Federal Communications Commission Record DA 96-350
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11 FCC Red No.7 Federal Communications Commission Record DA 96-350 information pertinent to its must carry complaint: (1) the Before the station is licensed to Galveston, Texas, which is located Federal Communications Commission approximately 45 miles southeast of Houston (center-to- Washington, D.C. 20554 center) in Brazoria County; (2) the station operates with maximum ERP of 5,000 kilowatts with an antenna height above average terrain of 566 meters from a transmitter site In re Complaint of: approximately 30 miles south of Houston; and (3) the station places a predicted City Grade contour over virtually GO, Inc. (KLTJ(TV) CSR-4614-M all of the City of Houston. Galveston, TX 3. KLTJ(TV) explains that TCI-TKR received the station's carriage request letter on August 8, 1995 but did not respond to that letter. According to petitioner, TCI-TKR For Carriage on TCI-TKR of Houston has also not challenged KLTJ's legal right to carriage nor asserted any insufficiency in the KLTJ(TV) signal at any of the systems' headends. Rather, on October MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER 5, 1995, TCI- TKR filed with the Commission "Comments in Support of Petition for Special Relief" of September 6, 1995, filed by Adopted: March 11, 1996; Released: March 20, 1996 Time Warner Cable in CSR 4586-A. KLTJ(TV) argues that TCI-TKR's failure to respond to the August 7, 1995 car- By the Deputy Chief, Cable Services Bureau: riage request within the 30 day period following its receipt thereof, and its failure to commence carriage or state the 1. GO Inc., licensee of television station KLTJ(TV)(Ch. reasons for believing it is not obligated to do so by Septem- 22), Galveston, Texas, filed a must carry complaint on ber 7, 1995, is the specific event giving rise to the instant November 6, 1995, against TCI-TKR asking the Commis- complaint. sion to enforce its signal carriage rights on the operator's 4. TCI-TKR argues that it opposes KLTJ(TV)'s must car- cable systems serving several communities in the Houston ry complaint2 for the reasons set forth in the petition for television market.' TCI-TKR filed an opposition to this special relief filed by Time Warner Cable of Houston; that must carry complaint to which KLTJ(TV) filed a reply. petitionsought to exclude KLTJ from the Houston ADI for 2. KLTJ(TV) states that the instant filing arises out of must carry purposes based upon the four statutory criteria TCI-TKR's refusal to carry the station's signal in the above set for in Section 614 of the 1992 Cable Act.3 TCI-TKR referenced communities notwithstanding KLTJ(TV)'s must separately asserts that the station is not entitled to carriage carry status and despite KLTJ(TV)'s August 7, 1995 letter because there are several television stations licensed to request for carriage. KLTJ(TV) recites the following factual communities in the Houston ADI which provide local The cable communities are: Houston (TX 0755) and Houston We find merit in KLTJ(TV)'s arguments yet we appreciate the Rebuild (TX 0736); Harris (TX 0737 and TX 0748); Pearland need for a timely filed, full and complete record. We will (TX 0746); Brookside (TX 1252): Alvin (TX 0750); Friendswood therefore treat TCI-TKR's opposition as an informal objection. (TX 0751); Hillcrest Village (TX 1251); Brazoria County (TX In its petition for special relief, Time Warner requested that 1320); League City (TX 0509); Kemah (TX 0510); Clear Lake the television market of KLTJ(TV) be modified so as to relieve Shores (TX 0512); Dickenson (TX 0513); Bacliff (TX 0836); it from any obligation to carry that station on the system which Bayview (TX 0837); La Marque (TX 0514); Hitchcock (TX serves communities located in Harris, Ft. Bend, and Brazoria 0508); Santa Fe (TX 0749); Bayou Vista (TX 1352); Tiki Island Counties, Texas. Time Warner believed that it should be grant- (TX 2134); Texas City (TX 0424); Copperfield (TX 1322); North- ed the requested relief because the station fails to satisfy any of west Green (TX 0753); Tomball (TX 0835); Magnolia (TX 1157); the four market factors set forth in the 1992 Cable Act and the Montgomery County (TX 1323); and Mission Bend (TX 0754). 