FCC refers Comcast-NFL dispute to judge

The Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday referred a dispute between Comcast and NFL Networks to an administrative law judge, reversing a move made in the final days of the Republican Bush administration. The decision was praised by Comcast, the biggest US cable company, which believed it would not get a fair hearing at the agency. NFL Networks had complained to the agency that Comcast is unfairly discriminating against it by not carrying its programs, or by charging steep prices, in exchange for including the sports network in its offerings. There are several other so-called cable carriage disputes included in the proceeding.