Gray Media and Dish continue to trade barbs over a retransmission dispute that has prevented Dish subscribers from watching 226 local stations owned by station group in 113 markets across the U.S.

The Gray stations were dropped from the Dish lineup on March 10 after the two sides were unable to reach an new retransmission consent agreement, with retransmission fees being the main sticking point.

“For the first time in its history, Gray Media’s television stations have been dropped by Dish Network, a serial instigator of disputes that have removed thousands of broadcast and cable channels from their paying customers over the years,” Gray said in a statement, which included a long list of retransmission consent blackouts between Dish and various broadcasters. “Gray’s track record for fair and reasonable distribution negotiations is undisputed in the industry. Gray has never had its signals dropped by a satellite operator, and its last multimarket cable system dispute lasted just a few days over a decade ago.”

Gray, which accused Dish of not negotiating in good faith as required by FCC rules, also said that “Dish’s action…follows weeks of Dish operating under extensions of the companies’ prior distribution agreement that Gray provided to prevent Dish from removing Gray’s signals to its paying customers during the Super Bowl, Winter Olympics, NBA All-Star Game, and numerous breaking news emergencies occurring in many of Gray’s local markets over the past several weeks. To the great surprise and disappointment of Gray’s leadership, Dish insisted that Gray agree to a materially adverse provision in the new agreement that is unlike any provision in any distribution agreement with Gray’s roughly 400 other distribution partners, and, to Gray’s knowledge, unprecedented in the several decade history of the pay-TV industry across any cable or DBS operator and any broadcaster. Because this new demand from Dish has no precedent in history, it is flatly inconsistent with marketplace conditions in clear violation of Dish’s federal statutory obligation to negotiate retransmission in good faith.”

“Dish’s tactics here are all too familiar for the shrinking number of consumers who still subscribe to their service: from 14 million in 2014 to 5 million today,” Gray Media concluded.

For its part, Dish said that “following Gray Media's decision to black out its local stations from the Dish TV lineup, 226 channels in 113 markets are currently unavailable to Dish customers. Gray Media chose to disconnect these stations—which provide critical local news, sports, and weather—after Dish refused to accept unreasonable rate increases that would have raised monthly bills for consumers.”

"It is deeply disappointing that Gray Media is using its viewers as bargaining chips," said Kevin Covell, senior vice president, DISH Video Services. "We offered a fair agreement to keep these stations on the air, but Gray Media walked away. Gray Media chose to black out their own viewers, rather than reasonably negotiate, in an attempt to extract significantly higher fees."

Dish also accused Gray of introducing `last-minute’ “demands regarding stations they don't yet own, stalling negotiations just hours before expiration. Dish remains ready to restore these channels immediately if Gray Media agrees to a fair, market-based deal.”

In a year where ad dollars and audiences continued to shift towards streaming platform, our coverage of streaming media continued to be among the most popular items on the TV Tech website.

Regulatory issues, blackouts on streaming platforms like YouTube TV, the ongoing rise in popularity of short form video and the decline of pay TV as consumers spent more time and money on streaming services, were among this year’s top 10 articles and topics.

Here are the top 10:

1. Carr Weighs in on Disney, YouTube Dispute

“People should have the right to watch the programming they paid for — including football” the FCC chair said in a X post.

2. Parks: Social Video Now Accounts for 20% of TV Viewing

Viewers watch more social video weekly than pay TV and broadcast according to Parks Associates.

3. NFL Viewers Embrace Interactive Shopping and Social Experiences on Game Day

New survey indicates that about half have shopped for NFL merchandise while watching games.

4. Point/Counterpoint: 5G Broadcast vs. NextGen TV

Industry veterans Preston Padden and Mark Aitken share their views on which standard should drive the future of U.S. television.

5. Middle-Aged Viewers Power YouTube Long-Form Content

35-to-64-year-olds emerge as YouTube’s long-form ‘content super-consumers,’ according to Ampere Analysis.

6. Peacock to Stream ‘Sunday Night Football’ in Dolby Atmos

Season kicks off with streaming coverage of Eagles-Cowboys in immersive audio.

7. Fubo to Launch 'Fubo Sports' Skinny Bundle for $56 Per Month

Fubo Sports will launch Sept. 2 with 20+ sports and broadcast networks featuring national and local pro and college team coverage.

8. YouTube TV to Drop Fox Channels If Agreement Is Not Reached

With the start of another football season, a new carriage dispute has arisen.

9. New NBCUniversal, YouTube TV Deal Includes the Return of NBC Sports Network

Google and NBCU reach long-term agreement across YouTube TV, Peacock, YouTube, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and NBCUniversal Global TV Distribution.

10. S&P: Pay-TV Subscriptions Decline for Ninth Straight Year

No sign of relief for an industry that saw subscriber loss of 7.1% in 2024.

WASHINGTON—Last week Rep. Pat Ryan (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) introduced the “Stop Sports Blackouts Act” to make cable and satellite companies refund customers who aren’t able to watch the channels they already pay for during television blackouts.

The proposed legislation is just the latest attempt by lawmakers to intervene in conflicts between multichannel video program distributors (MVPDs) and broadcasters and other content providers that all too often result in cable and satellite companies dropping channels after negotiations break down.

In introducing the act, the legislators pointed to a dispute between Optimum and MSG Networks, affecting over a million customers in the New York City tri-state area who have been unable to watch the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils on networks MSG and MSGSN. A separate blackout with Nexstar Media Group-owned WPIX New York left Optimum customers unable to watch “Judy Justice’ and local news for more than 10 days, the lawmakers said.

From 2010-2024, the two congressmen said New Yorkers experienced a total of 100 blackouts for a total of 3,350 days when consumers were blocked from viewing content they had paid for.

Ryan, who claims to be a champion of consumer protection in entertainment, previously demanded an investigation into blackouts and slammed sports leagues for making it more difficult for fans to watch games.

