FCC Proposes To Eliminate Local-Office Channel Lineup Requirement For Cable Operators

The Federal Communications Commission proposed to eliminate a rule adopted in 1972 that requires cable operators to maintain at their local office a current listing of the cable television channels that each cable system delivers to its subscribers.

The FCC has tentatively concluded that this requirement is no longer necessary or useful now that channel lineup information is readily available through other means, including, in many cases, the websites of cable operators, on-screen electronic program guides, and paper guides. The NPRM also seeks comment on whether the FCC should eliminate the requirement that certain cable operators make their channel lineup available via their online public inspection file or instead require these operators to put channel lineup information on their own website. Finally, the FCC asks what the channel lineup requirements for small cable operators should be.