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FCC Upholds Rule on Carrying Local Digital Channels

Authored by dmw on February 11, 2005 - 11:19am.
Washington -- The Federal Communications Commission has voted down a request that would have required cable and satellite operators to carry multiple digital channels offered by local TV stations. As more and more local broadcasters switch to digital, some have chosen to use the extra space to create multiple channels. The 4-1 vote by the FCC, however, upheld a four-year-old ruling requiring cable and satellite companies to carry just one digital channel per station. The decision could potentially slow the transition to digital TV, as broadcasters aren't required to give up their analog spectrum until a vast majority of Americans have the new digital TVs needed to receive digital signals -- and the absence of local channels on cable systems could impede digital TV sales. Congress wants broadcasters off the analog spectrum so they can then auction the bandwidth to wireless companies. Reaction to the decision was varied. While the National Association of Broadcasters called it "anti-consumer," the cable and satellite industries argue that adding the extra channels would eat up valuable space on the dial, and worry that local broadcasters might choose to carry such programming as non-stop infomercials. Cable providers recently reached a separate deal with public broadcasters to carry multicast signals -- which will include the ability for PBS to offer an HD signal and interactive channels on digital cable systems.
tags: FCC | Channels | Local Digital | Upholds |