Spring is in the air, the upfront march to May has begun, and here are some notable items on MCN editors’ datebooks for the week ahead.

What's Up in Tech
Watch for wireless-industry news this week from Barcelona, Spain, where Mobile World Congress gets underway. 5G, the emerging next-generation standard, will take center stage as both carriers and vendors are expected to present more detail about early, precommercial trials of the technology, which will initially enable multi-Gigabit access speeds for fixed-wireless applications and will later support mobility. Its low-latency characteristics will also support more futuristic applications such as self-driving cars. For cable operators, 5G is expected to become a significant focus as they continue to build out wireless and mobile strategies of their own: Comcast, Charter Communications and Dish Network all talked up 5G prospects on their most recent earnings calls. The emergence of 5G is also poised to open the door to potentially lucrative backhaul deals, as mobile service providers will need to tap into fiber-rich networks to support their new, high-capacity wireless networks.
— Jeff Baumgartner|Follow @thebauminator on Twitter

What's On TV
Upfront season gets underway as Nickelodeon on Thursday afternoon (March 2) makes its pitches to buyers and media in New York. Smithsonian Channel chronicles former President Barack Obama’s most impactful speeches in a Monday (Feb. 27) documentary, The Obama Years: The Power of Words, while Spike TV on Wednesday (March 1) debuts its six-part true-crime documentary series Time: The Kalief Browder Story.

On the scripted front, FX on Sunday (March 5) premieres Feud: Bette and Joan (pictured) -- read the MCN review. E! that same day will launch its second scripted series, The Arrangement. OTT service Hulu on Wednesday debuts drama series National Treasure, based on a hit U.K. series. And FX’s freshman series Taboo airs its season finale on Tuesday (Feb. 28) after an eight-episode run.
— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

What's Up in Finance
Bold-faced names in media circles gather once again for Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media & Telecom conference, Monday-Thursday (Feb. 27-March 1) at San Francisco’s Palace Hotel, with Comcast chairman and CEO Brian Roberts expected to kick things off on Monday evening. On Tuesday, the slate gets thicker with 21st Century Fox executive chairman Lachlan Murdoch, followed by Nielsen chief financial officer Jamere Jackson and Verizon Communications CFO Matt Ellis. Charter Communications CFO Christopher Winfrey, Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei and Viacom CEO Bob Bakish have their turn at the podium on Wednesday.
— Mike Farrell|Follow @mikefcable on Twitter

Heading into Valentine’s Day, here is a look at what’s on the datebooks ofMCNeditors this week and next.

ON TV

Valentine’s Day will see the return of Hulu’s long-running comedy The Mindy Project, as well as You Me Her, the sophomore series from DirecTV’s The Audience Network. Oxygen returns veteran series Bad Girls Club that night and launches new competition series The Battle of the Ex-Besties. The latter two shows might not find a fit after the NBCUniversal outlet revamps into a true-crime channel this summer.

Animal and nature lovers take note: on Feb. 18 BBC America unveils the high-profile documentary miniseries Planet Earth II, and Animal Planet debuts new unscripted series The Zoo. Nat Geo Wild, meanwhile, had slated a Feb. 20 kick-off for its seventh annual “Big Cat Week.”

Several scripted series will launch new seasons over the next two weeks, including A&E’s Bates Motel, which premieres its fifth and final season on Feb. 20. Sophomore season premieres include Showtime’s Billions (Feb. 19), AMC ’s sci-fi series Humans (Feb. 13), Crackle’s animated series SuperMansion (Feb. 16) and TBS’s comedy The Detour (Feb. 21).

New shows making their debuts include HBO’s miniseries Big Little Lies(with Nicole Kidman, Reese Witherspoon and Shailene Woodley, pictured, and Laura Dern) and comedy series Crashing (Feb. 19); VH1’s The Breaks (Feb. 20); CMT ’s Sun Records (Feb. 23); and Amazon’s Patriot (Feb. 24).

Meanwhile, HBO’s The Young Pope will wrap up its freshman campaign on Feb. 13.

Finally, on Feb. 26 the movie industry will salute itself during the 89th Annual Academy Awards, televised live on broadcast network ABC.

IN D.C.

At press time no witnesses had been announced, but the newly renamed House Energy & Commerce Committee Subcommittee on Digital Commerce and Consumer Protection has scheduled a Feb. 15 hearing on self-driving cars, the future of which is linked to high-speed broadband and high-band spectrum.

