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 NEWS  News  media  Information  202  /  418-  0500  Fax-  On-  Demand  202  /  418-  2830  TTY  202/  418-  2555  Internet:  http://  www.  fcc.  gov  ftp.  fcc.  gov  Federal  Communications  Commission  445  12  th  Street,  S.  W.  Washington,  D.  C.  20554  This  is  an  unofficial  announcement  of  Commission  action.  Release  of  the  full  text  of  a  Commission  order  constitutes  official  action.  See  MCI  v.  FCC.  515  F  2d  385  (D.  C.  Circ  1974).  FOR  IMMEDIATE  RELEASE  NEWS  MEDIA  CONTACT:  January  10,  2003  Michelle  Russo  202-  418-  2358 
 FCC  SEEKS  COMMENT  ON  CABLE-  CONSUMER  ELECTRONICS  AGREEMENT  ON  “PLUG  AND  PLAY” 
 Washington,  D.  C.  -  Today,  the  Federal  Communications  Commission  (FCC)  took  another  step  forward  in  the  transition  to  digital  television.  Today’s  proceeding  seeks  comment  on  proposed  rules 
 for  “plug  and  play”  cable  compatibility,  which  is  a  key  piece  of  the  digital  television  puzzle.  In  a  “plug  and  play”  world,  consumers  will  be  able  to  plug  their  cable  directly  into  their  digital  TV  set  without  the 
 need  of  a  set-  top  box. 
 On  December  19,  2002,  the  cable  and  consumer  electronics  industries  filed  a  Memorandum  of  Understanding  (MOU)  which  details  an  agreement  on  a  cable  compatibility  standard  for  an  integrated, 


 one-  way  digital  cable  television  receiver,  as  well  as  other  unidirectional  digital  cable  products.  The  industries  assert  that  unidirectional  digital  cable  television  receivers  manufactured  pursuant  to  the 
 MOU  would  be  capable  of  receiving  analog  basic,  digital  basic  and  digital  premium  cable  television  programming  by  direct  connection  to  a  cable  system  providing  digital  programming.  Due  to  the 
 unidirectional  nature  of  this  receiver  specification,  an  external  navigation  device  will  still  be  needed  to  receive  advanced  features  such  as  cable  operator-  enhanced  electronic  programming  guides,  impulse 
 pay  per  view  or  video  on  demand.  The  MOU  indicates  that  the  industries  continue  to  work  on  a  bidirectional  receiver  specification  that  would  eliminate  the  need  for  an  external  navigation  device  to 
 receive  advanced  services. 
 When  the  industry  agreement  was  reached,  FCC  Chairman  Michael  K.  Powell  said,  “Plug  and  play  will  be  good  for  the  future  of  these  industries,  good  for  the  digital  transition,  and  most 


 importantly,  good  for  consumers.” 
 Today’s  Further  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  (FNPRM)  seeks  comment  on  the  MOU  and  the  proposed  FCC  rules  contained  therein,  as  well  as  its  potential  impact  upon  consumers,  small  cable 


 operators  and  multichannel  video  programming  distributors  (MVPDs)  other  than  cable  operators.  The  FNPRM  also  seeks  comment  on  the  jurisdictional  basis  for  FCC  action  in  this  area,  including  the 
 creation  of  encoding  rules  for  audiovisual  content  provided  by  MVPDs.  As  to  issues  not  addressed  by  the  MOU,  such  as  the  down-  resolution  of  programming,  the  FNPRM  seeks  comment  on  whether  FCC 
 action  is  needed  and  authorized. 
 Action  by  the  Commission,  January  7,  2003,  by  Further  Notice  of  Proposed  Rulemaking  (FCC  03-  3). 


 -FCC- 
 Comments  due:  March  28,  2003  Reply  Comments  due:  April  28,  2003 
 CS  Docket  97-  80  PP  Docket  00-  67 
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 Media  Bureau  contact:  Susan  Mort  at  202-  418-  7200. 
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