“It’s outrageous that millions of folks couldn’t watch the Knicks, Judy Justice, or dozens of other programs for weeks because of blackouts,” Ryan said. “And it’s even more ridiculous that we’re all still paying for the right to stare at black screens! I don’t see why this is even a debate—cable companies simply should not be able to advertise and charge for services they are not providing.

“On behalf of fans across the country, we’re putting down a marker: everyone will get their money back when a blackout stops them from watching TV, no questions asked,” he continued. “That means dollars back in your pockets and, equally importantly, it provides a hell of an incentive to these billion-dollar corporations to make sure these blackouts don’t happen in the future. They have teams of lobbyists looking out for them—I’m introducing this legislation because I fight for YOU.”

Said Murphy: “Blackouts are a slap in the face to every customer paying their hard-earned money for TV shows they can’t even watch. It’s ridiculous the rest of us get stuck in the crossfire of negotiations between cable and broadcast companies. Our bill is simple: if cable companies can’t provide the service you’re paying for, they owe you a refund.”

On Jan. 1, Optimum and MSG Networks announced that they were unable to renew their distribution agreement, leaving subscribers unable to watch NBA and NHL games in the middle of the season. On Jan. 10, Optimum subscribers were subjected to an additional blackout when the company announced it had failed to come to an agreement with Nexstar Media’s WPIX, which owns the syndication rights to popular show “Judy Justice,” starring Judge Judy Sheindlin, as well as the NewsNation network.

Congressman Ryan and Sen. Murphy’s “Stop Sports Blackouts Act” would direct the Federal Communications Commission to require television distributors to provide rebates to subscribers for television blackouts that occur as a result of carriage disputes.

Last month, the FCC passed a rule requiring cable and satellite pay TV operators to report commercial broadcast station blackouts that last than 24 hours or longer and were caused by failed negotiations over a new retransmission-consent agreement.

The American Television Alliance, a group of small and independent MVPDs, warned that such legislation will only increase prices.

“We agree it’s outrageous when big broadcasters unilaterally remove channels from TV lineups, blacking out content from consumers and depriving paying customers of critical local news coverage, sporting events and entertainment programming,” said ATVA spokesperson Hunter Wilson. “While well-intentioned, this bill will only raise prices for consumers. Blackouts are the result of networks and other big programmers holding their channels for ransom to force pay TV providers into higher-priced programming deals. Requiring pay TV providers to pay rebates will only encourage big broadcasters to further increase prices at a time when retransmission consent fees are at record highs.

“The broken retransmission consent system has led to nearly a thousand TV blackouts in the last decade,” he concluded. “ATVA stands ready to work with Congress to modernize dated regulations that turn sizeable profits for big broadcasters at the expense of consumers.”

NYC regional sports network MSG Networks—which was dropped by Optimum owner Altice USA at the beginning of the year and is currently in talks with Amazon to avoid bankruptcy—applauded the proposal.

An MSG spokesman said: “It’s not surprising that elected officials are engaged and standing up for their constituents. We appreciate Senator Murphy and Congressman Ryan’s efforts to fight for sports fans who are stuck paying for content they aren’t receiving, while Altice pockets their money. It’s time for Altice to do what’s right and agree to binding arbitration so that sports fans can again begin to watch games of their favorite teams.”

The National Association of Broadcasters has reiterated its opposition to an FCC proposal to require pay TV providers to notify the regulator when TV stations are blacked out for 24 hours or longer due to retransmission-consent disputes.

In recent meetings with staff for a pair of FCC members—Anna Gomez, a Democrat, and Nathan Simington, a Republican—NAB senior vice president and deputy general counsel legal and regulatory affairs Erin Dozier “reiterated NAB’s opposition to the proposal to require multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs) to notify the Commission when a broadcast signal is unavailable via an MVPD service for 24 hours or more due to a breakdown in retransmission consent negotiations.”

Dozier made the comments in a letter to the FCC describing an Oct. 9 meeting with Deena Shetler, a staffer for Gomez, and an Oct. 11 meeting with Adam Cassady, a staff member in Simington’s office.

Faced with mounting consumer complaints about the impact of blackouts during retransmission consent negotiations, the FCC has said it needs more information about the problem. To address that, it issued a notice of proposed rulemaking last December (MB Docket No. 23-427, FCC 23-115) requiring MVPDs to report blackouts.

In a Oct. 11 letter describing the meetings, Dozier said she argued “the proposal would exceed the Commission’s very limited statutory authority relating to retransmission consent, would fail to provide meaningful information to consumers, and would likely result in additional disruptions in service.”

“The Commission’s role with respect to retransmission consent is extremely limited, because Congress intended that arms-length negotiations between broadcasters and MVPDs would dictate the prices, terms and conditions of retransmission consent, subject only to a requirement to negotiate in good faith,” Dozier noted. “Given the Commission’s very limited role and its inability to use information on negotiating impasses to require parties to take any additional steps, it is not clear what lawful purpose this information gathering effort can serve, from the Commission’s standpoint.

“From a consumer perspective, the proposed database would be irrelevant, incomplete or both,” she added. “It is highly unlikely that consumers would consult the FCC’s website for information on signal carriage disruptions affecting their MVPD service, because most consumers learn of these disruptions directly from their MVPDs and/or local stations. Consumers engaged in comparison shopping for MVPD service also are unlikely to use an FCC database as a research tool.”

Dozier also complained that the “database also focuses exclusively on disruptions in service, which provides an incomplete picture given that the overwhelming majority of retransmission consent negotiations are concluded without event. NAB noted that the database could be improved by requiring MVPDs to report not only service disruptions, but also successful agreements.”

