Rep Dingell: Finish Retransmission by End of Year

Reps. John Dingell (D-MI) and Jo Ann Emerson (R-MO) have called on the Federal Communications Commission to complete its retransmission consent review by the end of the year, which would be before the next round of Dec. 31 contract expirations.

Rep Dingell did not weigh in on the substance of the issue beyond saying that the FCC's recognition of its limited authority suggested it could get the item moved by the end of the year deadline, though he did say that "reasonable action by the commission" would "provide greater certainty in the video marketplace and ultimately benefit the American consumer."

Rep Emerson went beyond the date issue to hit on points raised by American Television Alliance (cable operators, satellite operators and others), which petitioned the FCC to open the retransmission review. She said she had heard from some of her state's smaller pay-TV providers about the possibility of increased signal losses due to impasses and consumer disaffection and dislocation. Rep Emerson was all for new rules of the road for retrans. "With more than a thousand carriage deals set to expire by the end of this year," she said, "it is essential that the commission have new rules in place to help avoid the types of carriage disruptions for consumers that we've seen increasingly occur."