... Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth
ROBERT J. BUTl.fR 1300 NORTH 17th STREET, 11th FLOOR RETIRED MEMBERS HARRY F. COLE VINCENT J. cu1ms. JR. ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA 22209 ANN£ GOODWIN CRUMP RICHARD HILDRETH DONAl.O J. EVANS GEORGE PETRUTSAS PAULJ. FELDMAN OFFICE: (703} 812·0400 JAMES P. RILEY KEVIN M. GOLOSERG FAX: (703) 812-0486 DAVID M. JANET OfCOVllSEl www.fhhlaw.com FAANK R. JAZZO THOMASJ. DOUGHERTY, JR. M. SCOTT JOHNSON www.commlawblog.com ROBERT M. GURss• DANIEL A. KIRKPATRICK KATHRYN A. KLEIMAN MITCHEll 1.AZARUS ROBERT J. SCHILL TONYS. l.£E LAURA A. STEFANI• CHENG·YI llU ROBERT M. WINTERINGHAM STEPHEN T. LOVELADY JONATHAN R. MARKMAN SUSAN A. MARSHAU. HARRY C. MARTIN July 13, 2015 MICHEUE A. McCLURE MATTHEW H. McCORMICK FRANCISCO R. MONTERO RAYMOND J. QUIANZON DAVINA SASHKI N PfTER TANNENWAlO JAMES U. TROUP KATHLEEN VICTORY HOWARD M. WEISS HOWARD M. WEISS (703) 812-0414 [email protected] • NOT AOMITTED IN VIRGINIA
ViaECFS Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street, S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554
Re: Ex Parle Letter: AT&T and DirecTV Merger Proceeding, MB Docket No. 14-90
Dear Ms. Dortch:
I On July 10, 2015, the undersigned counsel to ZGS Communications, Inc. ("ZGS"), bad a telephone conversation with James Bird, Esquire, head of the Transaction Team (the "Team") in 1 the General Counsel's Office at the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC"), which referred to a prior letter to the Team seeking a meeting regarding the June 29, 2015 letter in Docket 14-90.
Mr. Bird was informed that the purpose of the meetings is to seek Commission assistance in a long-standing dispute between ZGS and DirecTV. Despite numerous efforts over a long period by ZGS to persuade DirecTV to retransmit ZGS Class A Spanish-language stations in major markets across the country, the latter has steadfastly refused to do so and has refused to offer a detailed rationale for such refusaJ. ii Fletcher,Hea~ &Hi~reth Marlene H. Dortch, Secretary Re: AT&T and DirecTV Merger Proceeding July 13, 2015 Page2
Counsel for ZGS further advised Mr. Bird that DirecTV's refusal has negatively impacted hundreds of thousands ofDirecTV's Latino subscribers in the major markets where they live. Most importantly, ZGS has faithfully observed the Commission's mandate for Class A stations; namely, the provision of cable produced programs serving local viewers. ZGS does this in every market it serves. It provides Latino viewers copious amounts of news, public affairs, and public safety programming in their language and geared to their culture and way of life. This is precisely the type of programming the Communications Act has required and the FCC has demanded of licensees. DirecTV's position flies in the face of this mandate.
Accordingly, counsel advised Mr. Bird that ZGS respectfully requests that the Conunission focus on this dilemma and assist in persuading DirecTV and, if the merger is approved, AT&T, t9 address this matter. Further, ZGS seeks Commission efforts to assist in brokering a settlement between DirecTV and ZGS regarding carriage.
cisco M. Montero oward M. Weiss Fletcher, Heald & Hildreth, PLC 1300 17th Street North, 11th Floor Arlington, Virginia 22209
Counsel for ZGS Communications, Inc.
Enclosure cc: James Bird, Esquire, FCC, General Counsel's Office (w/encl.)