“At both meetings, we stated that NAB’s primary concern is that the database will result in more frequent disruptions in service,” Dozier wrote. “As NAB explained in our filings in this and other proceedings, MVPDs have long opposed retransmission consent” and “they would use the reporting requirements to seek changes in the way retransmission fees are negotiated. “

"The database will serve as an ‘attractive nuisance’ that MVPDs cannot resist, triggering increased disruptions and harming consumers,” she concluded.

The full letter can be found here.

In a sign that the blackout of Disney channels on DirecTV isn’t close to being resolved, DirecTV has filed a complaint with the FCC alleging that Disney has failed to negotiate in good faith and that Disney has violated the FCC’s good faith mandates by predicating any licensing agreement on DirecTV’s waiving any legal claims against Disney. 

The complaint also argues that “The negotiations have stalled because Disney insists on bundling and penetration requirements that a federal district court judge in New York recently found in the context of the `Venu’ joint venture to be unlawful, anticompetitive, and `bad for consumers.’ Disney wants to force DirecTV to carry a `fat bundle’ including less desirable Disney programming—while itself offering cheaper, `skinnier’ bundles of programming that consumers want." 

“Along with these anti-competitive demands, Disney has also insisted that DirecTV agree to a `clean slate provision and a covenant not to sue, both of which are intended to prevent DirecTV from taking legal action regarding Disney’s anticompetitive demands, which would include filing good faith complaints at the Commission,” the complaint also noted. “Not three months ago, however, the Media Bureau made clear that such a demand itself constitutes bad faith.”

Earlier this year, the FCC fined Nexstar for seeking to limit the legal options of Hawaiian Telcom Services Company during retransmission consent negotiations. The FCC issued an order proposing fines totaling $720,000 against Nexstar for violations in how it negotiated a 2023 retransmission consent agreement. 

The FCC filing comes as DirecTV subscribers are facing the prospect of missing the first NFL matchup on Monday Night Football on Sept. 9. 

In response to the impasse, DirecTV also took the unusual step on Sept. 6 to offer subscribers a $30 credit that they could use towards signing up with a different provider to watch football games. 

A DirecTV blog post called "Get Your Football Back," noted that subscribers could “visit fubotv.com/deal to start your 7-day free trial from Fubo, either for their Pro or Elite with Sports Plus plans, and $30 off the first month after that. In addition, DirecTV will provide a $30 credit; or Visit sling.com/DirecTV to get the Sling Orange service, offset by a $30 credit from DirecTV. Both alternatives allow you to access Disney networks, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, Disney Channel, Freeform, and others…Learn more about these alternatives and how to redeem your $30 credit from DirecTV at TVPromise.com starting Saturday, Sept. 7. Once redeemed, credit will apply to active DirecTV accounts within two months.”

Bally Sports Regional Networks were taken off Comcast’s systems on April 30 when their existing distribution agreement expired and Diamond Sports Group was unable to reach a new agreement with Comcast. 

“We have been very flexible with Diamond Sports Group for months as they work through their bankruptcy proceedings, providing them with an extension on the Bally Sports Regional Networks last fall and a unilateral right to extend the term for another year, which they opted to not exercise," Comcast said in a released statement Tuesday. "We’d like to continue carrying their networks, but they have declined multiple offers and now we no longer have the rights to this programming. We will proactively credit our customers for the costs associated with them – most will automatically receive $8 to 10 per month in credits.”

The blackout impacts such teams as the Minnesota Twins, the Detroit Tigers, the Atlanta Braves, and others. Overall, Comcast carried 15 of Diamond's RSNs before the blackout according to Sportico. 

Diamond Sports Group complained in a statement that “It’s disappointing that Comcast rejected a proposed extension that would have kept our channels on the air and that Comcast indicated that it intends to pull the signals, preventing fans from watching their favorite local teams. Comcast has refused to engage in substantive discussions despite Diamond offering terms similar to those reached with much larger distributors of ours.”

Diamond also noted that the networks continue to be available on Fubo, DirecTV,  DirecTV Stream, or through its direct-to-consumer offering, Bally Sports Plus, for the teams for which Diamond retains DTC rights.

The failure to reach an agreement is a blow to Diamond's efforts to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization where it needs to show creditors that it has distribution for its ongoing businesses. 

In response to the pay TV industry's support of an FCC proposal to require MVPDs to report blackouts resulting from impasses in retransmission consent negotiations, the National Association of Broadcasters has filed a brief with the FCC that disputes the notion that retransmission disputes are increasingly resulting in blackouts of broadcast signals for pay TV subscribers. 

The NAB also continued to dispute the FCC’s regulatory authority to impose a blackout reporting requirement on MVPDs and argued that the requirement “also will not achieve any meaningful benefits for consumers.”

“If, however, the Commission is still intent on adopting some version of the proposed rules, it should provide consumers with a more complete picture by requiring MVPDs to report on both the limited disruptions in broadcast signal carriage on pay TV services and on all retransmission consent agreements successfully reached without any negotiating impasses,” the brief said. “Anything short of that would undoubtedly mislead consumers and others, including policymakers, as to the actual frequency of retransmission consent disputes and would provide a strong incentive for MVPDs to continue to manufacture impasses.”

In its arguments against the proposal the NAB also argued “it is well-established that the FCC’s [proposed reporting requirements] would promote MVPDs’ interests in publicizing negotiating impasses and encourage additional disruptions in broadcast signal carriage.”

“Indeed, an impasse-only reporting requirement could easily increase confusion among consumers and others, including policymakers, about how often disruptions in broadcast signal carriage actually occur,” the NAB argued. “The Notice itself erroneously asserts that the number of signal carriage disruptions has `increased dramatically,’ a perception perpetuated and echoed by pay TV filers.”

In fact, the NAB cited Kagan data showing “disruptions are rare, with just 18 disruptions over the past four years from January 2020 – December 2023, or 4.5 disruptions per year. This is about the same frequency as was the case for the first 20 years of the retransmission consent regime according to data in the Notice (i.e., 81 disruptions over 20 years, or 4.05 disruptions per year). The average length of disruptions also is not on the rise and has varied greatly over the past ten years, with no consistent direction up or down.”

