FCC Order Would Bar Carriage Shutoffs Near DTV Transition
A draft FCC order being considered would bar shutting off TV station signals to pay-TV subscribers around the time of full-power broadcasters’ analog cutoff (CD Aug 6 p12), said agency and industry officials. The draft circulated to commissioners by Chairman Kevin Martin proposed that the FCC prevent carriage disputes between TV stations and cable operators from leading to signal cutoffs during a chunk of time around Feb. 17, 2009, they said. The order was circulated about a month ago, but Martin hasn’t set a deadline for a commission vote, said agency officials. Meanwhile, commissioners are poised to hit the road to discuss the transition in dozens of markets, said agency officials.
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Five small- and mid-size cable operators sought the so- called quiet period in an April petition for expedited rulemaking. Since then, the American Cable Association and pay-TV companies have voiced support, including Dish Network on Tuesday. The order on circulation would prevent subscribers of cable, satellite and other pay-TV services from being unable to view any TV station on those services in the run up to the DTV transition, said agency and industry officials. The NCTA has supported a quiet period and continues to do so, said a spokesman. An NAB spokesman didn’t respond to a message to comment on the pending order.
Commissioners are reviewing the document, seem to support the quiet period concept and are privately discussing whether to propose changes to the document, said an agency official. Commissioners may want to change or extend the period during which the order bars pulling TV station’s signals, said the official. It’s unclear when the order would bar the removal of TV stations from pay-TV providers’ programming lineups. An FCC spokesman didn’t reply to a message seeking comment.
Commissioners soon will visit cities with high percentages of over-the-air TV viewers to educate residents about DTV, said agency officials. The FCC identified 73 markets to be visited by commissioners, Media Bureau Chief Monica Desai, her top aides, or other senior agency staffers, they said. Commissioners will split up visits to the cities (CD July 29 p11), but may not be able to visit them all. Martin noted that the portion of Americans aware of the transition has more than doubled in the past year to more than 80 percent. “But that doesn’t mean there isn’t still work to do,” he said on a videotaped interview to air Saturday on C-SPAN’s Communicators show: “We've got to make sure that we continue to educate everyone.”
Markets to get extra FCC attention include Albuquerque, Anchorage, Fairbanks, Chicago, Honolulu, New York, Sacramento, San Diego, Los Angeles, and Missoula and other markets in Montana, said commission officials. The NAB welcomed the assist. “Initiatives like these that can be executed nationally are an outstanding way to get the word out” about DTV, said an NAB spokesman. “All efforts to supplement the grassroots ground campaign will help make sure that viewers are ready for February 17, 2009.”