American Cable Association Summit 2012 To Feature Conversation With FCC Chairman Genachowski

FCC Leader, Broadband Champion And Supporter Of Small Business To Discuss His Public Policy Agenda For The Nation
 
Feb. 16, 2012 - PRLog -- PITTSBURGH, February 16, 2012 – The American Cable Association today announced that Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski, a champion of small business and universal broadband deployment fueled by private investment and targeted public policy stimulus, will appear at ACA Summit 2012 on Wednesday, March 14, sharing his communications vision for America in a conversation with ACA President and CEO Matthew M. Polka.

“ACA is honored that Chairman Genachowski will speak to a talented group of communications entrepreneurs who represent the vanguard in terms of deployment of broadband technology and services in some of the most rural and remote regions of the country,” Polka said. “In the past three years, very few individuals have done more than Chairman Genachowski to promote a broadband-enabled America that spurs growth, progress and opportunity in the communications, education, energy and health care fields. Forthright and genuine, bold and direct, Chairman Genachowski set goals and adopted policies that helped create jobs and turned around the economy, making a positive impact on the lives of millions of Americans.”

Chairman Genachowski brought a rich background of private sector and government experience to his FCC Chairmanship. Prior to his confirmation as FCC Chairman, Chairman Genachowski spent more than a decade in the technology and media industries as an executive, investor, and board member. At IAC/InterActiveCorp, he was Chief of Business Operations following a stint as company General Counsel. He was Special Advisor at the private equity firm General Atlantic and co-founded the technology incubator LaunchBox Digital.

ACA has supported a host of FCC decisions under Chairman Genachowski designed to promote consumer choice and competitive markets. Last March, ACA applauded the FCC's decision to review retransmission consent policies, including whether same-market, separately owned TV stations should be prevented from coordinating their cable carriage negotiations.

Another important action was the FCC's imposition of merger conditions on Comcast Corp.'s takeover of NBC Universal, including the ability of smaller pay-TV providers to utilize baseball-style commercial arbitration and rely on bargaining agents to acquire programming, if necessary.  Specifically, the FCC said pay-TV providers with 600,000 or fewer video subscribers could recover their arbitration costs from Comcast-NBCU if they win their arbitration.

Whether the issue was CALM Act implementation, historic reform of Universal Service or modification of rules governing cable navigation devices, ACA underscored the importance of the FCC's effort to show regard for the unique economic issues facing independent cable companies, which typically have higher fixed costs than their voice, video and broadband competitors.

In the early phase of a distinguished government career, Chairman Genachowski in the 1990s served as Chief Counsel to FCC Chairman Reed Hundt, as well as Special Counsel to General Counsel William Kennard. He also served as a U.S. Supreme Court law clerk for two years under Justice David Souter and Justice William J. Brennan, Jr.  For the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, he was a clerk for Chief Judge Abner Mikva. On Capitol Hill, Chairman Genachowski worked on the staff of the House select committee investigating the Iran-Contra affair, and for then-U.S. Representative (now Senator) Charles E. Schumer.

Genachowski received a J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1991, and served as co-Notes Editor of the Harvard Law Review. In 1985, he received a B.A. from Columbia College, where he was Editor of Columbia Spectator's Broadway Magazine, re-established Columbia's oldest newspaper (Acta Columbiana), and was a writer and researcher for Fred Friendly, former President of CBS News. He was also a certified Emergency Medical Technician, served on the Columbia Area Volunteer Ambulance, and taught cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).

President Obama nominated Chairman Genachowski in March 2009, and he was confirmed by the Senate on June 29, 2009.  

The ACA Summit, which is the cable industry’s marquee event for smaller, independent and competitive cable operators, will take place March 13-15 at the Grand Hyatt in downtown Washington, D.C. The Summit is a unique opportunity for the leaders of companies that serve hometown America with advanced communications services to exchange public policy ideas with the Obama Administration, Capitol Hill lawmakers and senior FCC officials.

This year's event will mark the 19th ACA Summit, extending its tradition as the most important forum nationally for honoring the critical role performed by independent cable operators that serve remote regions of the country.  

The theme for this year’s show is "Geared Up For Progress," underscoring ACA's firm commitment to finding consensus and making progress on many critical issues, especially retransmission consent, broadband deployment and access to content on fair and reasonable terms.

ACA is currently seeking exhibitors and sponsors for the event.  Interested parties should contact Stacey Leech at sleech@americancable.org or (412)-922-8300, ext. 15.  

Further information about the ACA Summit 2012 agenda and the exciting lineup of speakers will be made available on the ACA Summit 2012 website closer to the time of the event.

Meanwhile, to register and learn more about ACA Summit 2012, please visit: ACASummit.org

About the American Cable Association:   Based in Pittsburgh, the American Cable Association is a trade organization representing nearly 900 smaller and medium-sized, independent cable companies who provide broadband services for more than 7.6 million cable subscribers primarily located in rural and smaller suburban markets across America.  Through active participation in the regulatory and legislative process in Washington, D.C., ACA's members work together to advance the interests of their customers and ensure the future competitiveness and viability of their business.  For more information, visit http://www.americancable.org/

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ACA supports independent cable operators and their customers by promoting a legislative and regulatory environment that allows for a fair and competive marketplace and by providing the tools and information our members need to compete effectively
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