In its filing the NAB also blasted a proposal by the NTCA to dramatically increase the amount of information disclosed during retrans negotiations to include pricing and other terms. 

“Finally, NTCA in its comments urges the Commission to require MVPDs to provide far more information as part of the proposed reporting requirement, including proposed prices, terms, and conditions of retransmission consent proposals made during negotiations and to declare invalid any nondisclosure provisions of retransmission consent,” the NAB said. “Clearly, the Commission has no authority to require the prices, terms, and conditions of retransmission consent proposals or agreements to be made public, or to declare provisions of privately negotiated contracts invalid by regulatory fiat. In adopting its good faith negotiation requirements, the Commission explicitly held that parties need only provide reasons for rejecting any aspect of a retransmission consent proposal, and explicitly rejected the idea of parties supplying evidence or documentation, stating that `an information sharing or discovery mechanism’ would be highly problematic because broadcasters and MVPDs `are competitors and the information involved would, in most instances, be competitively sensitive.’ Requiring the disclosure of such competitively sensitive material also would raise serious questions under the Trade Secrets Act. The good faith rules already require the parties to provide reasons for rejecting any aspects of a retransmission consent offer, and NTCA provides no rationale as to why enforcement of this requirement is insufficient. The Commission should not consider NTCA’s flawed proposal.”

In the wake of DirecTV’s recent announcement that subscribers to its pay TV services could choose less expensive programming packages without local broadcast stations, Dish has responded by reminding consumers that it has offered this option for the last seven years. 

“In light of recent news regarding DirecTV's introduction of its new opt-out feature for local channels, it's important to highlight that Dish has been offering this capability to customers for the last seven years,” Dish said. “Dish firmly believes in empowering its subscribers with the ability to customize their viewing experience according to their preferences.”

Both companies have been involved with extensive retransmission disputes with local broadcast station groups in recent years. While cord-cutting has hurt the entire pay-TV industry, satellite operators like Dish and DirecTV have been particularly impacted because they can’t effectively bundle high-speed broadband services with their video packages the way cable and telco operators do.   

The Leichtman Research Group (LRG) estimates that DirecTV lost 1.8 million subs in 2023 while public financial statements filed by Dish indicate it lost 945,000. 

Dish ended 2023 with 6,471,000 satellite subs, down from a peak of 14.1 million satellite subs in 2010. 

In 2023, Dish and DirecTV accounted for more than half (2.75 million) of the 5 million subs lost by major pay TV operations, LRG reported. 

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The National Association of Broadcasters has filed comments with the FCC opposing the FCC’s proposed new rules that would require MVPDs to report blackouts of services during retransmission consent disputes to the agency. 

The cable industry-backed NCTA has come out generally in favor of the proposals with some revisions. "We also do not object to the Commission’s proposal to place the reporting responsibility on MVPDs so long as such obligation in no way implies that the cable operator is at fault for the station no longer being carried on its system," the NCTA argued in a filing. 

The rural telecom association NTCA worried that the proposal would impose additional regulatory requirements on small operators. It also argued that if the FCC imposed the blackout reporting requirements, they needed to dig into the issue of retransmission consent and require information on pricing and other issues relating to the disputes.  

In a Feb. 27 filing with the FCC, the NAB argued that “the Commission should not adopt its proposal. First, the proposal exceeds the FCC’s very limited authority relating to retransmission consent under the Communications Act of 1934 (Act). The proposed requirements also do not fit within the FCC’s authority to regulate the customer service or public interest obligations of certain MVPDs. Moreover, because the proposed requirements do not appear to serve any discernible purpose, they would violate the Administrative Procedure Act (APA) and the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (PRA). Finally, given that much of the pay TV industry’s advocacy before Congress and the Commission is entirely dependent upon highlighting (i.e., generating) disputes with broadcasters, NAB anticipates that the creation of this database will, if anything, incentivize more retransmission consent impasses, rather than reducing them. Accordingly, we urge the Commission not to adopt the proposed reporting requirement or host the related database.”

In arguing that the proposed rules might actually increase retransmission consent disputes, the NAB cited the pay TV’s long standing opposition to pay retrans fees.

“Given the pay TV industry’s ongoing strategy of seeking to make the system of retransmission consent appear “broken,” a Commission-hosted database with data on signal carriage disruptions due to retransmission consent disputes would be akin to failing to fence one’s backyard pool on a scorching summer day in a neighborhood full of children,” the NAB argued. “The Commission may find that it merely has created an “attractive nuisance” that incentivizes more disruptions. To avoid increasing consumer harms, NAB urges the Commission to decline to create any additional disincentives for MVPDs to reach timely, successful retransmission consent agreements.”

 WASHINGTON, D.C.—While the NAB has not taken a position regarding the FCC’s proposal to end early termination and some other pay TV fees, the NAB has filed comments with the FCC arguing that early termination fees “ “insulate MVPDs from the financial consequences of negotiating disputes” and that they are part of a larger effort by the pay TV operators to avoid paying retransmission consent fees and to manipulate retransmission negotiations in their favor.  

In a Feb. 5 filing with the FCC regarding its proposals to prohibit some so-called “junk” pay TV fees, the NAB said that it “does not take a position on whether the Commission has the authority to (or should) regulate use of such fees by pay TV providers” but it said that early termination fees feed “other MVPD practices [that] harm consumers; insulate MVPDs from the consequences of their own actions; and aid MVPDs in manufacturing `evidence’ of a supposedly `broken’ system through retransmission consent disputes, and all at the expense of consumers.”

