FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION FACT SHEET November 1996 CABLE TELEVISION FACT SHEET CABLE CARRIAGE OF BROADCAST STATIONS The Communications Act prohibits cable operators and other multichannel video programming distributors from retransmitting commercial television, low power television and radio broadcast signals without first obtaining the broadcaster's consent. This permission is commonly referred to as retransmission consent, and may involve some compensation from the cable operator to the broadcaster for the use of the signal. Alternately, local commercial and noncommercial television broadcast stations may require a cable operator that serves the same market as the broadcaster to carry its signal. A demand for carriage is commonly referred to as must carry. Under these circumstances, however, the broadcaster cannot demand compensation. While retransmission consent and must-carry are distinct and function separately, they are related in that commercial broadcasters are required to choose once every three years, on a system-by-system basis, whether to obtain carriage or continue carriage by choosing between must carry and retransmission consent. The following document is intended to answer some frequently asked questions concerning the retransmission consent and must-carry provisions. Q: Why can't I find the station I want to watch on the channel that is used to be on? A: If you cannot find the station you are looking for on its usual cable channel number, it may have been moved to another channel or dropped. As a result of satisfying its must-carry obligations, the cable company could have changed the television broadcast station's cable channel number. Furthermore, under retransmission consent, television broadcast stations now have the right to demand payment for carriage. If the television broadcast station and your cable company could not reach a satisfactory agreement, then your cable company had to drop the television broadcast station from its channel line-up. Q: Why has my cable system dropped cable programming services, such as C-Span, MTV, USA, etc.? A: Cable television systems generally have some limited channel capacity; your system may have 36, or 54, or even more channels available. The law requires cable operators to reserve up to one-third of a system's channel capacity for local commercial television stations which have elected must-carry status. In addition, the cable system is generally required to carry the non commercial television stations which are local to your state or community. In order to accommodate these stations, some cable systems had to choose what programming services would be dropped. It is your cable operator's right to decide which services to keep and which to remove in order to make space for local television stations which demand carriage. Q: Why must my cable system carry so many broadcast stations? A: The Communications Act requires cable operators to set aside a specified portion of their channels for local commercial and non commercial television stations. A cable operator with 12 or fewer channels must set aside up to three channels for local commercial television stations and at least one channel for a local noncommercial educational television broadcast station. Cable operators with more than 12 channels must set aside one third of their channel capacity for local commercial stations. Cable systems with between 13 and 36 channels must carry at least one, but need not carry more than three, local noncommercial educational television stations. Systems with more than 36 channels must carry all local noncommercial educational television stations requesting carriage with some exceptions for duplication signals. Local television stations choosing the must-carry option and those that have negotiated agreements for retransmission with the cable system count towards this quota. Q: What happens if a station chooses the must-carry option? A: Must-carry stations are generally guaranteed carriage on the cable system on a preferred channel number. Local commercial television stations have been given the option of electing must-carry status or retransmission consent status, while local noncommercial television stations may only seek carriage on a must-carry basis. The must-carry provisions for noncommercial stations have been in effect since December 4, 1992. Cable operators were required to begin carriage of local commercial stations entitled to must-carry status beginning on June 2, 1993, pending implementation of the retransmission consent portion of the new law. Must-carry stations also have the right to be carried on one of several channel numbers. Commercial stations which have elected must-carry have the option of requesting carriage on the channel number where they are carried over-the-air, on the channel number they were carried on as of July 19, 1985, or the channel they were carried on the cable system as of January 1, 1992. However, television stations may also be carried on any channel that is mutually agreed upon by the station and cable operator. Under the FCC rules, cable systems had to comply with these requests by October 6, 1993. Q. Why is the channel line-up on my cable system still changing today, if broadcaster's made the choice between must-carry and retransmission consent in 1993? A. There may be several different reasons for changes to occur in the cable system's channel line-up on an on-going basis. First, a new television station may have entered your market. New television stations also have the right to elect between must-carry and retransmission consent within the initial months of their operation. Second, either a broadcast station or a cable system may have requested that the FCC include or exclude a particular broadcast station in your local market. If a decision is made by the FCC to include or exclude a television station from your cable system's market - the station may have to be added or dropped from the cable system. Finally, cable programming services such as C-Span, USA or the Comedy Channel may be added or dropped at the discretion of your cable operator, to enable the operator to carry a different cable programming service, or to carry a newly available broadcast station. Q: Why is the retransmission consent requirement included in the law? A: Since 1934, broadcast stations that use of the programming of other broadcast stations have been required to obtain the prior consent of the originating station. This requirement has now been applied to cable systems because the absence of this requirement was distorting the video marketplace and threatening the future of over-the-air television broadcasting. This law treats broadcasters like other programming services carried by cable systems. Q: Why does my cable system now offer several channels with similar programming formats (for instance, religious, Hispanic, shopping) not previously carried? A: Some stations may have been added to your system because they are considered local for your area and they have requested, and are entitled to, carriage under the must-carry rules. Commercial stations are considered local if they are assigned to the same television market as your cable system. Noncommercial stations are considered local if they are licensed to cities within 50 miles of your cable system or their signals meet certain technical engineering standards at the cable system's reception facility. Other channels with these formats may be cable networks and are carried at the discretion of the cable operator. Q: What happens if my cable operator and a particular station did not reach a retransmission consent agreement? How long will it be before I can see the station? A: Until the cable operator and the station reach an agreement, the cable operator is forbidden from carrying that station's signal. Once an agreement is reached, the station can be put back on the cable system immediately. In addition, every three years broadcast stations must decide whether to demand carriage on local cable systems without receiving compensation or elect to negotiate a retransmission consent agreement. The next election will take place in October of 1996 and will be effective in January of 1997, at which time the carriage of a particular station will depend upon its choice for must- carry status or to continue to negotiate a retransmission consent agreement. Q: Can the FCC do something when a broadcaster and cable operator fail to reach a retransmission consent agreement? A: The FCC is not authorized to participate in discussions between television stations and cable systems regarding retransmission consent agreements. Furthermore, the FCC cannot tell a cable operator which stations or program services to drop in order to comply with the must- carry requirement. If you have comments regarding the changes in programming offered by your cable system, you should contact you cable operator. Information on how to contact your cable operator is included on your cable bill. Q: Will my cable bill go up as a result of retransmission consent agreements? A: In return for allowing a cable system to carry its signal, a television station may, but does not have to, require the payment of a fee or other consideration (for instance, carriage of another programming service or advertising time). Since October 6, 1994 any new or additional costs incurred as a result of retransmission consent agreements may be passed through to consumers. Q: Should I expect more changes in the programming on my cable system in the future? A: Yes, the law provides that once every three years broadcast stations may elect between must-carry and retransmission consent. Fortunately, most broadcasters and cable operators agree that the least amount of change possible is the best, for both themselves and the subscribers. To the extent possible, it is anticipated that cable systems will keep changes to a minimum while they comply with any changes in election by broadcasters. In addition, the constitutionally of the 1992 Consumer Protection and Competition Act's must-carry provisions have been challenged before the Supreme Court. Therefore, there may be further changes either due to a court order due to the FCC's refinement of its must-carry regulations. In either case, the FCC's rules require cable operators to notify subscribers 30 days prior to any change in the broadcast stations they carry, or the channel number of the stations they carry. Thus, your cable operator should keep you informed about any changes that will affect your cable service.