Mike Wassenaar
Alliance for Community Media President & CEO
Non-Profit Media Executive with thirty years of experience in radio and television production; Expertise with community media practices across the United States; Active community volunteer with non-profit board experience.
Why PEG Stations Should Care About the Broadband Deployment
Thanks to federal funds, Broadband Deployment will allow internet access to more people than ever, but what does that mean for PEG channels. It would seem that, the more people that have internet access, the better for us, but internet access is not cable access, so what can PEG stations do to ensure their signals are available to the widest audience possible. This panel will discuss the status of broadband deployment in the state and the implications for our channels. What is the future of cable distribution? Must we plan for over-the-top apps to reach new viewers and will this be the only way residents can access PEG channels in the future? Will we get more HD distribution? What are PEG stations doing nationally to maximize their availability? Are there new security issues if broadband is the only way to access to our stations? Panelists: Robert Boyle, CEO, Planet Networks; Mike Wassenaar, President & CEO, Alliance for Community Media; Ken Fellman Esq., founder and partner, Wilson Williams Fellman Dittman; Valarry Bullard, Broadband Director, New Jersey Board of Public Utilities; Moderator: Bob Duthaler, President, JAG
ADA Compliance-Updates on the DOJ Rulings and Closed Captioning for Municipal Websites and PEG Channels
We had told our members back in December to start budgeting, just in case we must need to start captioning. What new information has come out that Municipalities and PEG stations need to be concerned about regarding Closed Captioning? Are PEG Channels still safe not to caption as stated under the FCC rulings, or is this something that is now a must now because of the DOJ's Rulings? How long do we have to comply with these rulings? What can we do if a station just doesn't have the funds to make this happen? What should we concentrate on when it comes to Captioning. (Public Meetings, Sports, Concerts, Etc.) Panelists: Mike Wassenaar, President & CEO, Alliance for Community Media; Jeff Bayne, partner, Spiegel & McDiarmid: Moderator: Dave Garb, Legislative Chair, JAG
Understanding Franchising and What to Know When Renegotiating
What are the main differences between a State Franchise, and the ones negotiated at the municipal level? Which one is a better choice, and can a municipality have a say on which one they prefer? Nationally, what is being added or taken away in negotiated franchise agreements? Franchise monies are going down due to the streaming industry, what can we do during negotiations to curb this? We hear of bills being introduced around the country that are trying to force streamers to pay a per subscriber fee to municipalities. How is this going and if successful, what does that mean for the local access station? Panelists: Mike Wassenaar, President & CEO, Alliance for Community Media; Ken Fellman, Esq., founder and partner, Wilson Williams Fellman Dittman; Jeff Bayne, partner, Spiegel & McDiarmid; Moderator: Dave Garb, Legislative Chair, JAG