After describing the pay TV industry’s longstanding attacks on paying for broadcasters content and engaging in reasonable retransmission consent negotiations, the NAB said that “[d]uring a dispute, consumers face immediate harm because they cannot access broadcast signals via their MVPD services. Consumers may decide they have had enough of disrupted access to their favorite programming, outages of their entire MVPD service, rising costs of service and/or other issues. But those that wish to terminate MVPD service often find themselves `locked in’ by the prospect of paying hundreds of dollars in ETFs. For example, both Dish and DirecTV charge subscribers an early termination fee of $20 per month remaining on their contract,” forcing consumers to pay “up to $480 in fees for a service they no longer wish to receive.”

“During retransmission consent impasses, broadcast stations also face immediate financial repercussions from reductions in ratings and ad revenues while their signals are not carried and the lack of retransmission consent compensation from that MVPD,” the NAB said. “Yet pay TV providers involved in disputes are in the short-term largely insulated from any economic harm and, instead, may reap benefits. They continue to sell programming packages to new consumers that advertise the availability of broadcast signals; continue to tack on “broadcast TV fees” to packages that are marketed as already including broadcast signals; continue to charge subscribers for programming they do not receive; and count on their subscribers not canceling service or switching providers because of iron-clad ETFs [early termination fees].”

“NAB observes that ETFs and other MVPD practices harm consumers, insulate MVPDs from the consequences of their actions, and help fuel the ability of MVPDs to manufacture `evidence' of a supposedly broken system through retransmission consent disputes,” the NAB concluded. “NAB believes that consumers should be allowed to freely choose from among their available video programming options.”

WASHINGTON, D.C.—The FCC has adopted a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPR) on blackout reporting requirements and is asking for public comment on new rules that would require blackouts to be reported to the FCC. 

The FCC action comes at a time when declines in pay TV subscribers and the increasingly perilous economics of pay TV video services have produced a wave of blackouts following failed retransmission consent agreements between local stations and MVPDs. 

Currently MVPDs and broadcasters are not required to report these blackouts to the Commission, which the FCC said makes it difficult to the agency to address the issues. 

The move would amend the Commission’s rules to require notification to the Commission when a blackout of a broadcast television station, or stations, occurs on a video programming service offered by a multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD) for 24 hours or more due to a breakdown in retransmission consent negotiations between broadcasters and MVPDs.

The FCC also noted that the proposed reporting framework would require public notice to the Commission of the beginning and resolution of any blackout and submission of information about the number of subscribers affected. 

By requiring timely notification of broadcast station blackouts in a centralized, Commission-hosted database, these proposed reporting requirements would ensure that the Commission and public receive prompt and accurate information about critical MVPD service disruptions involving broadcast stations when they occur, the FCC said. 

In response to the action, commissioner Nathan Simington issued a statement saying, “I approve this item, though I am skeptical of its tentative conclusion that the Commission has authority to enact the proposed reporting requirements under Section 632(b) of the Act. While there are other valid sources of authority for the reporting requirements this item proposes, Section 632(b) is a considerably narrower provision than recent Commission action suggests.”

Faced with a growing problem of blackouts, the FCC noted in the NPR that “Currently, neither broadcast stations nor MVPDs are under any obligation to report to the Commission MVPD service disruptions involving broadcast programming.  Neither the Commission nor the public has a systematic method for learning of significant MVPD service disruptions involving broadcast programming.”

“Given the data discussed above, we are concerned about the increasing number and duration of broadcast station blackouts on MVPD platforms across the country and the Commission’s lack of ready access to basic information about such service disruptions,” the FCC added. 

To provide it with information that would help it access the impact of these disruptions, the FCC said that “We therefore propose requiring MVPDs to notify the Commission of any blackouts of a broadcast station or stations that occur on their systems due to a loss of retransmission consent, and we seek comment on this proposal.  Under this proposal, MVPDs would report incidents during which broadcast programming is disrupted for over 24 hours as a result of an inability to obtain a broadcast station’s consent to retransmit its signal.”

In the NPR it also said that “We seek comment on these understandings and this proposal.  For example, are there circumstances in which the broadcaster, rather than the MVPD, removes the broadcast station(s) from the MVPD’s platform? Alternatively, we seek comment on whether we should impose the reporting obligation solely on broadcasters or impose a joint blackout reporting requirement on both MVPDs and broadcasters.  Would adopting a broadcaster-only reporting requirement or imposing a joint reporting obligation on both MVPDs and broadcasters provide additional benefits to the public?  Do broadcasters have access to different, additional, or more timely information about blackouts that would be beneficial for the public to see in real-time?  If reporting obligations were the same for both parties, would the Commission need to address or attempt to resolve conflicting reports?  Instead of requiring broadcasters to report blackouts, should we rely instead on broadcasters voluntarily providing additional information to supplement blackout notices submitted by MVPDs they believe contain inaccurate or incomplete information?”

As part of the effort, the FCC also said “To streamline reporting, we propose creating an online reporting portal, modeled after the Commission’s Network Outage Reporting System (NORS).”

More information is available here.  

WASHINGTON, D.C.—In response to a growing number of programming blackouts caused by programmers and pay TV operators unable to reach carriage and retransmission consent agreements, the Federal Communications Commission chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel has announced proposals that she hopes will help consumers impacted by the blackouts. 

The move comes at a time when cord-cutting and the decline of the pay TV ecosystem has produced increasingly acrimonious negotiations between programmers and operators that have produced a number of major blackouts of local stations and TV programming involving Nexstar, DirecTV, Dish, Disney, Charter and others in the last year.  

In response, Rosenworcel has shared two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking with her fellow commissioners that would, if adopted by a vote of the full Commission, seek comment on rebates for consumers and requiring notifications to the Commission of blackouts lasting more than 24 hours.  

“Enough with the blackouts,” said Rosenworcel in a statement. “When consumers with traditional cable and satellite service turn on the screen, they should get what they pay for. It’s not right when big companies battle it out and leave viewers without the ability to watch the local news, their favorite show, or the big game.  If the screen stays dark, they deserve a refund.”

