FCC Opens Program-Access Rulemaking

FCC OPENS PROGRAM-ACCESS RULEMAKING
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
The Federal Communications Commission Tuesday opened a long-awaited rulemaking on whether cable operators must continue to sell many of their video-programming services to satellite and phone-company rivals. Key features of federal program-access rules are scheduled to expire Oct. 5 unless extended by the FCC. The rules were extended for five years in 2002 in a ruling narrowly supported by then-Commissioner Kevin Martin. In recent weeks, now-Chairman Martin has indicated his support for a second extension. Under a 1992 law, the FCC has required cable companies to sell satellite-delivered programming in which they have an ownership interest to competing multichannel-video-programming distributors. Thus, Time Warner has been forced to sell CNN and HBO to such competitors as DirecTV, EchoStar Communications’ Dish Network and Verizon Communications’ FiOS TV service.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6417950.html?display=Breaking+News