Free Press Wants 90-Day Extension In Comcast/NBCU Review

Free Press has told the Federal Communications Commission it would like 90 days to vet a data drop from Comcast and NBCU.

For their part, the American Cable Association and Bloomberg LP asked for 60 and 45 days, respectively.

But all are agreed that they need more time either to file initial comments (Bloomberg) or to bring up new issues and
information. The FCC has said it wants all those issues raised by its June 21 comment deadline.

Bloomberg asked the FCC to extend that deadline, while ACA sought to lighten up on the "no new issues" part by 60 days.
In its request to the FCC, Free Press asked for the 90 days, but said that could either be an extension or rescinding
the prohibition on raising new arguments or ex parte filings after June 21.

Without that and through no fault of their own, said Free Press, parties "may be precluded from presenting new
arguments and information for consideration, thereby compromising the thoroughness and validity of Commission's
merger review."

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.