{00808128-1) FLETCHER, HEALD & HILDRETH, P.L.C. I.. •
2000 N. I.4th Streat. Sobe .ctlO, ~.VA mo1 T 703.528.5456 P 703..$26.0879 RECEIVED. FCC P~ . AND RETURN Hon. Thomas Wheeler, Chaim1on 29 5 federal Communications Commi~ion JUN zot THiS COPY TO 445 12th S~t, S.W. Washington, O.C. 20554 ,._°':.,,~ETCHER, HEALD & HILDRETH [email protected]
Hon. Mignon Clyburn, Commissioner Hoo. Ajit Pai, Commissioner Federal Communications Com1ni~sion Federal Communica1ions Ct>mmiuion 445 121h Street. S.W. 445 J2th StTCct, S.W. Washington, O.C. 20554 \Viishiogcon. D.C. 20S54 mjgnon,[email protected] p.j i I. paj@i£C,AOll
Hon. Jessica Rosenworcet, Commissioner Hon. Michael ff Rielly, Commissioner federal Communications Co1nmission Federal Communications Commission 445 12th Street,$. W. 44 S 12th Street, S. W. Washi11gtcn, O.C. 20554 Washington, D.C. WS54 jessjca.rpsenwocs::[email protected] michae!.criclly@fc:c.gqv
Re: MB D~ket No. 14-90. In 1be Matter of Applications of AT&T, Inc. and DirecTV For Consent to Assign or Transfer Control of Licenses
Dear Chairman Wheeler and Fellow Commissione.rs:
ZGS Communica1ions. Inc. and irs affiliates (colfeetively -zGS''), licensees ofCJas5 A television 51a1ions serving communities across the United Stales.. and the ID1gest independent affiliate of the Tclem\Jndo networ'k, respectfully subruit this Jencr in the above-referenced docket. For over twenty live (25) years, ZGS, pursuam 10 scatutc>t)' requirement o.od Commission rule:, has been a licensee of1he f'CC. creating And broadcasting local Spanish·longuagc news and J1f'OG111mming c.ailotcd 4o mc:el lhc needs and intcre$ls of the Latino communit)·. This local content i.scsscn1ial to the lives of an in(onned and engaged community, as w~ll as our nation's democrncy. Bui, ZGS has been denied clll'riose on OireeTV satellite systems serving millions of Latino subscribers in major television markets. Thus. our ability to effectively ~M! our viewers and communities hos been grently hampered, inhibitfog our ability to '3tisfy the core obligation or all broadcast stations-lo serve as an interactive comtnunity forum for local political, sociaJ, and economic dialogue. S11e In rl1e Mauer of BrorJdcast Loca/Jsm. 19 FCC Red 12425 (Comm. 1004).
DirecTV has systematic.ally denied the Hispanic communiry access 10 iu local stations. which provide daily news a11d pubfic safety information. weather rcpol"lS and emergency notices, as well as exwuivc programing of local iruerest to the communicy. Funhennore, DirecTV has continuously misled potential and eitisting subscribers by advertising that it carriu all local stations. when it in fact, it does no1. Finally. by not carrying the 10031 Tclemundo affiliate, DirecTV provides its Hispanic subscribers n lower lev11I of service - n St:1nd3rd Definition signal. instead of the HD-quality signnl enjoyed by £ngli$h. l1utguage viewers.
ZGS is Hispanic-owned ~md opern1~. unfo"untircly 01le of' the very few Latino-'>wned and opernted group broadcasters in the country. T11e con1JlM)' owns the following Class A Sllltions: WTMO· Page 12
CD, Orlando, FL, WKME-CO, Kissimmee, FL. WMVJ·CD. Melbourne, FL. WRMD-CD, Tampa, FL. WWDT-CD, Naples, FL, WlDC·CD, Wasttington, DC, WZGS-CD. Raleigh. NC, WRDM-CO. Hanford, CT, WR1W-CD, Providence, Rhode Island. ZGS also owns full power and LPTY stations. Over the years, ZOS has invested millions or dollar5 in in producing high quality local Spanish-language news and programming at the srations it operates. Ln1ino viewers who tune to ZGS stations have real time access io news, public safety and emergency inform tu ion, weather repom, and other programming of local intcrcsl . all designed IO addtei;s the needs and issues 1'1n1 impact the Hi$panic community and celebrate the rich traditions and heritage of our community. In nlmo$1 every market. ZGS creates, produces and airs the most local programming of any Spanish-la11guage station and in many c:asies produces and airs more locaJ programming than its English-lnng.unge counterpans. Our commitment to local news is i>npamUeltd, and our qualiiy rccogni2.Cd by the numerous Emmy nominations and awards our ne'vs programing has received over the years. Our pr-0gramming and community engagement have helped us achieve high ratings. We are often the #I rated Spanish-languagetstatioll in 1he market.
