He might have clashed occasionally with his predecessor, but Kevin Martin as the new Federal Communications Commission chairman is expected to continue the FCC's stance on behalf of letting the market and not the regulators govern such critical developments as broadband and Voice-over Internet Protocol.
Martin was named to chair the commission by President Bush March 16, succeeding Michael Powell as chairman and leaving one vacancy on the five-member commission for now, with a second expected as Kathleen Abernathy, like Martin and Powell a Republican, is anticipated to be leaving the FCC.
Martin was credited for playing a "key role" in a crucial broadband ruling in 2003, in which the FCC told the four regional Bells they didn't have to share any high-speed broadband networks they build and wouldn't be forced to offer broadband fiberoptic lines to competitors at discounts—but would have to open their telephone lines to competitors looking for a piece of the broadband action.
He clashed with Powell on that issue, with Powell saying it gave up "too much" to the states while adding more than eliminating pocketbook burdens for consumers, as Powell saw it.
On the other hand, the FCC is also seen as mounting a stronger crackdown on actual or alleged broadcast indecency, and Martin has sometimes called for even stronger action than the commission ended up doing in some cases.
When the FCC decided that a network television broadcast of Saving Private Ryan would not be subject to indecency fines, Martin not only dissented but fired off a letter to the Parents' Television Council, a conservative activist group, saying the FCC might be interpreting the indecency stature "too narrowly.We also may need to enforce our rules more stringently."
The White House has yet to name a commissioner to fill the fifth FCC slot remaining with Powell's departure and Martin's succession as chairman. Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska)—who is pushing for cable television ratings and recently called for extending indecency regulation to cover cable and satellite broadcasting—is said to be pushing his former aide, Earl Comstock, as a possibility to fill that slot.
But assistant Commerce Secretary Michael Gallagher, who heads the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, is also considered a strong candidate for the slot, with other possibilities believed to include former Texas utilities regulator Rebecca Armendariz Klein and Federal Energy Regulatory Commission chairman Pat Wood.
Martin's ascension as FCC chairman came on the same day it was learned that Viacom, Inc.—whose holdings include CBS, the subject of a very controversial FCC fine over the Janet Jackson "wardrobe malfunction" incident at the 2004 Super Bowl's halftime show—was pondering whether to break up into separate publicly traded companies.
Viacom also owns Infinity, which has incurred FCC wrath over Howard Stern's broadcasts, a battle that finally prompted Stern to sign a major deal to shift to the Sirius satellite radio operation.
"We believe that a separation of our businesses into distinct and strong operating entities would allow us to optimize our capital structure and create unique investments that are more appealing to investors with different objectives," said chief executive Sumner Redstone in a statement. Analysts believe Viacom might release further details of any such plan in the second quarter.
Redstone did suggest, however, that Viacom could be split merely into two companies, one to include MTV Cable networks and headed by Viacom's now-co-president Tom Freston, and the other combining CBS plus Infinity's radio operations, to be run by Viacom co-president Leslie Moonves.
"The transaction should also enable us to retain the best people for each business and would provide incentives for the creation of shareholder value that are more closely tied to the businesses they run," said Redstone's statement.
