Stevens Prefers Congress Act on TV Multicasting; Barton, Upton Agree

If U.S. cable companies are going to be required to carry extra channels from broadcasters, the mandate should come from Congress not regulators, Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) said on Wednesday. The Federal Communications Commission is preparing to vote, possibly next week, on a plan that would require cable operators to carry extra channels that television broadcasters are launching. With the advent of digital broadcasting, television stations have the capability of offering additional channels, known as multicasting. Under current regulations, a broadcaster can force cable to carry its primary signal. The cable industry has fought broadcasters' efforts to have the FCC require the extra channels be carried, and is expected to challenge any such plan in court. The FCC, under former Chairman Michael Powell, last year rejected must-carry for multicast channels. But agency officials and industry sources said new FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has circulated a proposal reversing course. Democratic Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein have said they wanted to address public interest obligations of local television stations first before voting on multicasting. They worry that additional digital channels in multicasting may not include local content.
http://today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=politicsNews&storyID=2006-06-07T172458Z_01_N07183851_RTRUKOC_0_US-MEDIA-MULTICASTING.xml&arc...
* Chairman Stevens Addresses NCTA Key Contacts Breakfast
http://commerce.senate.gov/public/index.cfm?FuseAction=PressReleases.Detail&PressRelease_id=248622&Month=6&Year=2006
* Barton, Upton Oppose Multicast Must-Carry
Calling it a regulatory fiat that would "usurp Congressional authority," the chairmen of the House Commerce Committee and House Telecommunications Subcommittee are allied with Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) in their opposition to FCC Chairman Martin's effort to secure multicast must-carry for broadcasters.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6341936?display=Breaking+News
* Multicast Must-carry Is Congress' Call, Says Stevens
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6341631?display=Breaking+News
* Stevens to FCC: We'll Handle Multicast
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6341648.html?display=Breaking+News
* Barton, Upton to Martin: No Multicast Mandates
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6341943.html?display=Breaking+News
* Congress Bigs Rap FCC Chair On Multicast
http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/news/recent_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002650191
* Senator Snowe Backs Martin on Must-Carry
Sen Olympia Snowe (R-Maine) wrote to FCC Chairman Kevin Martin on June 5 she strongly supports requiring cable to carry all of a broadcasters' multicast, must-carry channels, not just a single replication of their primary signal, as the FCC has previously concluded.
http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6341784?display=Breaking+News