Thune Presses for Set-Top Order Text Release, Further NPRM

Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John Thune, R-S.D., told FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler he backs a request from Rep. Tony Cardenas, D-Calif., that Wheeler release the set-top box order text and initiate a Further NPRM process. The proposed order was yanked from an FCC meeting agenda Thursday (see 1609290076). The draft order “raises questions relating to customer privacy, marketplace innovation, copyright, legal authority, content security, and other topics,” Thune said in a letter dated Friday. “For a rulemaking that is expected to take years before it is fully implemented, there is no need or urgency for the Commission to rush behind closed doors to adopt a final order.” Sen Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, said Friday he's “glad the FCC decided to remove the divisive cable set-top box plan from the Commission’s September Open Meeting agenda. ... I have repeatedly expressed my deep concerns about the FCC’s approach in the proposed set-top box plan. The proposal was clearly premature and left many questions unresolved regarding the proper role of the FCC and its jurisdiction over issues related to content licensing and copyright.” The order’s defenders still pushed for faster approval. “This historic proposal, enforcing law long on the books, should be adopted as soon as possible,” said Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn. Other lawmakers weighed in on Twitter. The FCC "should release their new proposal re: set-top box and open it up for review+public comment," tweeted Rep. Bill Johnson, R-Ohio. "Vital that all views/concerns are heard." The move "to delay the set top box vote is a step in the right direction though the Commission still needs to revise its proposal," tweeted House Commerce Committee Vice Chairwoman Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn.