Consumers Union Policy Counsel Parul Desai raised some concerns about...

burden and unjust cost to consumers if the new rule required consumers to pay an additional fee for a set-top box,” an ex parte notice said (http://xrl.us/bnaud4). Though such a rule change would benefit cable operators, it shouldn’t be made at the expense of consumers, the notice said. “For that reason, I urged the Commission to either extend the current viewability rule or ... require the availability of set-top boxes at no cost to the consumer,” the notice said. “Alternatively, the Commission could extend the current rule and create an exemption for those cable operators that meet certain criteria, such as offering a no-cost box.” Also in docket 98-120, Ion Media CEO Brandon Burgess wrote Pai with data that show how minorities and the elderly would be affected by allowing the rule to sunset. “Sunsetting the Viewability Rule will fall much more heavily on minority and especially African-American viewers than on non-minorities,” Burgess wrote (http://xrl.us/bnaugt). Ion estimates that it has viewers in 7 million analog cable homes, representing about 7 percent of total household audience and 13 percent of its ad market. Ion draws a larger than average share of its audience from minorities and the elderly who subscribe to analog cable, data submitted with the letter show. “Sunsetting the rule will have a disproportionate effect on independent broadcasters like ION that have a large number of viewers ... that continue to rely on analog cable,” Burgess wrote. Two more broadcasters wrote letters this week asking the commission to extend the rule. “Congress mandated that cable operators provide all their customers with must-carry signals, not the opportunity to purchase yet another piece of equipment to self-install,” Ramar Communications General Manager Brad Moran wrote (http://xrl.us/bnaumo). Northwest Broadcasting CEO Brian Brady also wrote the commission to push for the rule to be extended another 3 years (http://xrl.us/bnaumw). “The expense required of cable operators to obtain equipment needed to convert digital broadcast signals to analog has already been incurred,” wrote Brady, who had been head of the Fox affiliates’ association. “Retention of the rule will actually serve as an incentive for cable operators to build out digital systems ... while allowing the viewability rule to sunset would reward a lack of investment from cable providers, further delay the deployment of digital cable system and deny cable subscribers access to diverse programming."