Congressional Privacy Caucus Co-chairs Concerned About Set-top NPRM

The Congressional Privacy Caucus co-chairs are concerned “that existing privacy protections enjoyed by cable and satellite subscribers will not be retained as the Commission moves forward on a rulemaking regarding third party navigation devices,” they told FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler in a letter Wednesday. Reps. Diana DeGette, D-Colo., and Joe Barton, R-Texas, are the co-chairs who signed the letter. They worried about the set-top box NPRM’s proposed self-certification for third parties and a potential outcome that would “harm consumers,” they said. They want to hear from the FCC “directly,” they said. The Future of TV Coalition, which opposes the NPRM, posted the letter. The agency has defended the NPRM as helping to cut consumer costs and add to their options.