The FCC should encourage opportunities for minority ownership...

The FCC should encourage opportunities for minority ownership in the media, telecommunications and broadband industries, the Minority Media and Telecom Council (MMTC) told Chairman Tom Wheeler, commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Mike O'Rielly, an aide to Commissioner Ajit Pai, and Enforcement Bureau staff in a series of meetings Friday, according to an ex parte filing released Monday. To encourage minority ownership, the commission should revise its designated-entity rules to “take into consideration the scale that is needed to participate as a competitor in the spectrum auctions” and encourage major telecom carriers to conduct secondary transactions with minority-owned businesses, the MMTC filing said. The commission should also relax cross-ownership rules “except in smaller and some medium markets where relaxation might result in excessive concentration of the media and, therefore, harm minority ownership,” the filing said. The commission should also tighten the rules governing sharing arrangements, MMTC said. On the open Internet, the commission should institute “light touch regulation premised on transparency and vigilant oversight and monitoring to discourage abusive practices,” MMTC said. The commission should also “give credence” to the FCC Diversity Advisory Committee’s recommendations, MMTC said.