The Federal Communications Commission is holding a public meeting on Feb. 23 that will include votes on broadband subsidy program reforms; authorizing broadcasters to roll out the new ATSC 3.0 transmission standard, including asking how that will and should affect retransmission-consent compensation; and a vote to reinstate and extend smaller Internet service providers’ waiver from the Open Internet order’s enhanced transparency requirements for five years and boost the trigger from 100,000 to 250,000 or fewer customers.

New FCC chairman Ajit Pai on Feb. 16 will address the North American Broadcasters Association, a collection of broadcasting organizations in Canada, the United States and Mexico. The speech will be at the National Association of Broadcasters headquarters in Washington; NAB is a member.

Now that the pro football season is over -- and congrats to the Super Bowl LI winner -- these are some circled dates on the calendars of Multichannel Newseditors the week of Feb. 6.

The Wednesday (Feb. 8) premiere of FX’s thriller Legion(pictured) leads the list of scripted series debuts this week, including Comedy Central’s Detroiters and Bravo’s drama series Imposters, both bowing on Tuesday (Feb. 7). Amazon will launch its French-U.K. period drama series The Collection on Friday (Feb. 10).

Black-ish star Anthony Anderson’s new Animal Planet talk show, Animal Nation With Anthony Anderson, also premieres Friday.

High-profile series returning this week include cable’s most watched series, AMC’s The Walking Dead, on Sunday (Feb. 12). Also that evening, the HBO comedy Girls will commence its final season and Starz drama anthology series The Missing returns with a new storyline and different characters from season one.

Tonight (Feb. 6), National Geographic Channel teams up with Katie Couric for a two-hour special, Gender Revolution: A Journey With Katie Couric, and singer Michael Bolton hosts the Tuesday premiere of his Netflix show, Michael Bolton’s Big Sexy Valentine’s Day Special, with guest appearances by Fred Armisen, Maya Rudolph and Sarah Silverman.

— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

TECH ON THE TOWN

Some of the industry’s top engineers and tech execs are gathering this week (through Feb. 8) in Orlando, Fla., for the annual CableLabs Winter Conference, where the cable R&D house has set up an event that will run on three tracks: technology, strategy and innovation, and policy. These annual CableLabs events are off-limits to the press, but a draft agenda acquired by Multichannel News provides a sense of the specific topics that will covered and who will be on hand to share their insights.

Per that document, MoffettNathenson’s Craig Moffett will offer a broad overview and analysis of industry trends, and Michael Powell, CEO of NCTA: The Internet & Television Association, is expected to overview policy-related issues of note to the cable industry.

Individual sessions on the slate include ones dedicated to the all-IP migration; enterprise technologies used to power services being delivered to business customers; issues tied to the “Darknet” (overlays of the Internet that enable anonymous and private connectivity); applied machine learning; the use of wireless in unlicensed and shared spectrum; the Internet of Things; and new distributed access architectures.

CableLabs will also host a high-level roundtable that, at last check, featured Comcast’s Tony Werner, Altice USA’s Terry Cordova and Charter Communications’s Jim Blackley.

CableLabs will also hold its Innovation Showcase. Vancouver-based startup mimik Technology took top honors last year, recognized for its personal media cloud technologies.

— Jeff Baumgartner|Follow @thebauminator on Twitter

IN D.C.

On Tuesday (Feb. 7), the Multicultural Media, Telecom and Internet Council (MMTC) holds its eighth annual Broadband and Social Justice Summit. Among the current and former FCC heavyweights scheduled to participate are former chairs Mignon Clyburn (a current commissioner), Michael Copps and Dick Wiley; current chair Ajit Pai; current commissioner Michael O’Rielly; and former commissioner and MMTC board vice chair Deborah Taylor Tate. Legislators include Reps. Tony Cárdenas (D-Calif.); Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.); and A. Donald McEachin and Bobby Scott (both D-Va.).

The Inspector General for the Commerce Department, which oversees government spectrum, is a scheduled witness Wednesday (Feb. 8) at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on improving federal agencies. Also that day, Rep. Greg Walden (R-Ore.), the new chairman of the House Energy & Commerce Committee, will outline his legislative agenda at a Capitol Hill “pen and pan” press conference with the media press corps.

