Comcast-NBCU comments open to FCC, closed to general public

Comcast and NBC Universal have obediently provided the FCC with tons of details about how they operate on a daily basis and how they might operate in combination and how those operations might impact outsiders like Hulu. The information flow, however, stops there because the two companies blacked out most of the interesting information in documents made available to the public. Competitors, who agree to keep the information confidential, can also see what's there, just not the public or press.

Speaking of competitors--or potential competitors--Bloomberg LP, the parent company of Bloomberg TV, has asked the FCC to give it additional time to review the Comcast-NBCU deal before making its final comments. Bloomberg, of course, is worried about any unfair advantage CNBC might get over Bloomberg TV on Comcast stations.

Finally, while the regulatory issues swirl like so much debris in a tornado, Comcast is moving ahead full speed with plans to deploy switched digital video (SDV) to free up capacity to add more channels and better manage bandwidth.

For more:
- see this blog post
- and this post
- and this story
- and this release

Related articles:
FCC stops clock on NBCU-Comcast merger; adds more time for comment
Comcast-funded reports support its acquisition of NBC Universal