Not Sllrpruingly, given our programming. news and significant l~nl engngcmenl, ZGS has ~ured near·universal Cllrringe of i1s stations on cable. telephone earners, and s:itellite in mo:.t of irs markets. The one exception. in total disregard of its corporate and civic .rc5ponsibiliries, is DirecTV which (Ontinues to dismiss and underserve the Hispanic community in multiple important markets. Our slations in Floridn, WTMQ.CD in Orlando, FL, WRMD-CO in Tamp:i, FL. WWDT·CD ill FL Myers/Nnplcs, u well as in WRDM.CD in Hnnford, CT and WZDC·CD in Washington, OC - arc lcadin& suniollS and serve markets with signifie11 nt Hispanic communities, and yet. despite numerous and on-going All.CmplS, ZGS has experienced exu11ordirmry difficulty in securi11g DirecTV conia~c . which i11 tum denies a large nllmber or Latino viewerS and subscribers llCCCSS (O th~ ir local SlllliOnS.
This pl'()ceeding.. in which the Commission is being nsked to pass on 11 merger of DirecTV into AT&T lnc. ("AT &n. offers nu opp¢nuni1y for ZGS to secure FCC - and satellite opera1or - focus on the local progtamming/ carringi: dilemma. ZGS takes nq oosj1ion of whatever kind on 1hc nublic int'#n;sl merits gC the merger or whether ir should be nnproverl. Ra1her, ZGS respectfully requ~ts thaL. in perfom1ing its duty to evaluate lhc complex communicatiom, t elecommuni~tion~ and antitrust issues raised by the merger proposal, the Commission carefully survey the communications landscape with a view toward promoting ful I service to minority communities, and diversity of ownership and voices in the industry. AT&T ought to tnke cogniiancc of the needs and interests of rhc local Latino audiences it will seTVc and the quality programming ZGS offers should the merger be approved . At a minimum, the Commission should suongly urse the powerful AT&T-DirecTV monolith to give serious coosideralion 10 fully and effectively Serving local commu nitieS. ll fl~ addre-55 ZQS' lo ngstanding carriage requi:sl.
The Commission should instruct staff familiar with 11\e panics and the issues here 10 encourage more Oexibility on the merged satellite compnny·s p~rt and. if necessary, to take affim1ativ¢ steps to facilitate fur Oin:cTV 's rigid position on carriage se11erely inhibilS ZOS' ability 10 aetomplish the objectives of Title UI of the CommuniCAtions Act, as i111erprc1cd and cnfOrced by the Commission. In loculism, supra, the Commission reiterated that "tile concept of loClllism derives from Title 111 of the Communications Act." localism. supra 11 1 12426. As the Supreme Court observed io FCC v. Allemown -· - -··- . --·"--''-:.....---- Page 13 .Broodcasti11g Corporo1io11, 349 U.S. 358, 362 (1955): •'F'nimcss to communities (in distributing radio service} is fostered by a recognition of local needs for 11 community radio mouthpiece.'" The Commission has followed CongreS$' and the Supreme Court's lead: ··As wilh compe1ilion and diversity. localism has been a comcmonc of broadcast regulation for decade!!. Broadcaslers, who are temporary trustees of the public's airwaves, must use tile medium to serve the public interest. nnd the Commission has consistenlly imerpreted this lO mean 1ha1 licensees must air prognlmrnins that is responsive to the interests and needs of1hcir eommunilics of licw:>e. Even as the Commission dere~ulntcd m11ny behavioral rules for broadcasters in the 1980s, it did not dcvintc from the notion that they muse