— John Eggerton|Follow @eggerton on Twitter

As the Trump administration heads quietly into week two, here are some datebook items MCN editors are tracking.

ON TV

As sports fans prepare for Super Bowl LI on Feb. 5, Hallmark Channel and Animal Planet are gearing up for their annual counter-programming specials featuring cute animals. Hallmark will launch its fourth annual Kitten Bowl special, while Animal Planet will look to score with non-football fans with Puppy Bowl XIII.

HBO tonight (Jan. 30) premieres the documentary Becoming Warren Buffett, and several new shows will usher in the month of February, including BET’s limited series Madiba (pictured)and drama series The Quad, which both premiere on Wednesday (Feb. 1), and Netflix’s comedy series Santa Clarita Diet starring Drew Barrymore, which debuts Friday (Feb. 3).

Returning shows this week include Freeform’s Switched at Birth on Tuesday (Jan. 31) and Syfy’s The Expanse on Wednesday, the same day History’s Vikings ends season four in epic fashion.

— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

IN D.C.

On Monday (Jan. 30), the Federal Communications Commission will try to goose forward-auction bidders, which include Comcast-NBCUniversal and Dish Network, by increasing the number of rounds from two to four and shortening each from two hours to one. The auction has already met the benchmarks to close after this, the fourth stage of the forward auction, but can’t officially close until there is no demand in any of the 417 geographic areas where the spectrum blocks are located.

New FCC chairman Ajit Pai will preside over his first public meeting in the center seat on Tuesday (Jan. 31). The agenda includes only one item: revisions to public-inspection file requirements, including eliminating the requirement that cable operators keep the location of the cable system’s principal headend in their public inspection files, something that could pose a security threat, cable operators have pointed out.

On Thursday (Feb. 27), the House Communications Subcommittee will hold a reauthorization hearing for the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, which is the president’s chief telecom adviser, including providing input on spectrum and other issues before the FCC. New subcommittee chair Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) will preside.

Senate Commerce Committee chairman John Thune (R-S.D.) has scheduled a hearing for Feb. 1 on “Reducing Unnecessary Regulatory Burdens.” Thune’s office said the hearing will examine “the negative impacts of unnecessarily burdensome regulations on diverse sectors of our nation’s economy” as well as “explore where a smarter regulatory approach would create jobs and spur economic growth.” No communications industry witnesses will speak, but Consumer Technology Association president Gary Shapiro is scheduled to testify.

— John Eggerton|Follow @eggerton on Twitter

With the holidays and the Consumer Electronics Show in the rear mirror, here’s a look at what MCN editors have in their datebooks this week.

PROGRAMMING

This month brings many new seasons of series, and the start of several others. Notable among the newcomers: Taboo, a dark and compelling drama set in 1814 London (while England and the United States were at war) and starring Tom Hardy with a stellar supporting cast (including Oona Chaplin), on FX on Tuesday (Jan. 10); Netflix’s much-anticipated fantasy series Lemony Snicket’sA Series of Unfortunate Events on Friday (Jan. 13) and Amazon’s drama series Sneaky Pete, also on Friday.HBO’s The Young Pope debuts on Sunday (Jan. 15) and, the same night, Showtime’s Homeland returns. A new animated series, Jeff & Some Aliens, lands on Comedy Central on Wednesday (Jan. 11). And the season finale of TNT’s freshman drama series Good Behavior is Tuesday.

Shows returning from hiatus over the next week include BET’s drama series Being Mary Jane and Bravo’s Girlfriends’ Guide to Divorce on Monday (Jan. 9). Pop’s comedy Schitt’s Creek and Comedy Central’s Workaholics return on Wednesday. USA’s sophomore sci-fi series Colony returns, on Thursday (Jan. 12).

The cable-network portion of the Television Critics Association’s winter gathering in Pasadena, Calif., will take place this Friday and Saturday (Jan. 13-14). For more on the TCA Winter Tour and the networks presenting there, see Why Cable’s TCA Still Matters [from the Jan. 9 issue; subscription required].

— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

POLICY

In the nation’s capital, the Federal Communications Commission on Monday (Jan. 9) speeds up bidding in the reverse portion of stage four of the spectrum incentive auction, increasing from three to four rounds a day so that part of the auction will end Friday (Jan. 13). Days later, forward auction bidders, including Comcast, will have a chance to start bidding based on the latest broadcaster exit price.

