Both the Telecom Act's plain language and the congressional intent show the FCC was right in deciding Charter Communications faced effective competition in parts of Massachusetts and Hawaii due to AT&T TV Now, NCTA said in an amicus brief Wednesday (in Pacer, docket 19-2282). The decision "avoids the unfairness" of asymmetrical regulations when a LEC and cable operator compete, it said, backing the commission in Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications and Cable's appellate court challenge to the FCC's effective competition order (see 1912230063). MDTC didn't comment Thursday.

A host of companies and associations -- including Comcast, AT&T, iHeartMedia and the Internet Association -- praised Washington, D.C.’s removal of a planned tax on the purchase of advertising. “This proposed tax would have created a substantial barrier for economic recovery and job creation in the District,” said a joint statement Wednesday, which was also signed by Verizon, the News Media Alliance and NCTA. NAB also signed the statement and released its own last week (see 2007230064). The tax’s removal “provides a far better environment for the many large and small business and media entities struggling to recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic,” the joint release said.

The Massachusetts Department of Telecommunications and Cable's appellate court challenge to the FCC's effective competition order covering parts of the state and Hawaii (see 1912230063) comes from "a cramped reading" of the commission's LEC test that's both atextual and against Congress' explicit desire that cable rates be set by competition, not regulation. So read an FCC brief Wednesday with the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals (in Pacer, docket 19-2282). The LEC test's statutory text and legislative history back the idea it doesn't impose a facilities-based restriction on LECs and their affiliates, the FCC said. MDTC didn't comment.

Logitech's gaming unit introduced a wireless pro-grade headset targeted to esports participants, Logitech said. It's equipped with 2.4 GHz Lightspeed wireless, which delivers 42 feet of range and more than 20 hours of battery life. DTS 7.1 surround sound is built in. Availability is August, said the company.

Esports ad and sponsorship spending this year will top $1.5 billion, up 41% from 2017, Comscore reported Monday. Some 65% of U.S. households own a device for gaming; game content touches 80% of the digital population. Some 38 million U.S. households own a gaming console. In 2020, there were 210 million unique visitors in the overall gaming category.

The cost of complying with FCC syndicated exclusivity rules for a handful of Pennsylvania communities, such as a system upgrade in excess of $100,000, outweighs the benefit, the Media Bureau said in a docket 13-287 order Friday. It granted cable ISP Service Electric Cablevision its requested, unopposed waiver of the syndex rules.

The National Music Publishers’ Association announced a multiyear licensing agreement with TikTok Thursday. Retroactive to May, the partnership gives NMPA members “the ability to opt-in to a licensing framework that allows them to benefit from their works,” the association said. “Music is an important part of apps like TikTok which merge songs with expression and popularize new music while also giving new life to classic songs,” NMPA CEO David Israelite said. “This agreement respects the work of creators and gives them a way to be paid for their essential contributions to the platform.”

Spotify and Universal Music Group signed a multiyear global license agreement, they said Wednesday. The agreement covers a “shared commitment to music’s continued growth, deeper music discovery experiences and collaboration on new, state-of-the-art marketing campaigns across Spotify’s platform.” UMG will be an “early adopter” of future products and provide feedback to Spotify’s development team, they said. The agreement expands on Spotify’s Marquee recommendation feature and Canvas looping visuals that accompany music tracks, and the companies will build new tools and offerings for artists. The goal of Spotify's Marketplace strategy is to "harness Spotify’s ability to connect artists with fans on a scale that has never before existed and bring new opportunities to the industry,” said Spotify CEO Daniel Ek. The partnership “will provide our artists with new and powerful opportunities to connect with fans on Spotify’s growing platform,” said Universal CEO Lucian Grainge.

Dish Network and Cox Media Group blamed each other for 14 local CMG stations in 10 markets going dark on Dish's lineup Wednesday after the end of a temporary restraining order previously awarded to Dish. U.S. District Judge Thomas Durkin of Chicago earlier this week rejected Dish's ask for a temporary restraining order against Cox pending U.S. Circuit Court appeal (in Pacer, docket 20-CV-00570). Dish said CMG rejected an offer of extending the current carriage agreement at higher rates while the two negotiate, but the programmer demanded a 40% rate increase. Stations in Georgia, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, Washington and Oklahoma went dark, Dish said. Dish is appealing to the 7th Circuit Durkin's earlier denial of a motion for a preliminary injunction and dissolving a TRO against CMG. The MVPD sued CMG and Apollo Global Management alleging breach of contract for Dish's retransmission of the local TV signals of CMG stations. CMG said Dish's "misguided efforts [are] to avoid agreeing to reach a fair market carriage agreement." It said Dish pulled the CMG stations, and it offered an extension so they could continue to negotiate.

Some 17% of cord-cutter households said they will return to pay TV when live sports return, reported Roku Tuesday. Thirty-one percent said they are likely to subscribe to a live sports streaming service, and 52% of traditional and cord-shaver households that cut back on pay-TV service say they are likely to reduce their package if televised live sports on traditional pay TV doesn’t return. The Macro Consulting survey commissioned by Roku canvassed 7,000 adult U.S. viewers in March and another 2,000 in May amid COVID-19. Nearly a third of U.S. TV households don’t have cable, satellite or telco TV; 25% were cord shavers. Forty-five percent of cord shavers intended to sever service in the next six months. Cutting home entertainment expenses was the leading reason for cord-cutter households shifting to full-time streaming, with Roku users who cut the cord saying they saved about $75 monthly. Nearly half of all U.S. TV households say they are watching more free, ad-supported TV. Four in 10 cord-cutter households said access to free trials and extended free trials to premium subscription services influenced their decision to cut traditional pay-TV service.