A draft bill from Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif.,...
A draft bill from Rep. Anna Eshoo, D-Calif., aimed at toughening FCC authority during retransmission consent disputes demonstrates why government involvement “is more complicated than proponents of retrans reform might assert,” said Pillsbury broadcast attorney Scott Flick. Giving consumers the…
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right to discontinue getting the broadcast programming “at any time over their cable system is not very helpful,” he said in a blog post (http://bit.ly/14GnEmy). The provision seems to concede that consumers can just use an antenna for broadcast programming rather than rely on their cable system, he said. These same consumers “can just use an antenna to avoid any retrans-based disruptions, obviating the need for the law in the first place,” he said. If the retrans agreement has expired and the cable system isn’t carrying the broadcast channel, “the cable system also isn’t paying the broadcaster for retransmission,” he said. “As a result, any money paid by subscribers for broadcast content they aren’t receiving is merely an economic windfall for the cable system."