FCC Preserves Retrans 'Good Faith' Provision

The Federal Communications Commission has amended its rules to extend the good faith requirement in retransmission consent negotiations until March 1 or longer if Congress moves a related sunset date. That provision [325(b)(3)(C)(ii) of the Communications Act for those scoring at home] prevents broadcasters "from engaging in exclusive contracts for carriage or failing to negotiate in good faith." It is not exactly clear what the FCC defines as good faith, but the issue has been heating up of late due to retrans fights between Fox and Time Warner and Sinclair and Mediacom, respectively. The good faith/nonexclusive bargaining rule had been expected to be extended, along with the satellite copyright license to import distant network TV station signals, as part of the reauthorization of the Satellite Home Viewer Extension and Reauthorization Act (SHVERA). But a revised satellite bill got hung up and Congress extended the SHVERA bill until March 1 as a stop-gap measure. That came as an amendment to the Defense Appropriations Act, which only passed Dec. 19. The FCC then needed to move the retrans bargaining sunset date to March 1 or it, too, would have expired. (12/29)