Applications for Consent to the Transfer of Control of Licenses, XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., Transferor, to Sirius Satellite Radio Inc., Transferee, 52046-52047 [E8-20735]
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Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 174 / Monday, September 8, 2008 / Notices
list of agencies presented in the ‘‘Select
Agency’’ box, (5) click the ‘‘Submit’’
button to the right of the ‘‘Select
Agency’’ box, and (6) when the list of
FCC ICRs currently under review
appears, look for the title of this ICR (or
its OMB Control Number, if there is one)
and then click on the ICR Reference
Number to view detailed information
about this ICR.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For
additional information or copies of the
information collection(s), contact Judith
B. Herman at 202–418–0214 or via the
Internet at Judith-B.Herman@fcc.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
OMB Control Number: 3060–0804.
Title: Universal Service—Rural Health
Care Program.
Form Nos.: FCC Forms 465, 466, 466–
A and 467.
Type of Review: Extension of a
currently approved collection.
Respondents: Business or other forprofit, not-for-profit institutions, and
state, local or tribal government.
Number of Respondents: 6,494
respondents; 59,464 responses.
Estimated Time per Response: 10–20
hours.
Frequency of Response: On occasion,
monthly, quarterly, annual, and onetime reporting requirements, and third
party disclosure requirement.
Obligation to Respond: Required to
obtain or retain benefits. Statutory
authority for this information collection
is contained in 47 U.S.C. 151, 154(i),
154(j), 201–205, 214, 254, and 403.
Total Annual Burden: 67,468 hours.
Total Annual Cost: N/A.
Privacy Act Impact Assessment: N/A.
Nature and Extent of Confidentiality:
There is no need for confidentiality.
However, respondents may request
material or information submitted to the
Commission be withheld from public
inspection by requesting confidential
treatment of their documents under 47
CFR 0.459 of the Commission’s rules.
Needs and Uses: The Commission
submitted this information collection to
the OMB as an emergency request and
received OMB approved on January 17,
2008. The Commission is now
submitting this information collection
(IC) to the OMB as an extension (no
change in reporting, recordkeeping and/
or third party disclosure requirements)
during this comment period to obtain
the full three-year clearance from them.
Due to a mathematical error in the
emergency request, the Commission is
reporting a ¥952 hourly adjustment to
the total annual burden.
In the Telecommunications Act of
1996 (1996 Act), Congress specifically
sought to provide rural health care
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Jkt 214001
providers with ‘‘an affordable rate for
the services necessary for the provision
of telemedicine and instruction relating
to such services.’’ In 1997, the
Commission implemented this statutory
directive by adopting the current Rural
Health Care support mechanism, which
provides universal service support to
ensure that rural health care providers
pay no more than their urban
counterparts for their
telecommunications needs and Internet
access in the provision of health care
services. Despite the Commission’s
efforts to increase the utility of the Rural
Health Care support mechanism, the
program has yet to fully achieve the
benefits intended by the statute and the
Commission.
In particular, health care providers
continue to lack access to the broadband
facilities needed to support the types of
advanced telehealth applications, like
telemedicine, that are vital to bringing
medical expertise and advantage of
modern health technology to rural areas
of the nation. In response, the
Commission issued the 2007 Pilot
Program Selection Order (WC Docket
No. 02–60, FCC 07–198) which selected
69 participants for the universal service
Rural Health Care Pilot Program (which
was originally established by the
Commission in September 2006). These
69 participants are eligible for up to 85
percent of the costs associated with: (1)
The construction of state or regional
broadband health care networks and
with the advanced telecommunications
and information services provided over
those networks; (2) connecting to
Internet 2 or National LambdaRail,
which are both dedicated nationwide
backbones; and (3) connecting to the
public Internet. Approximately $417
million in universal service support
over three years (or $139 million per
funding year) will be available to
participants. To minimize the burden on
Pilot Program participants and to
streamline the process, the Commission
generally uses the same forms as the
existing Rural Health Care support
mechanism. For example, selected
participants, in order to receive support,
must submit FCC Form 465 (seeking
bids), FCC Form 466 (funding request
and certification), FCC Form 466–A
(selection of service provider), and FCC
Form 467 (notification of service
initiation). Due to the unique structure
of the Pilot Program, however, in the
2007 Pilot Program Selection Order, the
Commission provides guidance
regarding how these forms should be
completed and additional information is
required from selected participants,
including proposed network costs
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worksheets, certifications, letters of
agency from each participating health
care provider, invoices showing actual
incurred costs, and if applicable,
network design studies.
The information collected provides
the Commission with the necessary
information to administer the existing
program and the Pilot Program,
determine the amount of support
applicants are eligible to receive, and
inform the Commission about the
feasibility of revising its rules.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E8–20743 Filed 9–5–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712–01–P
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS
COMMISSION
[MB Docket No. 07–57; FCC 08–178]
Applications for Consent to the
Transfer of Control of Licenses, XM
Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.,
Transferor, to Sirius Satellite Radio
Inc., Transferee
Federal Communications
Commission.