serve 1heir local communities:• Localism. supra at 12425. We are o very commiued nnd proud Latino broadcssier. We regard our FCC lictlnses as embodying a responsibility and a duty lo effectively serve our communities. We ere doing our pan by being tJ1e very best local brondcn~ter we can be. II i.s only fair nnd right that Latino audiences be ofTer~d the same level of commitment nnd service by DirecTV. This is the least rhc •·public interest'• demands of DirecTV and other MVPOs. Therefore, the Commission should broker a mutually-ac~ptable settlement between DirecTV or DirecTV's successor (AT&T) and ZGS, contemplating retransmission of Z.GS' suuiOO$ in every market prior to federal approval of rhe propo merger. lune 29, 20 IS I """~- ... ~---· _.,. Strpng ~nd s~cces~ful Sl pani~h-la~guag\e TV pper~tor ~or 3°' yea with a • i i solid re~utat1on tdr exc~llente : : - · Strohg op~ratio1 ns, dedicated tea1ms Continuo~s invlstmeht in lbcal cbnten~ and tatio:ns • Detficated tollocallsm Quality lot:al neCs in op miarket -·Mo ing t1an a y othf r Sp nish lfroaddasterj unitVi service - o r mission nd relsponsibilit Strohg civlc en gem~nt I i ! : i • 25-iyear !affiliate pl. rtne ship,with Telef unao • Only Hi~panJow · ed br9adca t grqup i - · 1so+ em91oyeek. 94° are ffmal and}ior mi g coi;nmit~ent o div~rsity nd develo 1 - · High¢st jo4rnali ~tic standardls to ihform and educate the Hispanic conpmun t y gene not1~ - · Up-t-the- inut we ther epori - , Awa d-winning If cal n wsc sts • gen a olac udad lteve! inea Directa I - feled aria : ~ele n t icias Xtra I - ifwo • Civit eng~gejent nd p blicjservJ e in ~ iati Vota fpor t~ Futu o-r gistr tion tnd Gbrv Afforklable{are ct T wn Hi:ills - , Linea de A\/uda l Helpl Line - , Buena Vida He a If h Exoo - · Educlition I ] o Hispaf ic Heritage, Scholarshi~ Awalrd o tducl i6n su alfance • Celebration or His anic ~erit~ge and culture La Feria de! la Fa ilia - !Fiest ~ de 1Js Ma¢1res r GRO r • 1 ZGS sta ions a re local I new1 I I I r 1 • WTMO s the #1 Spanish-I ngur ge ~taticDn inlOrlalndo ign1on t sig1 -off and ~rim~time a ong lmajr delmos • 1 W~MD ead1 all panlsh I ngu~ge s ~ atidns irl Ta pair pri~eti r e, and as t1e # SparishilangµagEJ ne scasf at rpm 1 llom ! 1 0 is [EI P*so's #1 sfation in 1rim~tim~, regardless ~f lankuag~ I I I I ! [ cast station iln Fort M ~ers ~n pr,met~me, i ·---- .. EI TEL • UNI c UMA (MFX in Fort Myers) 52% 51% mi TEL • UNI c UMA (MFX In Fqrt Myers) T 75% l'ELE1\Joo~ El Paso Fort Myers Hartford D [)0 [)a Source: Nielsen NSI ~ - F l_0·10:30pm (El Paso) and M·F ll-i1:30pm. "".1a.y sweeps 20~5 . Ba sed _on A25 -S4, except for~~ P_as~:-v hi<}iJ.~ ;~lfa~~'.9Ji.'!~8i~4 : ~GSfCO"mmuriications Spanish share calculation 111cludes each market's local Telemundo, Un1v1sion, and UniMas station, except for Fort1"1yers w~~~!)..? e,.~!l • 1Qnlv Hispaniq co murhity eni 1d lo al s4rvice - h nly televlsion tati n w+lo al ne s NPT cJrried in m ~ rke ~ - · arryj net1ork ignal in SO rat er th n lobal stbtion in H I I I • 1Almbst alll otliler MVP · s ca ry ztJs s atio ~ s I • 1 Direk:TV ~hou lld c ervilng Hjispalhic ccbmmunit1es • 1Con1mit to fairly 1valu te l~cal arrif ge qptio1ns 1 onsilder: I 1 o ::.iize of His anic opu atio in rr\arke I I o Sltatiohs th t pr due loca ne4s an program!l11ng o NUmbrr of local y ac ive S~anish sta ions o 11elatir au ien e sh res I 1 • 1All tbp ideal srati ns s~ou I be Jn Di Iec,-V lim1up loca se ice