ACA Members Tell FCC Aides of Retrans, Nexstar/Tribune Concerns
Cable executives and America’s Communications Association representatives worry about rising retransmission consent fees (see 1903230001 or 1903250065) and about Nexstar's buying Tribune, they told aides to all FCC members and front-office Media Bureau staff. "Member companies pass through most, if…
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not all, of these fee increases to consumers, such that subscribers’ bills have increased precipitously. Devoting additional resources and bandwidth to broadcasting also hinders efforts to expand and improve broadband in rural areas," said a filing posted Tuesday in docket 10-71. Consider "the recent behavior of Nexstar, which has earned itself a reputation as an exceptionally bad actor in an already dysfunctional retransmission consent marketplace," ACA said. It's difficult to negotiate retrans deals with the broadcaster, executives said. "Nexstar has promised to raise retransmission consent rates -- and, indeed, cites this as a benefit of the proposed transaction." As the agency weighs letting one TV station owner reach a larger percentage of U.S. viewers, cable executives noted that increasing the cap "will invariably lead to higher [retrans] prices," they said. Another ACA-member confab included Wireline Bureau Chief Kris Monteith and commissioners' aides, and Pai Chief of Staff Matthew Berry attended another gathering. Executives attending at least some meetings came from Armstrong Utilities, Cable One, HTC, Liberty Puerto Rico, Shentel and TDS. Nexstar didn't comment. The FCC meetings occurred Thursday during ACA's conference in Washington (see 1903200009), noted Senior Vice President-Government Affairs Ross Lieberman. Most of the group's members attending went to Capitol Hill, he emailed. "Two small groups were taken to FCC as reflected in ex parte" filings, he added. NAB responded to the lobbying, saying ACA "rehashes tired anti-broadcaster rhetoric that we’ve heard before." TV stations and networks "provide the most popular content on cable systems," emailed NAB's spokesperson. "The FCC should reject ACA calls to inject itself into the free market retransmission consent negotiation process, and should allow local TV stations modest relief from 'I Love Lucy' era ownership rules.”