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FCC Satellite Deadline Looms Near

© Bryan Johnson

As mentioned in an earlier column FCC Stifles Broadcast Competition the U.S. government is about to direct all satellite broadcasters to refrain from transmitting network broadcasts (primarily CBS and Fox, although in some cases NBC and ABC as well) to out of market subscribers. For example, if you live in Washington, D.C. and are a DirecTV subscriber, you may receive your ABC from Seattle and your NBC from Nashville.

Many satellite subscribers turn to such companies as DirecTV because their local cable broadcasters either 1) provide horrible service, or 2) are overpriced, or 3) have terrible transmissions (yes, even in Washington, D.C., American's eighth largest TV market, you cannot get a good transmission of FOX). In other cases, you may live in Palatka Florida and need a satellite to receive FOX because there is no cable service and your antennae picks up only flea races.

So, satellite broadcasters started negotiating private deals with networks to make their broadcasts available to satellite subscribers. However, local affiliates began to complain that people receiving out of market network broadcasts were eating into local broadcast profits. After all, is a person in Washington, D.C., is receiving their NBC from Seattle, how will they ever see the advertising of the local DC flower shop?

So, many network affiliates petitioned the FCC to crack down on these broadcasts. That led to the FCC further defining the criteria that must be present in order for someone to receive satellite broadcasts of out of market networks. These included living in an area where neither cable nor antennae provide a good quality picture.

After several court cases, the end result has been that nearly 2 million satellite subscribers will lose access to the networks unless Congress steps in to stop it. Hence, Representative Thomas Bliley (R-VA) may be stepping in to do just that. An Associated Press report mentions that Bliley may offer legislation allowing satellite providers to provide local access network broadcasts to subscribers. In any event, there is a February 28 deadline.

If Congress is unsuccessful in passing legislation before then, or in postponing the February 28 deadline, there are a whole lot of people which are no longer going to be able to see All McBeal kiss another women or hear Dana Scully say, "Mulder, there has to be a scientific explanation for this." Stay tuned.