On Tuesday (Jan. 10), the FCC is expected to circulate the tentative agenda for its Jan. 31 meeting, the first to be presided over by the Republican majority, likely with Ajit Pai as interim chair. The meeting was moved from Jan. 26 to provide more time for that new majority to prepare.

President-elect Donald Trump has said -- tweeted, to be precise -- that he is rescheduling his long-awaited press conference for Wednesday (Jan. 11), though that could push to the next day. While it was initially billed as about his financial holdings and what he planned to do with them while president, his transition team said he would be ready to take questions on other topics as well.

The Senate Commerce Committee will hold a nomination hearing Thursday (Jan. 12) on the selection of Wilbur Ross to be Secretary of Commerce. That agency includes the National Telecommunications & Information Administration, the president's top telecom adviser. And FCC chairman Tom Wheeler will make his last FCC broadband policy speech, discussing "lessons learned" and "the path ahead," Friday at the Aspen Institute in Washington.

— John Eggerton|Follow @eggerton on Twitter

As we enter awards season – nominations for 2017 Golden Globes come out on Monday (Dec. 12) – and sort through holiday card photos, here are other items on MCN editors’ calendars:

Stage Four of the spectrum incentive auction begins Tuesday (Dec. 13), and forward auction bidders, including Comcast, will be bidding on 70 MHz of unencumbered spectrum, with no stations being repacked in the guard bands or wireless portion of the band. That reduces the interference potential and should make that spectrum even more valuable for wireless. Whether it is enough to get forward auction bidders to come up from the $22 billion they bid the first three times around will determine whether a stage five  is required. In any event, the auction is stretching into 2017.

On Thursday (Dec. 15), the Federal Communications Commission is holding what is likely its last meeting under Tom Wheeler's chairmanship. The agenda includes decisions on updating the Emergency Alert System and Freedom of Information Act compliance with updated statutes, but is free from any of the hot-button issues -- business data service reforms, set-tops -- that Republicans on the Hill and the commission warned Wheeler against pursuing. It could also be the last meeting for Democratic commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel (pictured), absent an 11th hour deal to vote her confirmation in the Senate.

— John Eggerton|Follow @eggerton on Twitter

PwC is expected to release its annual TV and video consumption trends survey – “Videoquake 4.0: Binge, Stream, Repeat: How Video is Changing Forever” -- on Wednesday (Dec. 14), taking a deep dive into consumer views of mobile video and how they are spending their time and money on video programming. 

— Mike Farrell|Follow @MikeFCable on Twitter

On Friday (Dec. 16) Amazon will return its Emmy-winning drama series The Man in the High Castle for its sophomore campaign, while Netflix premieres its Barry biopic on the life of President Barack Obama during his years as a college student. Also that day Showtime unveils its sports documentary Running for His Life: The Lawrence Phillips Story, which follows the tragic life the former NFL star. The WWE will distribute its final pay-per-view event of the year, WWE: Roadblock, on Sunday (Dec. 18).

— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

Aside from our Diversity Discussion event in New York City, here’s a peek at MCN editors’ datebooks for Dec. 5-11.

SCANNING THE DIAL: A number of video streaming services will launch new series this week as well as return new seasons of existing shows. Hulu on Wednesday (Dec. 7) will debut its new drama series Shut Eye, starring Jeffrey Donovan, while Netflix on Friday (Dec. 9) will premiere its new documentary series Captive, which looks at true crime stories involving hostage-taking, and will stream the second season of its comedy series Fuller House. Elsewhere on Friday, Amazon will return its music-themed comedy series Mozart in the Jungle for a third season.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday (Dec. 10) will distribute its UFC 206 pay-per-view event, headlined by the Max Holloway-Anthony Pettis featherweight championship bout. UFC 206 is the second of three marquee UFC events within a seven-week period starting with the Nov. 12 UFC 205 event at Madison Square Garden and ending with the Dec. 30 UFC 207 event featuring the return of former women’s champion Ronda Rousey.

— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

DOINGS ON THE HILL: Lobbyists and other industry players otherwise focused on Trump transition issues will be looking toward the Hill on Wednesday (Dec. 7) for the 10 a.m. Judiciary Committee Antitrust Subcommittee oversight hearing on the proposed AT&T-Time Warner merger. Those scheduled to testify include AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson and Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes.

