandate on online services as there already is on traditional cable and satellite video services.

NCTA also had a fallback position if the FCC concludes it wants to extend EAS online.

The trade group said that while it advised no change, any expansion of the system beyond current participants would require extensive study and coordination given the challenges posed. NCTA said that the FCC should first put together a multi stakeholder group to "evaluate the alerting ecosystem as a whole and how best to reach consumers given changing consumer preferences."

The National Association of Broadcasters and the network affiliate broadcaster associations are giving the FCC a lot to think about when it comes to whether to extend emergency alert requirements to over-the-top video services.

In comments filed last month, NAB said for a number of reasons streamers weren't equipped to deliver the alerts. Network affiliates suggested in their own comments this week that, if that were the case, there was a ready solution. All those streamers need to do is carry local TV station signals on their streaming services, which they are pushing the FCC to mandate.

"[T]he Four Affiliates Associations urge the Commission to note in its forthcoming report to Congress that Internet-based streaming services can and should be required to carry local broadcast signals in every market, to ensure that EAS information and other emergency warnings reach all viewers in every market across the country," the affiliates said. 

And, taking a page from the satellite-TV carriage requirement, they argue if the streamers carry one such stream, they can and should carry them all.

In reply comments on the FCC's inquiry for a report back to Congress into whether streamers should be delivering alerts, given the rise in popularity of streaming services like those co-owned with ABC (Disney Plus), CBS (Paramount Plus) and NBC (Peacock), the affiliate associations representing ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox said that sounded about right to them.

As the networks move their programming to online platforms, affiliated stations are concerned about being cut out of the equation or their network programming losing ad dollars and viewers to the online versions.

Also Read: Disney Finishes Upfront with 40% of Ad Dollars Going to Streaming

In reply comments this week on the FCC's inquiry about whether or not streamers should be delivering alerts, given the rise in popularity of streaming services like those co-owned with ABC (Disney Plus), CBS (Paramount Plus) and NBC (Peacock), the affiliate associations representing ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox said it sounded about right to them that streaming services should provide alerts by carrying local stations.

"The Four Affiliates Associations recognize that, in order to best fulfill the public informational and safety purposes underlying the EAS, alerts must be made available not only to those viewers watching the over-the-air streams of television broadcasters in their local communities (or via local broadcasters’ streams on traditional multichannel video programming distributors), but also those who primarily or exclusively rely on streaming or other Internet-based distribution services to access video programming," the affiliates told the FCC Monday (June 14). "Unless and until EAS obligations are extended to Internet-based programming distribution platforms, those platforms’ viewer/subscribers are at risk of missing the essential emergency information made available by local television broadcasters," the affiliates said. 

As a result, they urged the FCC to tell Congress that streaming services should be required to deliver alerts. 

They point out that "some commenters," including streaming services, have objected to the EAS obligation, saying it can't be done or that it is "duplicative, unnecessary, and [would] likely lead to viewer exhaustion.”

But while the stations cite AT&T and the Motion Picture Association (whose members include the studios behind Disney Plus, Hulu, ESPN Plus, Peacock, Paramount Plus and HBO Max) for making arguments against the streaming mandate, those "others" also included NAB, which argued that the technological challenges make it "extremely burdensome, and likely infeasible, to update the EAS system to enable alerts to consumers provided through the internet, including through streaming devices." (Later, NCTA also said it thought streamers should not be required to carry EAS messages, because existing media do the job adequately.)

NAB said its position was that the FCC should not require streamers to provide their own alerts, but a spokesperson told NextTV the association had taken no position about reaching streaming audiences by requiring those services to carry local TV signals. NAB's position was based on the feasibility, or lack of it, of streaming services doing their own alerts and stopped short of taking the affiliates' next step of mandating the broadcast solution, the spokesperson said.

The affiliates said that streaming services' arguments against compliance "defy common sense and ignore the importance of ensuring that all television viewers are alerted in times of emergency."

As to infeasibility, "streaming services are not ill-equipped to distribute EAS information, and no wholesale reconfiguration of Internet-based programming distribution technology would be needed to guarantee that appropriately targeted EAS information reaches viewers via streaming platforms," the network-affiliated stations told the FCC.

They said that streaming services can carry the live feeds of broadcasters in the communities the streamers serve. "This has previously been accomplished within the contexts of cable and satellite. It can work just fine with streaming services as well."  

They point out that some streaming platforms have been able -- even eager -- to negotiate broadcast station carriage, suggesting that the refusal by others to include live, local programming "is a choice, not an insurmountable obstacle — technological or otherwise."

