The Federal Communications Commission said it is updating its Cable Operations and Licensing System (COALS), which is how cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) file “applications, notifications, registration statements, reports and related documents.”
The FCC's Media Bureau says the update will provide MVPDs improved security and reliability and will result in the applications for Cable Antenna Relay Service (CARS) licenses fully online, which includes new licenses, license renewals and cancellations, major and minor modifications, and requests for special temporary authority (STAs).
The COALS site will also host cable's annual Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) filings.
The new system will become operational October 18, the bureau says, but the migration will take about a week, so starting Oct. 11 the old site will be shut down so the COALS system won't be available over that period. Old logins won't work for the new system for security reasons, the FCC said.
To help users get accustomed to the updated system, the FCC will hold a webinar October 26 from 1-2 p.m. that will then be archived on the agency’s website and YouTube page. ▪️