ACTION: Notice; approval of merger.
AGENCY:
SUMMARY: This document approves the
consolidated application of Sirius
Satellite Radio Inc. (‘‘Sirius’’) and XM
Satellite Radio Holdings Inc. (‘‘XM’’;
jointly, the ‘‘Applicants’’) for consent to
the transfer of control of the licenses
and authorizations held by Sirius and
XM and their subsidiaries for the
provision of SDARS in the United States
and eliminates the prohibition on one
licensee of satellite digital audio radio
service (or ‘‘SDARS’’) acquiring control
of the other SDARS licensee.
DATES: The Commission’s action became
effective July 25, 2008.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Marcia Glauberman, Industry Analysis
Division, Media Bureau, at (202) 418–
7046, or Rebekah Goodheart, Industry
Analysis Division, Media Bureau, at
(202) 418–1438.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a
summary of the Federal
Communications Commission’s
Memorandum Opinion and Order and
Report and Order (the ‘‘Order’’) in MB
Docket No. 07–57; FCC 08–178, adopted
July 25, 2008, and released August 5,
2008. The full text of this document is
available for public inspection and
copying during regular business hours
in the FCC Reference Center, Federal
Communications Commission, 445 12th
Street, SW., CY–A257, Washington, DC
E:\FR\FM\08SEN1.SGM
08SEN1
Federal Register / Vol. 73, No. 174 / Monday, September 8, 2008 / Notices
20554. These documents will also be
available via ECFS (https://www.fcc.gov/
cgb/ecfs). The complete text may be
purchased from the Commission’s copy
contractor, 445 12th Street, SW., Room
CY–B402, Washington, DC 20554. To
request this document in accessible
formats (computer diskettes, large print,
audio recording and Braille), send an email to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the FCC’s
Consumer and Governmental Affairs
Bureau at (202) 418–0530 (voice), (202)
418–0432 (TTY).
Summary of the Order
1. In 1997, the Commission
established the SDARS service and
determined that there would be two
initial SDARS licenses, sold at auction
to different parties. The 1997 SDARS
Service Rules Order, 62 FR 11083,
11102, March 11, 1997 (‘‘1997 Order’’),
contained the following language:
mstockstill on PROD1PC66 with NOTICES
Even after DARS licenses are granted, one
licensee will not be permitted to acquire
control of the other remaining satellite DARS
license. This prohibition on transfer of
control will help assure sufficient continuing
competition in the provision of satellite
DARS service.
2. In this Order, the Commission
found that the merger would be
prohibited by the language in the 1997
Order. For the reasons summarized
below, however, the Commission found
that approval of the merger, subject to
the Applicants’ voluntary commitments
and other conditions, would benefit
consumers by making available to them
a wider array of programming choices at
various price points and affording them
greater choice and control over the
programming to which they subscribe,
and that those benefits would exceed
the harms. For the same reasons, the
Commission concluded that elimination
of the prohibition on one licensee of
SDARS acquiring control of the other
SDARS licensee, on balance, would
serve the public interest.
3. The Commission’s decision was
based on consideration of the
consolidated application of Sirius and
XM for consent to the transfer of control
of the licenses and authorizations held
by Sirius and XM and their subsidiaries
for the provision of SDARS in the
United States. After reviewing the
empirical data available as part of its
competitive analysis, the Commission
determined there was insufficient
evidence in the record to predict the
likelihood of anticompetitive harms. It
therefore evaluated the Application
under ‘‘worst-case’’ assumptions, i.e.,
that the relevant market is limited to
SDARS. This approach permitted the
Commission to protect consumers from
potential adverse effects of the
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17:59 Sep 05, 2008
Jkt 214001
transaction while also allowing the
Commission to balance potential harms
against potential public interest
benefits. The Commission concluded
that the merger, absent the Applicants’
voluntary commitments and other
conditions, would result in potential
harms. The Commission found that,
with the Applicants’ voluntary
commitments and other conditions, the
potential public interest benefits of the
transaction, on balance, outweigh the
potential harms, and approval of the
transaction is in the public interest.