Also Read: Streamers Say They Shouldn't Have to Relay Emergency Alerts

The companies behind the top streaming services agreed with the FCC that delivering potentially life-saving emergency alert information to the public is of "paramount importance," but they argued their OTT services should not be required to participate in that system, saying it would not appreciably increase the number of people who get such alerts but would appreciably increase the burden on streamers if they were required to deliver them.

The companies behind the top streaming services agreed with the FCC that delivering potentially life-saving emergency alert information to the public is of "paramount importance," but they argued their OTT services should not be required to participate in that system, saying it would not appreciably increase the number of people who get such alerts, but would appreciably increase the burden on streamers if they were required to deliver them.

And the obligation would not just be on the major streaming video services, they said, but Peleton, and even online instructional yoga videos.

Broadcasters agreed that streaming companies should not be required to carry the alerts.

The streamers argued the FCC's Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alert System (WEAS) are already robust programs that ensure "timely and relevant" alerts get to the public, which the FCC is making better in the proceeding on which the commission sought comment.

One of the comments the FCC wanted was whether those improvements should include extending the alerts beyond traditional media to the new, and burgeoning, streaming services. Congress mandated that the FCC explore extending alerts to over-the-top.

The Motion Picture Association, whose members include the studios behind Disney Plus, Hulu, ESPN Plus, Peacock, Paramount Plus, and HBO Max, said no.

"[T]he Commission should advise Congress that it should not seek to expand the class of entities required to participate in EAS to include streaming services," they said, adding to do so would could create "alert fatigue," not to mention being "tremendously burdensome" if not "entirely impracticable" as a technical matter, they said in comments to the FCC.

On that last point, they echoed arguments long made against defining over-the-top services as MVPDs.

"Streaming services are less like physical networks and systems that provide EAS today and more similar to the providers of content delivered over such systems." Like an individual broadcast network or cable channel, they said, "because such content providers do not control the underlying distribution architecture, do not have knowledge of where a particular end user receiving their content over such distribution architecture might be located, and are far greater in number than the EAS participants, these individual content providers are not responsible for delivery of EAS alerts."

The FCC's EAS obligation is imposed on individual TV stations and cable systems, not the content providers.

Among the technical challenges they cite:

1. "Streaming services’ relative lack of knowledge as to a user’s precise location;

2. "Difficulties in geographically targeting alerts in a service that is provided on a nationwide basis and delivered over the public Internet; and

3. "The total impracticability of streaming services monitoring for, ingesting, and delivering EAS alerts."

They said any of those demonstrates the infeasibility of applying alert mandates to them.

Broadcasters are telling the FCC that over-the-top video providers can't be relied on to relay emergency alerts, saying that, at least currently, the technological challenges make it "extremely burdensome, and likely infeasible, to update the EAS system to enable alerts to consumers provided through the internet, including through streaming devices."

With streaming growing in popularity, the FCC is asking whether over-the-top video providers should be required to provide the alerts in preparation for a report to Congress, which directed the FCC to look into expanding EAS online NAB wants that report to conclude it is not time to extend EAS to over the top.

Emergency communications along with local news are among broadcasters' biggest talking points when it comes to asserting their continuing importance, and differentiation from the over-the-top services that have multiplied during the pandemic, AT&T's merger with Discovery assets Monday (May 17), for example, was all about creating stronger over-the-top video services.

The National Association of Broadcasters told the FCC in comments on the issue of EAS on OTT that expanding the Emergency Alert System to Internet services would be extremely difficult, and that as far as it knows no pure play streaming service is currently supporting EAS alerts.

NAB said the problem with EAS streaming is two-fold. First, web-based architecture does not usually contemplate the kind of localized infrastructure that allows for monitoring alerts based on geography or event type. Second, the "limitless" nature of streaming "makes it virtually impossible to geo-target the transmission of EAS alerts" to the consumers for whom it is relevant.

As to using IP addresses to target, NAB points out that 31% of all internet users use a VPN, which are designed to enhance privacy by masking IP addresses.

"Without accurate location information, streaming services have no way of discerning where the consumer is located," said NAB. "For example, a viewer in California could be streaming a Virginia-based TV station’s newscast, or streaming a Florida-based radio station while in O’Hare Airport. This could lead to dangerous confusion if EAS alerts are not properly distributed to only the relevant areas or consumers. Also, if consumers are inundated with irrelevant alerts from streaming services because of an inability to accurately geofence distribution, it could desensitize the public to EAS alerts, causing them to ignore alerts of particular importance."

NAB also raised some shadows over streamers about the FCC's ability to monitor them. "[O]nline video and audio streamers like Netflix, Hulu and Spotify are generally unregulated by the Commission," it said, adding that "many streaming services are based outside the U.S. or are partially owned by foreign
shareholders." It also said it "understood" that some services are using hardware or servers they don't directly control.

