The Daily Ex Parte, Jul 11, 2025
CBS Affiliates on $PARA-Skydance, Sinclair/Pearl on 3.0 Transition, CTIA on Upper C-Band, Communications Workers of America on USCellular
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Filers
CBS Television Network Affiliates Association
Sinclair, Inc.
Pearl TV
CTIA
Communications Workers of America
CBS Television Network Affiliates Association
Proceeding(s): 24-275
Date of Meeting: July 8, 2025
Date of Filing: July 10, 2025
Participants:
CBS Television Network Affiliates Association:
Represented by Dan York (Chairman, Affiliates Association; President and CEO, CMG),
Christopher Ripley (Secretary, Affiliates Association; President and CEO, Sinclair), and
Pat LaPlatney (President and Co-CEO, Gray)
Counsel in attendance were Jason E. Rademacher and Robert M. McDowell of Cooley LLP.
FCC:
David Brown, Jeremy Miller, Chris Robbins, and Emily Harrison of the Media Bureau.
Summary of Discussion:
The discussion focused on the proposed transfer of control of Paramount Global and its CBS Television Network ("CBS") to Skydance Media, LLC. Representatives for the Affiliates Association, which represents over 200 local CBS affiliates, expressed their concerns about the merger's potential impact on local television stations.
The Affiliates Association advocated for the FCC to impose conditions on any approval of the merger. These conditions would be designed to ensure that local affiliate stations can continue to effectively serve their communities with local news and information programming. The key areas of concern raised by the affiliates included:
Affiliate Finances and vMVPD Negotiations: The degree of control CBS exercises over affiliate finances and its management of negotiations with "virtual MVPDs" (vMVPDs).
Programming Exclusivity: Issues related to the exclusivity of CBS programming for its affiliates.
Affiliation Renewal Practices: Concerns about the network's current practices for renewing affiliation agreements.
The Affiliates Association urged the Media Bureau to consider these issues as it reviews the proposed transaction.
Source: [NOTICE OF EX PARTE, CBS Television Network Affiliates Association, https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/10710009808766/1]
Sinclair, Inc.
Proceeding(s): 16-142
Date of Meeting: July 8, 2025
Date Disseminated: July 11, 2025
Participants:
Sinclair, Inc.: Patrick McFadden (Senior Vice President, Global Public Policy and Communications)
EdgeBeam Wireless, LLC: Conrad Clemson (CEO)
FCC Staff:
Erin Boone (Office of Chairman Carr)
Jessica Kinsey (Office of Commissioner Trusty)
Deena Shetler (Office of Commissioner Gomez)
Summary of Discussion:
Representatives from Sinclair, Inc. and EdgeBeam Wireless, LLC met with advisors from the offices of Chairman Carr and Commissioners Trusty and Gomez to discuss the future of broadcasting and the ATSC 3.0 transition.
Mr. Clemson introduced EdgeBeam Wireless, a joint venture formed by four of the largest independent local broadcasting groups. The company's goal is to leverage broadcasters' existing infrastructure and the ATSC 3.0 standard to offer wireless data delivery services. He highlighted the efficiency of the "one-to-many" broadcast architecture, contrasting it with traditional "one-to-one" cellular networks. For example, to send a 1 GB file to one million users, a broadcast network transmits the file once, whereas a cellular network must send it one million times. This efficiency makes broadcast data delivery a cost-effective complement to existing wireless solutions.
Potential use cases for EdgeBeam's service discussed in the meeting include:
Automotive: Distributing software updates, infotainment, and high-precision navigation data.
Content Delivery: Offloading streaming traffic for Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to improve viewer experiences during high-demand events.
GPS Enhancement: Providing precision location data accurate to the centimeter, a significant improvement over meter-level accuracy.
Mr. Clemson also noted that broadcasters' high-power signals and spectrum characteristics allow for superior data delivery in hard-to-reach locations, such as inside parking garages or deep within buildings where traditional wireless services may struggle.
Mr. McFadden of Sinclair stressed the urgency for the Commission to act on the National Association of Broadcasters' (NAB) petition for rulemaking, which calls for a firm sunset date for ATSC 1.0 broadcasts. He argued that broadcasters face intense and growing competition from "Big Tech and Big Media," and that ATSC 3.0 represents a critical opportunity for them to diversify revenue streams and secure their future. To facilitate this, Sinclair urged the Commission to issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) during the summer of 2025. This would allow the FCC to build a complete record to support a phased sunset of ATSC 1.0 signals, proposing a deadline of February 2028 for the top 55 markets and February 2030 for all remaining markets.
Source: [NOTICE OF EXPARTE, Sinclair, Inc., https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1071095573296/1]
Pearl TV
Proceeding(s): 16-142
Date of Meeting: July 8, 2025
Date Disseminated: July 11, 2025
Participants:
Pearl TV: Anne Schelle (Managing Director)
Covington & Burling LLP (Counsel for Pearl TV): Gerard J. Waldron
FCC: Jessica Kinsey (Legal Advisor to Commissioner Trusty)
Summary of Discussion:
Representatives from Pearl TV, a coalition of major broadcast groups including Cox Media Group, Gray Media, Hearst Television, Nexstar Media Group, Inc., E.W. Scripps Company, Sinclair Inc., and Tegna Inc., met with Jessica Kinsey to urge the FCC to take action to facilitate the final transition to the ATSC 3.0 (NEXTGEN TV) standard.