Also Wednesday, free-market think tank Free State Foundation is celebrating its 10th anniversary at a luncheon at the National Press Club. The speaker lineup includes the soon-to-be majority Republican commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael O’Rielly, as well as Trump transition team executive committee member Rep. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.). Those are also some of the top names being floated for the next FCC chairman (see this week's Through the Wire, link coming soon).

The Commerce Department's Internet Policy Task Force will hold a public meeting Friday (Dec. 9) on "Developing the Digital Marketplace for Copyrighted Works." The meeting will be at the Patent and Trademark Office's Alexandria, Va., headquarters. Fair-use fans have long been concerned about overprotecting copyrighted works to the detriment of fair uses for criticism and new works. Content owners will likely argue that one way to create a more robust marketplace is to better protect their high-value, expensive content from unfair use, like piracy. Finding the collaborative "nexus" between those will likely be the key.

— John Eggerton|Follow @eggerton on Twitter

SUITS TALK AT UBS:UBS hosts its annual Global Media and Communications Conference Monday-Wednesday (Dec. 5-7) at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in New York. Featured speakers include Discovery Communications CEO David Zaslav; CBS chairman and CEO Les Moonves; 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch; AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson; Verizon chairman and CEO Lowell McAdam; Time Warner Inc. chairman and CEO Jeff Bewkes; Scripps Networks Interactive chief operating officer Burt Jablin and chief financial officer Lori Hickok; Charter Communications chairman and CEO Tom Rutledge; Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos; Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei; Comcast chief financial officer Mike Cavanagh; and Liberty Global’s Virgin Media unit CEO Tom Mockridge.

— Mike Farrell|Follow @MikeFCable on Twitter

Headed into Thanksgiving week, here’s a peek at what’s on our editors’ upcoming calendars. MCN will not publish on Nov. 28, returning on Dec. 5.

Return of 'Gilmore Girls'

On the new-series front, TBS will air all 10 episodes of scripted comedy series Search Party this week, beginning today (Nov. 21), with two episodes airing nightly through Friday. Syfy on Nov. 30 will debut its new drama Incorporated.

Original movies slated for the Thanksgiving holiday include the Nov. 21 debut of HBO’s Marathon: The Patriots’ Day Bombing, about the 2013 Boston Marathon terrorist attack. Netflix on Friday (Nov. 25) resurrects Gilmore Girls (pictured) with four, 90-minute movies featuring most of the cast from the series.

Specials surrounding the 75th anniversary of the Pearl Harbor bombing include History’s Dec. 3 Pearl Harbor: 75 Years Later and Dec. 4’s Pearl Harbor: The Truth. Also on Dec. 4, Smithsonian Channel debuts The Lost Tapes: Pearl Harbor, with never-before-seen video and audio from the attack.
— R. Thomas Umstead|Follow @rtumstead on Twitter

From the 'Swamp'

Dec. 7 should be a big day for the AT&T-Time Warner merger on Capitol Hill as the lame-duck Senate checks to see if the deal is all it’s quacked up to be. That's the day Judiciary Committee chairman Charles Grassley (R-Iowa) has scheduled an oversight hearing. It actually isn’t on the Judiciary calendar, but hearings aren’t generally noticed until two weeks beforehand — and hearing dates are not usually announced as early as Grassley did the AT&T-TW hearing. That may have been an effort to get out in front of the Commerce Committee, which shares jurisdiction over communications issues.

The Free State Foundation has corralled a Republican powerhouse lineup for its 10th Anniversary Luncheon, also Dec. 7, at the National Press Club in Washington. Those include likely interim FCC chair and current commissioner Ajit Pai and Rep. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee, who is on the Trump transition team executive committee helping the president-elect pick top posts – including interim and permanent FCC chair, which Pai is also likely in line for.
— John Eggerton|Follow @eggerton on Twitter

DirecTV Now Launch

AT&T has been meting out details about DirecTV Now in recent weeks, but all will be revealed on Nov. 28, during an invitation-only presser in New York that will “celebrate the launch” of the new OTT TV service. In addition to DirecTV Now product demos, AT&T will also reveal other details about the service, including the channel lineup and when it will become available to the masses. Related [subscription required]:DirecTV Now Brings Uncertain Future
— Jeff Baumgartner|Follow @thebauminator on Twitter