July 10, 2019

ACA Connects Applauds FCC Actions To Modernize KidVid Rules, Streamline Delivery Of Broadcast and Cable Notices, and Advance Connected Care

For Immediate Release
Contact: Ted Hearn
(202) 713-0826
[email protected]

PITTSBURGH, July 10, 2019 — ACA Connects President and CEO Matthew M. Polka issued the following statements regarding actions taken by the Federal Communications Commission at today’s Open Commission Meeting:

Modernizing the Children’s Television Rules:

“ACA Connects applauds the FCC for voting today to streamline the reporting process under its children’s television programming rules. Today, cable operators are required four times a year to collect “KidVid” certifications from every programmer they carry and to post these documents, which can number over 100 in total, to their public file. The FCC’s decision to move from quarterly to annual postings will substantially reduce burdens for cable operators without compromising the rules’ underlying protections for child viewers.”

Electronic Delivery of Carriage Election Notices; Electronic Delivery of Notices to Broadcast Television Stations:

“The FCC took welcome steps today to make it easier for cable operators and broadcasters to exchange required notices.  ACA Connects supports today’s decision to allow broadcast carriage election notices to occur by email.  We are also pleased that the FCC has proposed extending similar treatment to cable operators, allowing them to deliver required notices to broadcasters by email rather than certified mail. We thank the FCC for developing a proposal that takes into account many of our suggestions, and we encourage the FCC to move forward promptly with its adoption.”

Promoting Access to Connected Care Services:

“ACA Connects welcomes the FCC’s proposal to establish a Connected Care telehealth pilot program. As deployers of high-performance broadband networks in rural and underserved regions across the nation, ACA Connects members are well poised to deliver the broadband connectivity necessary for connected care. We look forward to sharing our ideas on how to design and implement a pilot program that best achieves its important goals while targeting subsidies as efficiently as possible.”

About ACA Connects: America’s Communications Association – Based in Pittsburgh, ACA Connects is a trade organization representing more than 700 smaller and medium-sized, independent companies that provide broadband, phone and video services to nearly 8 million customers primarily located in rural and smaller suburban markets across America. Through active participation in the regulatory and legislative process in Washington, D.C., ACA Connects’ members work together to advance the interests of their customers and ensure the future competitiveness and viability of their business. For more information, visit: https://acaconnects.org