TheBuzz Erika Engle

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Flailing at a forfeiture and fishing for fans

Oceanic Time Warner Cable may wind up paying $7,500 to the U.S. Treasury Department, if the Federal Communications Commission has its way.

Oceanic parent company Time Warner Cable Inc. doesn't see things the FCC's way.

The FCC is basing its Notice of Apparent Liability for Forfeiture on what it calls Oceanic's failure to give the state 30 days' notice of its plan to begin switched digital video delivery last year. The change led consumers to complain to the commission about losing access to dozens of channels.

Prior to last September, Oceanic's delivery method sent just about every channel out to every viewer simultaneously.

The conversion to switched digital video, or SDV, was intended to free up bandwidth in Oceanic's pipeline as well as memory space in viewers' hardware, according to an Oct. 2007 Buzz interview with Alan Pollock, vice president of marketing.

Viewers with set-top boxes or digital video recorders probably didn't notice.

However, according to the complaints, viewers using built-in CableCARDs lost "dozens of channels" including popular high-definition sports and entertainment channels.

Switched digital video is not the issue, though.

Rather, it is whether Oceanic was required to inform the state Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs' Cable Television Division.

The Commission says yes, but Time Warner corporate says, "Contrary to the notice issued by the FCC, Time Warner Cable does not believe that any rule requires notice to (the state)," said spokesman Justin Venech.

The FCC notice gives the cable company until Sept. 22 to pay up, or seek a reduction or cancellation of the forfeiture.

Fishing for readers

The debut issue of a fishing magazine is ready to hook readers at tackle, fishing and dive shops around the state.

On the Net: » www.hawaiiskindiver.com » www.hanapaafishing.com

The quarterly Lawai'a Magazine, published by Hana Pa'a Hawaii Inc., is the sister-publication to Hawaii Skin Diver magazine.

Yes, the latter talks about spear-fishing, but Lawai'a "encompasses everything to do with fishing," said Marc Inouye, who handles marketing and advertising for both publications.

It will also talk about the seafood industry and review seafood eateries.

"The whole reason we're doing this magazine is not really to make a lot of money," he said. The inaugural issue sells for $1.

"We want to promote responsibility and sustainability."

"If we lose things like fishing ... it's going to be harder for our kids," he said.