PUBLIC NOTICE Federal Communications Commission 445 12th St., S.W. Washington, D.C. 20554 News Media Information 202 / 418-0500 Internet: http://www.fcc.gov TTY: 1-888-835-5322 NEWS MEDIA CONTACT Janice Wise at (202) 418-8165 janice.wise@fcc.gov DA 14-1762 Released: December 4, 2014 FCC SEEKS NOMINATIONS FOR MEMBERSHIP FOR THE DOWNLOADABLE SECURITY TECHNICAL ADVISORY COMMITTEE Washington, D.C. – The Federal Communications Commission is seeking nominations of representatives from multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD), content, and consumer electronics industries as well as related public interest organizations and academics to serve as members of a new advisory committee that the Commission will soon establish, the Downloadable Security Technical Advisory Committee (DSTAC). The DSTAC’s mission is “to identify, report, and recommend performance objectives, technical capabilities, and technical standards of a not unduly burdensome, uniform, and technology- and platform-neutral software-based downloadable security system”1 to promote the competitive availability of navigation devices (e.g., set-top boxes and MVPD-compatible television sets) in furtherance of Section 629 of the Communications Act.2 The DSTAC must file a report with the Commission within 9 months of enactment of STELAR to detail its findings and recommendations. Selections will be made on the basis of factors such as expertise and diversity of viewpoints that are necessary to address effectively the questions before the Committee. Individuals who do not represent an organization, institution, or entity, but who possess expertise valuable to the Committee’s work, may also apply. However, if appointed, such individuals would serve as Special Government Employees (SGEs) subject to conflict of interest rules, financial disclosure requirements, and limitations on financial holdings similar to those applicable to regular agency employees. In addition, under current White House guidance, such individuals (unlike those who are serving in a representative capacity) cannot be registered federal lobbyists. Committee members will not be compensated for their service. 1 STELA Reauthorization Act of 2014, H.R. 5728, 113th Cong., § 106 (2014) (“STELAR”). 2 47 U.S.C. § 549. The Commission is particularly interested in receiving nominations from individuals and organizations, including both private and public interest entities as well as academics, having technical knowledge and experience in the matters to be addressed by the Committee. During calendar year 2015, we anticipate that the Committee will meet in Washington, D.C. for full-day meetings once per month, at least through September. In addition, as needed, working groups or subcommittees will be established to facilitate the Committee’s work between meetings of the full Committee. Meetings will be fully accessible to individuals with disabilities. Members must commit to a term of service of at least 9 months (and possibly up to a year if necessary) to complete the work of the committee, should be willing and able to attend full-day meetings each month in Washington, D.C., and may be asked to participate in deliberations of at least one working group or subcommittee. The time commitment to each working group or subcommittee may be substantial. Nominations shall include the following information: · Name, title, and organization of the nominee and a description of the organization, sector, or other interest the nominee will represent; · Nominee’s postal mailing address, e-mail address, and telephone number; · A statement summarizing the nominee’s qualifications and reasons why the nominee should be appointed to the DSTAC. If the nominee will represent a specific organization, the statement should include a description of the organization and an explanation of the benefit of having the organization represented on the DSTAC. This statement shall also summarize the nominee’s specific technical expertise in the areas of conditional access and content security ; and · For those who would serve as SGE’s in an individual capacity, a statement confirming that the nominee is not a registered lobbyist pursuant to the Lobbying Disclosure Act of 1995. All candidates for membership on the Council will be subject to the same evaluation criteria, but this Notice is not the exclusive method by which the Commission will solicit nominations and expressions of interest to identify qualified candidates. Nominations may be submitted by e-mail to DSTAC@fcc.gov. All nominations must be submitted by December 15, 2014 at 11:59PM, EST. The Commission will publish a notice in the Federal Register announcing the appointment of advisory committee members and the first meeting of the Committee. For additional information about the Committee, please contact Brendan Murray at 202-418- 1573 or Nancy Murphy at 202-418-1043.