The FCC is scheduled to vote at its next public meeting on opening an inquiry into whether it can or should require new distribution outlets, including websites and streaming services, to deliver emergency alerts.

Currently those alerts are delivered via TV, radio and phone, but Congress in the Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement (READI) Act directed the FCC to "examine the feasibility of modernizing the Emergency Alert System" by expanding it to those platforms.

Also Read: House Passes Communications Bills

That bill also directs the FCC to "facilitate coordination with State Emergency Communications Committees in developing and modernizing State Emergency Alert System plans."

In announcing the agenda for the March 17 meeting, acting FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said the FCC would consider a rulemaking implementing the READI Act mandate by proposing "new rules to keep the public safe and informed during emergencies and disasters, and an inquiry on whether it would be possible to deliver emergency alerts via other forms of communications."

Also Read: Senate Commerce Approves READI Act Redux

The FCC will release a draft of the rulemaking Wednesday (Feb. 24).

The House has passed three bipartisan bills to strengthen communications networks, including one exploring whether to extend emergency alert mandates to the internet and streaming services.

H.R. 6096, the Reliable Emergency Alert Distribution Improvement (READI) Act of 2020 requires the FCC to "examine the feasibility of modernizing the Emergency Alert System by expanding alert distribution to the internet and streaming services." It also amends the Warning, Alert, and Response Network Act "to classify emergency alerts from the Federal Emergency Management Agency as a type of alert that commercial mobile service providers may not allow subscribers to block from their devices." It also directs the FCC to "facilitate coordination with State Emergency Communications Committees in developing and modernizing State Emergency Alert System plans."

H.R. 6624, the Utilizing Strategic Allied (USA) Telecommunications Act of 2020 "creates a new grant program through the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) to promote technology that enhances supply chain security and market competitiveness in wireless communications networks."

H.R. 7310, the Spectrum IT Modernization Act of 2020, requires the National Telecommunications & Information Administration to report to Congress on any plans to modernize its IT systems on managing federal spectrum.

All three passed by voice vote.

“From keeping Americans better informed during emergencies to promoting 5G coordination, competitiveness and security, these three bills will create a better, safer communications network for us all,” said House Energy & Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Communications Subcommittee Chairman Mike Doyle (D-Pa.). The bills came out of the E&C committee. “At its core, our telecommunications infrastructure exists to serve the public interest and connect our nation, and we are proud of the bipartisan work that went into advancing that goal with these three bills. We thank all our colleagues for working with us to get such important legislation passed today," they said.

E&C ranking member Greg Walden (R-Ore.) and Communications ranking member Bob Latta (R-Ohio) said of the votes: “The COVID-19 pandemic put a much-needed focus on the need to ensure all Americans are connected, especially during times of emergency, and that our networks are secure. The bipartisan bills passed today help accomplish these goals by investing in our communications infrastructure, promoting secure technology development, and ensuring preparedness for future emergencies. We thank our colleagues for coming together to pass these bipartisan bills and urge the Senate to take swift action."

Mobile net software provider Mavenir praised passage of the USA Telecommunications Act, which the company called "another step forward in modernizing our nation’s mobile networks and promoting a more competitive and innovative 5G ecosystem," adding: "We welcome this widespread support for programs that support OpenRAN deployment, which will make a meaningful difference for the operators and vendors committed to fostering a more diverse supply of secure 5G infrastructure."

Broadcasters and cable operators will need to bone up for a test this fall.

The FCC has set Sept. 28, 2016, at 2:20 p.m. for a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS).

The backup date is Oct. 5 and broadcasters and cable operators, who have to participate in the test, must be ready for either date.

The FCC is conducting the test in coordination with FEMA, with a focus on FEMA’s Integrated Public Alert and Warning System (IPAWS) that disseminates the alerts to the various participants.

Related: Senate Passes Emergency Warning Update Bill.

IPAWS delivers alerts to multiple platforms (TV, radio, cellphones, computers, home phones and electronic billboards). IPAWS allows emergency authorities to write their own messages, authenticates them and delivers them to the various platforms.

"The Emergency Alert System is our national public warning system," FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler said back in January as the FCC voted to give local communities more say in alerts and seek stakeholder comment on the future of the system. "We most often associate the EAS with severe weather warnings.  But in recent months we’ve seen attacks in Paris, San Bernardino, and other locations that remind us of the many scenarios where community preparedness and incident response tools are vital.

Participants must register for the test by Aug. 26, and are advised to get ready by, among other things, upgrading their EAS software and firmware and synchronize their clocks.

The FCC also wants the viewing and listening public to weigh in with any problems they observe.