2 Commission's rules. With regard to the historical carriage fac- TCI-TKR notes that the instant complaint appeared on FCC tor, Time Warner asserted that KLTJ(TV) has never been car- Public Notice report No. 1058 on November 13, 1Q95. TCI-TKR ried on the system although it has been on-the-air since 1989. admits that its opposition, filed on January 22, 1996, is late but The operator stated that the system would have voluntarily is filing a "Motion for Leave to Accept Late Filed Opposition" carried KLTJ(TV) if the station's programming would have concurrently with this pleading. In that motion. TCI-TKR ar- increased the value of the channel line-up or there was sub- gues that the public notice was vague as it did not clearly scriber demand. Moreover, no other local cable operator carries identify which cable operator in Houston. Texas was the subject KLTJ's signal. Second, Time Warner alleged that KLTJ(TV), of KLTJ(TV)'s complaint. Additionally, TCI-TKR notes that the through its broadcast of religious programming, does not pro- Commission was closed due to the Federal government furlough vide local service to the relevant communities. According to and subsequent snowstorm which prevented it from searching Time Warner, the station's weekly programming shows little the files to find the complaint. TCI-TKR urges the Commission commitment to covering "purely" local events in the cable to accept the opposition in the interest of obtaining a full and communities as it does not air any traditional local news pro- complete record on which to base its decision. grams or coverage of any local sporting events. Furthermore, KLTJ(TV) argues in reply that counsel for TCI-TKR was served the one show that ostensibly covers local issues, "Chat with with the complaint •of November 6, and upon release of the Pat", is broadcast for only one hour per week and are often public notice a week later need only have called the Cable repeats of old programs. Referring to the third factor, Time Services Bureau to determine whether the notice referred to the Warner stated that several Houston area ADI stations, which instant matter. The station also argues that the furlough and have been carried for several years on the cable system, provide snowstorm are not valid excuses for filing an opposition since extensive local programming throughout each programming that pleading was due on December 4, long before these events day. Time Warner also mentioned that it meets local commu- took place. nity concerns through its carriage of educational and public access channels as well as the Weather Channel. Finally, the operator asserted that KLTJ(TV) has insignificant viewing in 3519 DA 96-350 Federal Communications Commission Record 11 FCC Red No. 7 programming and are geographically closer to Houston FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION than Galveston.4 TCI-TKR also argues that even though KLTJ(TV)'s Grade B contour covers most of the Houston area, this point should be ignored since the station does not provide programming of local interest. Finally, TCI-TKR submits that KLTJ(TV) has no discernible ratings in the William H. Johnson Houston market and is not significantly viewed in any Deputy Chief, Cable Services Bureau Texas county. 5. KLTJ(TV) replies to TCI-TKR's assertions by stating that the speciousness of Time Warner's arguments, with regard to its ADI modification petition, were fully documented in KLTJ(TV)'s October 4, 1995 "Opposition to Petition for Special Relief."5 The station states that TCI- TKR's Grade B argument is only an "irrelevant diversion" because KLTJ(TV) places a City Grade signal over virtually the entire city of Houston including the communities served by the operator. 6. We will grant KLTJ(TV)'s must carry complaint. In a separate Memorandum Opinion and Order, we deny Time Warner's request to modify KLTJ(TV)'s television market for must carry purposes.6 Thus, TCI-TKR's arguments against carriage of KLTJ(TV), which were largely premised upon Time Warner's reasoning, are rejected as well. TCI- TKR also did not demonstrate that KLTJ(TV) is not a qualified local commercial television signal in its opposi- tion to the must carry complaint; the operator, therefore, is required to carry the station's signal on its Houston-area cable systems. ORDERING CLAUSES 7. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED, that the complaint (CSR-4614-M) filed November 6, 1995, by GO, Inc., IS GRANTED. TCI-TKR is therefore required to carry the signal of KLTJ(TV) on its systems serving the aforemen- tioned communities. GO, Inc. shall notify TCI-TKR in writing of its carriage and channel position elections, (76.56, 76.57, 76.64(t) of the Commission's Rules), with- in thirty (30) days of the release date of this Memorandum Opinion and Order. TCI-TKR shall come into compliance with the applicable rules within sixty (60) (lays of such notification. 8. These actions are taken pursuant to authority dele- gated by §0.321 of the Commission's Rules. the area, with the 1995 Nielsen County Coverage Report show- censed to Alvin, TX, from the Houston ADI. KLTJ(TV) asserted ing that KLTJ(TV) did not meet the minimum reporting stan- that the precedent set forth in that case is equally applicable to dards in Harris and Brazoria counties; in Fort Bend County, this one.