Pearl TV highlighted the significant progress made in the voluntary transition, which now covers 76% of U.S. households (96 million) across 73 of the top 100 TV markets. To date, 15 million NEXTGEN TV-capable televisions have been sold. They emphasized the enhanced consumer benefits of the new standard, including High Dynamic Range (HDR) color, Dolby ATMOS audio, and interactive features like "program re-start." A key feature discussed was NEXTGEN TV's ability to deliver enhanced emergency information, such as shelter details and maps, noting that high engagement with local news and weather apps suggests a strong consumer appetite for these advanced alert capabilities.
The central argument of the meeting was that despite industry investment and progress, the transition is being hampered by a lack of certainty. Pearl TV stressed that all parts of the ecosystem—including consumer electronics (CE) manufacturers, converter box developers, retailers, and smaller market broadcasters—require a definitive transition date from the FCC. This certainty is needed to trigger the final phase of investment, manufacturing, and marketing.
The presentation underscored the critical nature of the timeline, explaining that receiver and set-top box (STB) development has an 18-month cycle. Without a clear signal from the FCC, manufacturers are adopting a "wait-and-see" approach. Pearl TV warned that a delay in issuing a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) could push the availability of new, affordable devices back by a full year, jeopardizing market momentum. They noted that the industry has already worked to ensure affordable converter boxes could be made available at a price point similar to the DTV transition, but manufacturing cannot begin at scale without a date certain.
Pearl TV also presented evidence of strong consumer demand, citing inquiries on their WatchNextGenTV.com website from consumers looking for receivers from manufacturers that have been slow to adopt the standard.
For these reasons, Pearl TV urged the FCC to promptly issue a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) based on the petition filed by the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB). They argued that an NPRM indicating a preliminary transition date is the necessary catalyst to unlock the final stage of development and ensure consumers have access to affordable NEXTGEN TV receivers and converter boxes.
Source: [NOTICE OF EXPARTE, Pearl TV, https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1071135287524/1]
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CTIA
Proceeding(s): 25-59
Date of Meeting: July 8, 2025
Date Disseminated: July 11, 2025
Participants:
CTIA:
Umair Javed (Senior Vice President and General Counsel) and
Scott Bergmann (Senior Vice President)
FCC: Arpan Sura (Senior Counsel to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr)
Summary of Discussion:
Representatives from CTIA met with Arpan Sura, Senior Counsel to FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, to advocate for the FCC to expedite the process of making the Upper C-band spectrum (3.98-4.2 GHz) available for full-power terrestrial wireless operations.
CTIA emphasized the urgency created by the recently signed "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," which restored the FCC's general auction authority and mandates an auction of the Upper C-band within two years. CTIA argued that this legislation provides a clear roadmap for releasing more spectrum to meet growing consumer and enterprise demand, thereby securing America's global leadership in 5G and future technologies.
Drawing parallels to the successful initial C-band auction, CTIA highlighted the valuable characteristics of mid-band spectrum. They referenced Chairman Carr's own remarks on how the C-band has enabled new competitive services like in-home broadband and high-speed mobile. CTIA urged the FCC to adopt the same successful market-driven approach for the Upper C-band transition and to promptly seek public comment on proposed timelines for auctioning and deploying the spectrum.
The key asks from CTIA were:
Open up to 220 megahertz of spectrum in the Upper C-band.
Leverage the market-based transition model used for the initial C-band.
Work collaboratively with other federal stakeholders to ensure coexistence between new 5G operations in the Upper C-band and existing radio altimeter operations, noting that proper planning can achieve this goal consistent with Congress's 2027 deadline.
CTIA concluded that making the Upper C-band available is a critical first step in building a robust spectrum pipeline that will benefit American consumers, promote national security, and drive economic growth.
Source: [NOTICE OF EXPARTE, CTIA, https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/10710124438046/1]
Communications Workers of America
Proceeding(s): 24-286
Date of Meeting: July 10, 2025
Date Disseminated: July 11, 2025
Participants: This filing is a written Ex Parte communication. Nell Geiser and Hooman Hedayati submitted on behalf of the Communications Workers of America (CWA).
Summary of Discussion:
In a letter submitted to the FCC, the Communications Workers of America (CWA) expressed continued concern that the proposed transaction between T-Mobile US, Inc. and United States Cellular Corporation (UScellular) is harmful to the public interest. The CWA argues that the applicants have not met their burden to prove that the deal will enhance competition in both downstream consumer product markets and upstream labor markets.
The central argument of the filing is that UScellular appears to be "prematurely acting as though the proposed transaction has already received FCC approval" by initiating widespread employee layoffs. The CWA cites several pieces of evidence:
An "Employment Letter" dated March 26, 2025, which announced UScellular's plan to lay off approximately 4,100 employees nationwide, effective June 2, 2025.
The letter contained a vague promise that T-Mobile would offer employment to a "majority" of these employees with "no less favorable" salary and benefits, a claim the CWA finds insufficient.
Specific Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN) notices filed in Iowa: one on June 11, 2025, for 497 layoffs, and another on July 2, 2025, for an additional 30 layoffs.
The CWA urges the FCC to demand more information from UScellular to properly evaluate the transaction's impact on workers. Specifically, the FCC should request details on:
UScellular's complete plans for its existing workforce.
The specific terms of employment offered by T-Mobile to the laid-off employees.
The future of employees at all retail, corporate, and engineering locations, including those not mentioned in the initial "Employment Letter."
The CWA concludes that without this information, the FCC cannot determine the transaction's effect on labor market competition. Based on the current record, the CWA believes the merger will further entrench T-Mobile's dominance in local labor markets for retail wireless workers, leading to increased market concentration, job cuts, degraded benefits, and suppressed wage growth.
Source: [NOTICE OF EXPARTE, Communications Workers of America, https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1071056443884/1]