The two related blackout proposals are: 

• Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that seeks comment on whether and how to require cable and satellite providers to issue rebates to subscribers in the event of a blackout due to a failure to reach a retransmission consent agreement with broadcast station(s)/group owners.
• A Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that seeks comment on a proposal to require Multichannel Video Program Distributors (MVPDs) to notify the Commission via an online public portal when there is a blackout of 24 hours or more of broadcast programming due to a failure to reach a retransmission consent agreement.  

NEW YORK—As cord-cutting and declines in cable network viewing make negotiating carriage deals between operators and programmers increasingly difficult, new research from S&P Global Market Intelligence's Kagan shows that cable networks have lost $179.5 million in affiliate fees since 2013. 

The losses cover cable carriage disputes that resulted in blackouts but were eventually resolved. 

In 2020 alone, cable network companies lost $18.4 million because of these disputes.

The Kagan analysis found that the biggest losses were in 2016, with $37.4 million in cable network affiliate revenue lost. The $18.4 million losses in 2020 were slightly down from $19.0 million in 2019 and significantly down from $31.4 million in 2018.

One of the higher stakes cable cable blackouts in recent years was the dispute between Fox Corp. and Dish Network Corp., which made Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, BTN and Fox Deportes go dark on Dish from Sept. 26 to Oct. 6, 2019, according to Kagan.

The most expensive resolved carriage dispute was a blackout lasting 1,057 days between Viacom and Suddenlink, which cost the networks $38.6 million, followed by a blackout lasting 1,567 days between Comcast’s networks and Verizon that cost $35.3 million.

ViacomCBS suffered the largest revenue loss from these disputes between 2013 and 2020, with $40 million in losses, followed by Comcast’s networks ($35.3 million), Fox ($34.4 million) and the National Football League ($31 million,) according to Kagan

Looking at individual networks, The Weather Channel's 1,567-day blackout on Verizon Communications Inc. registered the largest loss from a resolved carriage dispute since 2013, with more than $31.5 million in lost carriage fees.

The full analysis is available here.  

WASHINGTON—The Modern Television Act of 2021, from House Republican Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.), has officially been introduced, which at its heart looks to repeal regulations that would help prevent future station blackouts as part of retransmission negotiations.

According to the press release announcing the legislation, there were 327 station blackouts in 2020, removing channels from viewers as part of negotiations between MVPDs and broadcasters.

“Until we modernize outdated video laws, blackouts will continue to happen while market prices surge,” said Rep. Eshoo. “I’m proud to partner with Congressman Scalise to introduce this legislation to protect consumers, encourage market competition, lower prices, and bring an end to broadcast blackouts.”

The Modern Television Act of 2021 would repeal regulations from the 1992 Cable Act. The new bill proposes the following:

• Requiring MVPDs carry a broadcast signal while the parties continue negotiations for up to 60 days, with parties being retroactively paid for their content aired during that time. 
• Repeal transmission consent, compulsory copyright licenses and other outdated statutory provisions and regulations to allow free-market contract negotiations to happen under traditional copyright law. 
• Establishing an optional mechanism for the FCC to compel parties to seek “baseball-style” binding arbitration through a neutral third-party arbitrator following an extended impasse or finding of bad faith. Would protect against blackouts and pays copyright holders for their content during the arbitration process. 
• Preempt federal, state and local authority to regulate rates of cable services. 
• Requiring the Government Accountability Office to report specific metrics about the impact of this Act on consumer and the marketplace every two years. If a net negative is determined, the FCC must recommend policy changes to Congress. 
• Ensuring consumers have access to local programming by retaining the ability of a local TV broadcast station to require carriage on cable and satellite providers in their local market. 

“Congress needs to finally modernize the outdated 1992 video laws that no longer fit today’s technology. Our bill brings back basic copyright protection laws, so that everyone gets paid for their products, and consumers get to choose whatever they want to buy, wherever they want to buy it and watch whatever they want on any device they choose,” said Scalise.

The American Television Alliance, which has been highly critical when blackouts occur, praised the proposed legislation.

“After broadcasters set records for retransmission blackouts during a public health crisis over the last year, it is more urgent than ever this legislation be advanced,” said Jessica Kendust, an ATVA spokesperson. “We commend Representatives Eshoo and Scalise for their foresight and understanding that now is the time to update this nearly 30-year-old system for the benefit of American television consumers.”

“This bill has the right approach: Instead of continuing to tweak the current cumbersome and duplicative system of compulsory copyright licenses, with broadcaster retransmission consent negotiations layered on top, it would shift the video marketplace to one based purely on privately-negotiated copyright,” added John Bergmayer, legal director, Public Knowledge. “At the same time, it would eliminate a number of protectionist rules that have outlived any usefulness they may once have had.”

NAB, on the other hand, has come out in opposition against the bill, saying that it would eliminate the legal underpinnings of the local broadcast system.

“NAB continues to oppose legislation that undermines the foundation of broadcast television,” said Ann Marie Cumming, NAB senior vice president of Communications, in a statement. “Every day, Americans rely on local broadcast TV stations for news, weather, investigative journalism, public affairs programming, sports, popular entertainment and emergency information—including critical lifeline coverage of the COVID-19 pandemic during the past year. We strongly urge policymakers to work with broadcasters on preserving and strengthening a local broadcasting system that provides immeasurable service to our communities.”

WASHINGTON—The American Television Alliance (ATVA) is displeased that Cox Media Group has once again gone to what it believes is a staple of their playbook - threatening or withdrawing stations carrying the Super Bowl as part of retransmission negotiations.