4. The Commission conditioned grant
of the application on the merged firm’s
fulfillment of the Applicants’ voluntary
commitments and other conditions. The
Commission accepted the Applicants’
voluntary commitments and imposed
conditions to:
a. Cap prices for at least 36 months
after consummation of the transaction,
subject to certain cost pass-throughs
after one year. In addition, six months
prior to the end of commitment period,
the Commission will seek public
comment on whether the cap continues
to be necessary in the public interest
and will determine whether it should be
extended, removed, or modified. The
merger approval is conditioned on the
Commission’s ability to modify or
extend the price cap beyond the threeyear commitment period.
b. Offer to consumers, within three
months of consummation of the
transaction, the ability to receive a
number of new programming packages,
including the ability to select
programming on an a la carte basis.
c. Make available four percent of its
capacity for use by certain Qualified
Entities, and an additional four percent
of capacity for the delivery of
noncommercial educational or
informational programming, which will
enhance the diversity of programming
available to consumers.
d. Offer interoperable receivers in the
‘‘retail after-market,’’ i.e., receivers
available at retail outlets for installation
in consumers’ automobiles or homes,
within nine months of consummation of
the merger.
e. Refrain from entering into any
agreement that would grant an
equipment manufacturer an exclusive
right to manufacture, market, and sell
SDARS receivers. Applicants also
commit to refrain from barring any
manufacturer from including in any
receiver non-interfering digital audio
broadcast (or, ‘‘HD Radio’’)
functionality, iPod compatibility, or
other audio technology.1 In addition,
1 Although the Commission found it unnecessary
to impose a condition requiring the inclusion of HD
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Fmt 4703
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52047
Applicants will make available the
intellectual property needed to allow
any device manufacturer to develop
equipment that can deliver SDARS.
f. File the applications needed to
provide Sirius satellite service to Puerto
Rico via terrestrial repeaters within
three months of the consummation of
the merger.
5. The Commission reiterated that
SDARS licensees are already prohibited,
independent of the merger, from using
terrestrial repeaters to distribute local
content—including both programming
and advertising—that is distinct from
that provided to subscribers nationwide
via satellite. The Commission also
prohibited the merged entity from
entering into agreements that would bar
any terrestrial radio station from
broadcasting live local sporting events.
6. The Commission clarified that the
merged entity must comply with the
Commission’s equal employment
opportunity rules and policies for
broadcasters, including periodic
submissions to the Commission
consistent with the broadcast reporting
schedule.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E8–20735 Filed 9–5–08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712–01–P
FEDERAL MARITIME COMMISSION
Meetings; Sunshine Act
Federal
Maritime Commission.
TIME AND DATE: September 11, 10 a.m.
PLACE: 800 North Capitol Street, NW.,
First Floor Hearing Room, Washington,
DC.
STATUS: A portion of the meeting will be
in Open Session and the remainder of
the meeting will be in Closed Session.
MATTERS TO BE CONSIDERED:
AGENCY HOLDING THE MEETING:
Open Session
(1) FMC Agreement No. 201192,
South Florida Container Terminal
Cooperative Working Agreement.
(2) Docket No. 02–04, Anchor
Shipping Co. v. Alianca—Request for
Extension of Time for Initial and Final
Decision.
(3) Constitution Day and Citizenship
Day, 2008.
Radio technology in SDARS receivers, it recognized
that important questions were raised about HD
Radio that warrant further examination in a
separate proceeding. The Commission will initiate
a notice of inquiry within 30 days after adoption of
the merger order to gather additional information
on the issues.
E:\FR\FM\08SEN1.SGM
08SEN1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 73, Number 174 (Monday, September 8, 2008)]
[Notices]
[Pages 52046-52047]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E8-20735]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
[MB Docket No. 07-57; FCC 08-178]
Applications for Consent to the Transfer of Control of Licenses,
XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc., Transferor, to Sirius Satellite Radio
Inc., Transferee
AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.
ACTION: Notice; approval of merger.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This document approves the consolidated application of Sirius
Satellite Radio Inc. (``Sirius'') and XM Satellite Radio Holdings Inc.
(``XM''; jointly, the ``Applicants'') for consent to the transfer of
control of the licenses and authorizations held by Sirius and XM and
their subsidiaries for the provision of SDARS in the United States and
eliminates the prohibition on one licensee of satellite digital audio
radio service (or ``SDARS'') acquiring control of the other SDARS
licensee.
DATES: The Commission's action became effective July 25, 2008.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Marcia Glauberman, Industry Analysis
Division, Media Bureau, at (202) 418-7046, or Rebekah Goodheart,
Industry Analysis Division, Media Bureau, at (202) 418-1438.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Federal
Communications Commission's Memorandum Opinion and Order and Report and
Order (the ``Order'') in MB Docket No. 07-57; FCC 08-178, adopted July
25, 2008, and released August 5, 2008. The full text of this document
is available for public inspection and copying during regular business
hours in the FCC Reference Center, Federal Communications Commission,
445 12th Street, SW., CY-A257, Washington, DC
[[Page 52047]]
20554. These documents will also be available via ECFS (https://
www.fcc.gov/cgb/ecfs). The complete text may be purchased from the
Commission's copy contractor, 445 12th Street, SW., Room CY-B402,
Washington, DC 20554. To request this document in accessible formats
(computer diskettes, large print, audio recording and Braille), send an
e-mail to fcc504@fcc.gov or call the FCC's Consumer and Governmental
Affairs Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (voice), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).