Stations in 20 markets went dark on Feb. 2 as CMG and AT&T/DirecTV failed to reach a retransmission deal. Among the stations impacted are a few CBS affiliates, which means that unless a deal is struck before 6:30 p.m. ET on Feb. 7, DirecTV customers in those markets will not be able to watch Super Bowl LV.

ATVA supports AT&T’s claim that CMG is the one causing the blackout. However, for its part, CMG cites AT&T’s reluctance to accept its offers.

Per ATVA, this tactic is a familiar one for CMG, as it is reportedly the fifth time they have threatened or withdrawn stations that are broadcasting the Super Bowl. Past instances involved Charter Spectrum, Dish Network, Verizon Fios and CableOne, ATVA details.

“This latest contrived blackout holding such an important national event like the Super Bowl hostage demonstrates how broadcasters like Cox Media Group intentionally cause maximum disruption and harm for consumers in order to extract exorbitant fees,” said ATVA spokeswoman Jessica Kendust. “The price-gouging behavior of broadcasters like Cox has become increasingly shameless and exploitative and demands action from policymakers in Washington.”

Kendust says that there is a correlation between the rise in the number of broadcast blackouts in the past decade and the “more than seven-fold” increase in station fees. The number of blackouts have risen to new heights in the last couple of years, particularly, with 278 in 2019 and 342 in 2020, according to ATVA.

ATVA wants policymakers to update retransmission consent laws so as to prevent broadcastings from weaponizing stations licenses and government-granted exclusivities.

WASHINGTON—The FCC conducted its monthly open virtual meeting on Wednesday, Sept. 30, during which they voted on new time frames for a couple broadcast regulations and had some technical difficulties with their live stream. TVT’s sister publication Multichannel News covered the meeting's proceedings.

First on the regulatory side, the commission voted unanimously to take steps to “improve” the foreign ownership review process regarding the FCC’s submission of foreign communications outlet ownership proposals to executive branch agencies for national security reviews. The action was in response to an executive order issued by President Donald Trump, with the FCC setting a 120-day timeframe for initial review with a possible 90-day extension.

The commission also voted to eliminate the requirement for cable operators to give at least 30-days notice ahead of possible retrans blackouts, citing that deals are often reached in that 30-day window. With the new order, the FCC tasks cable operators with needing to only provide notice “as soon as possible.” Democratic commissioners Jessica Rosenworcel and Geoffrey Starks approved the order, but warned that consumers need to be kept informed as much as possible.

Beyond the actual content of the meeting, there were a number of technical issues that took place. Rosenworcel had a vote delayed during the virtual meeting because her screen froze as Chairman Ajit Pai called for her vote; her vote was officially recorded when she rejoined the call. She cited the demand for broadband at home as the reason for the freeze.

Later, the entire meeting went dark, as viewers were not able to see the commissioners’ live streams, though audio was still available and presented as online captions. The meeting broke for about half an hour to fix the issue.

One other point of note during the meeting, Commissioner Michael O’Rielly made a statement that he is not seeking any continuation of his tenure at the FCC and will conclude his service either with the appointment of a successor or by January, whichever comes first. 

DALLAS—The trend of major broadcasters and cable providers losing subscribers continued for AT&T in the third quarter of 2019, with the company announcing it lost more than 1.35 million subscribers between its premium TV and AT&T Now services.

Per AT&T’s Q3 2019 financial report, the company currently has 20.4 million premium TV subscribers, a net loss of 1.163 million. AT&T Now, meanwhile, has 1.1 million subscribers, a net loss of 195,000. AT&T said that its video subs were impacted by the company’s focus on long-term value customer base and carriage disputes.

AT&T has been involved in multiple carriage disputes in 2019 that led to blackouts of certain channels for its subscribers. A dispute with Nexstar led to a blackout of two months over the summer, while one with CBS lasted three weeks. At a conference in September, AT&T CFO John Stephens said he believed that these blackouts could contribute to 300,000 to 350,000 subscribers leaving their services.

Despite the drop in subscribers, AT&T reported that its entertainment group saw growth in many areas. It reported that its operating income grew 4.8% from the same time last year; that it saw broadband ARPU gains; there was a 2.3% year-to-year EBITDA growth; and its IP broadband revenue grew 3.5%.

WarnerMedia, which is a subsidiary of AT&T, reported a stable quarter, with HBO earning increased revenues of 10.6% on higher content sales and stable subscription revenues, while Turner revenues overall remained stable.

The company is bullish of its upcoming HBOMax streaming service, which will be one of the stars of WarnerMedia Day on Oct. 29, where it is expected to have its price and release date announced. AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson claims that HBOMax has a domestic subscriber forecast of 50 million by 2025.

As part of AT&T’s financial report, it also shared its three-year outlook. The full report can be read here.

TYSONS, Va.—After warning Charter Communications’ Spectrum customers that they would lose access to Tegna stations late on Monday, Sept. 30, over a retransmission dispute, the two sides came to an agreement on an extension, keeping the channels on air as talks continue.

Had a blackout occurred, 45 stations across 37 markets would have been impacted; markets would have included Seattle, St. Louis, Dallas, Cleveland and Atlanta.

On its station websites, Tegna said that while the talks continue, Charter has been reluctant to make what Tegna believes is a “fair, market-based” agreement. No timetable was given for this extension, but if an extension is still not reached, Tegna says that the stations could still be blacked out at some point in the future.

Charter said that it is “actively negotiating” with Tegna on a deal and had no additional comment.

DALLAS—At a Bank of America Merrill Lynch Media, Communications and Entertainment Conference, AT&T CFO John Stephens said that recent blackouts with Nexstar and CBS are likely to lead to an additional 300,000 to 350,000 subscribers dropping AT&T in the third quarter of 2019. Price increases were also noted as reasons for the loss of subscribers.

AT&T could be faced with another blackout situation, as Disney announced earlier this week that its deal with the provider is close to coming to an end with no new deal in place.