Summary of the Order
1. In 1997, the Commission established the SDARS service and
determined that there would be two initial SDARS licenses, sold at
auction to different parties. The 1997 SDARS Service Rules Order, 62 FR
11083, 11102, March 11, 1997 (``1997 Order''), contained the following
language:
Even after DARS licenses are granted, one licensee will not be
permitted to acquire control of the other remaining satellite DARS
license. This prohibition on transfer of control will help assure
sufficient continuing competition in the provision of satellite DARS
service.
2. In this Order, the Commission found that the merger would be
prohibited by the language in the 1997 Order. For the reasons
summarized below, however, the Commission found that approval of the
merger, subject to the Applicants' voluntary commitments and other
conditions, would benefit consumers by making available to them a wider
array of programming choices at various price points and affording them
greater choice and control over the programming to which they
subscribe, and that those benefits would exceed the harms. For the same
reasons, the Commission concluded that elimination of the prohibition
on one licensee of SDARS acquiring control of the other SDARS licensee,
on balance, would serve the public interest.
3. The Commission's decision was based on consideration of the
consolidated application of Sirius and XM for consent to the transfer
of control of the licenses and authorizations held by Sirius and XM and
their subsidiaries for the provision of SDARS in the United States.
After reviewing the empirical data available as part of its competitive
analysis, the Commission determined there was insufficient evidence in
the record to predict the likelihood of anticompetitive harms. It
therefore evaluated the Application under ``worst-case'' assumptions,
i.e., that the relevant market is limited to SDARS. This approach
permitted the Commission to protect consumers from potential adverse
effects of the transaction while also allowing the Commission to
balance potential harms against potential public interest benefits. The
Commission concluded that the merger, absent the Applicants' voluntary
commitments and other conditions, would result in potential harms. The
Commission found that, with the Applicants' voluntary commitments and
other conditions, the potential public interest benefits of the
transaction, on balance, outweigh the potential harms, and approval of
the transaction is in the public interest.
4. The Commission conditioned grant of the application on the
merged firm's fulfillment of the Applicants' voluntary commitments and
other conditions. The Commission accepted the Applicants' voluntary
commitments and imposed conditions to:
a. Cap prices for at least 36 months after consummation of the
transaction, subject to certain cost pass-throughs after one year. In
addition, six months prior to the end of commitment period, the
Commission will seek public comment on whether the cap continues to be
necessary in the public interest and will determine whether it should
be extended, removed, or modified. The merger approval is conditioned
on the Commission's ability to modify or extend the price cap beyond
the three-year commitment period.
b. Offer to consumers, within three months of consummation of the
transaction, the ability to receive a number of new programming
packages, including the ability to select programming on an a la carte
basis.
c. Make available four percent of its capacity for use by certain
Qualified Entities, and an additional four percent of capacity for the
delivery of noncommercial educational or informational programming,
which will enhance the diversity of programming available to consumers.
d. Offer interoperable receivers in the ``retail after-market,''
i.e., receivers available at retail outlets for installation in
consumers' automobiles or homes, within nine months of consummation of
the merger.
e. Refrain from entering into any agreement that would grant an
equipment manufacturer an exclusive right to manufacture, market, and
sell SDARS receivers. Applicants also commit to refrain from barring
any manufacturer from including in any receiver non-interfering digital
audio broadcast (or, ``HD Radio'') functionality, iPod compatibility,
or other audio technology.\1\ In addition, Applicants will make
available the intellectual property needed to allow any device
manufacturer to develop equipment that can deliver SDARS.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
\1\ Although the Commission found it unnecessary to impose a
condition requiring the inclusion of HD Radio technology in SDARS
receivers, it recognized that important questions were raised about
HD Radio that warrant further examination in a separate proceeding.
The Commission will initiate a notice of inquiry within 30 days
after adoption of the merger order to gather additional information
on the issues.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
f. File the applications needed to provide Sirius satellite service
to Puerto Rico via terrestrial repeaters within three months of the
consummation of the merger.
5. The Commission reiterated that SDARS licensees are already
prohibited, independent of the merger, from using terrestrial repeaters
to distribute local content--including both programming and
advertising--that is distinct from that provided to subscribers
nationwide via satellite. The Commission also prohibited the merged
entity from entering into agreements that would bar any terrestrial
radio station from broadcasting live local sporting events.
6. The Commission clarified that the merged entity must comply with
the Commission's equal employment opportunity rules and policies for
broadcasters, including periodic submissions to the Commission
consistent with the broadcast reporting schedule.
Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene H. Dortch,
Secretary.
[FR Doc. E8-20735 Filed 9-5-08; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P