In addition, Stephens also spoke on AT&T's outlook, the possibility of selling DirecTV or regional sport networks and updates on its HBO Max streaming service.

TV Technology sister publication B&C has the full story.

WASHINGTON—The American Television Alliance (ATVA) last week dubbed 2019 the “worst year ever” for TV blackouts related to retransmission consent negotiations between TV broadcasters and MPVDs.

“Consumers have lost billions of dollars and have been used as pawns,” said ATVA spokesman Trent Duffy.

For the first seven months of the year, TV blackouts have totaled 213, which ties the total for 2017.

ATVA, a coalition of consumer groups, cable, satellite and telephone companies and independent programmers, pointed to a couple of ongoing disputes, which have cut off local TV to subscribers, to underscore the scope of the blackouts.

On July 16, Meredith Corp. pulled its stations in 12 markets from DISH Network, leaving millions of satellite TV subscribers out in the cold, ATVA said.

Nexstar Media Group, too, has pulled 125 stations in about 100 cities around the country from DIRECTV, U-Verse and DIRECTV Now, leaving millions of subscribers without access, it said.

“Congress is right to be looking at our outdated video laws, because the blackout crisis is reaching an epic proportion, and we don’t expect it to stop until Congress does something about it,” said Duffy.

Currently, Congress is considering the reauthorization of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act (STELAR), which ATVA supports. Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) has advocated for reforming retransmission consent.

“Congress should not only re-authorize STELAR so rural America can continue receiving all their broadcast channels, but also modernize the retransmission consent rules, which currently favor broadcasters at the expense of consumers and competition,” said Duffy.

ATVA released annual totals for blackouts related since 2010. Together, they total more than 1,000. The yearly totals are:

• 213 blackouts in 2019
• 165 blackouts in 2018
• 213 blackouts in 2017
• 104 blackouts in 2016
• 193 blackouts in 2015
• 94 blackouts in 2014
• 119 blackouts in 2013
• 90 blackouts in 2012
• 42 blackouts in 2011
• 8 blackouts in 2010

WASHINGTON—Though not yet through the halfway point of the year, the American Television Alliance has reported that so far for 2019 there has been 62 station blackouts for the U.S. video marketplace. This has been a consistent trend in recent years, as ATVA says that there have been nearly 550 blackouts in the last three and a half years, with an average of more than 12 a month.

On May 30, seven small station groups owned by Sinclair Broadcasting Group went dark on AT&T’s DirecTV, DirecTV Now and U-Verse in 14 cities. The stations are Deerfield Media, MPS Media, GoCom Media of Illinois, Howard Stirk Holdings, Roberts Media, Second Generation of Iowa and Waitt Broadcasting.

“The video marketplace keeps changing, but the TV blackout crisis and retrans racket that hurts consumers stays the same,” said Trent Duffy, ATVA spokesman. “In this case, one of America’s biggest broadcasters is making a mockery of station ownership restrictions by unduly controlling what ‘independent’ broadcasters are doing.”

Congress is currently considering the reauthorization of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act. ATVA supports the reauthorization of STELAR, saying that up to 870,000 satellite subscribers could lose access to broadcast channels if it is not renewed.

“Congress should not only re-authorize STELAR so rural America can continue receiving all their broadcast channels, but also modernize the retransmission consent rules, which currently favor broadcasters at the expense of consumers and competition,” said Duffy.

WASHINGTON—Last year TV broadcasters set a record for the number of blackouts recorded in a single year, taking down cable and satellite TV signals 213 times, according to the American TV Alliance. By way of comparison, there were eight TV blackouts nationwide in 2010, the alliance said.

“Broadcaster blackouts roared back in 2017 after the FCC suspended its investigation of abusive broadcast industry tactics,” said ATVA spokesman Trent Duffy in a press release issued today. “Broadcasters have weaponized TV blackouts, deliberately targeting live sports and other must-see TV to inflict maximum pain on innocent consumers.”

Broadcasters often black out channels when retransmission negotiations reach an impasse. The alliance predicts this tactic will continue until Congress and the FCC get involved “to protect consumers,” said Duffy. ATVA has asked the FCC to ban broadcasters from blacking out marquee programming as leverage during retransmission negotiations

The American TV Alliance, which calls itself “a voice for the TV viewer,” counts among its partners the American Cable Association, the NTCA – Rural Broadband Association, DISH Network, Charter Communications and Verizon, according to the group’s website.

Tens of millions of pay-TV viewers were denied access to local news, weather and live sporting events in 2017, the alliance said.

“Broadcasters pocketed $9.3 billion in 2017 from pay TV customers for ‘free’ TV,” the alliance said in its press release, quoting figures from SNL Kagan. Some of the events broadcasters blacked out last year included the Super Bowl, awards shows, college football bowl games, the NFL Playoffs, March Madness and other programming, it said.

The alliance singled out CBS, which it said denied millions of DISH Network customer in 18 markets across 26 states access to the 2017 Thanksgiving Day Parade, holiday specials and NFL football. Further, CBS earned an additional $1 billion from retrans last year and is on track to collet $2.5 billion more by 2020, it said. Overall, TV broadcasters are projected to earn an additional $12.8 billion by 2023.

According to the ATVA, by year the number of blackouts totals: 213 in 2017; 104 in 2016; 193 in 2015; 94 in 2014; 119 in 2013; 90 in 2012; 42 in 2011 and eight in 2010.

In a response to ATVA’s press release, NAB’s Executive Vice President of Communications Dennis Wharton released the following statement:

“ATVA should look in the mirror to determine who's really responsible for retrans disruptions: ATVA's own members—the largest pay-TV companies in the business—cynically force impasses in hopes that Washington will inject itself into free market negotiations. Despite pay TV posturing, 99 percent of all retrans deals are completed successfully, and we look forward to continue partnerships with pay TV operators for our valued, most-watched broadcast programming.”