Carriage dispute
A carriage dispute is a disagreement over the right to "carry", that is, retransmit, a
These disputes often involve financial compensation – what the distributor pays the
History
The history of carriage disputes can be seen as having two distinct circumstances: the first involving over-the-air broadcasters, whose signals can be received with an antenna; the second involving broadcasters transmitting via cable, satellite or other means—but not over the air. In the United States, the first led to a quagmire of legal disputes involving the Federal Communications Commission and the courts, shifting regulations, and questions over copyright law – all revolving around the basic question of whether a carrier has an inherent right to retransmit an over-the-air signal. Broadcasters accused carriers of being "leeches", making money off of programming content that they contributed nothing to produce.[3] Carriers countered that their role was largely passive, because they were merely redistributing freely available signals more widely.[4] By contrast, carriage disputes involving broadcasters who do not use the public airwaves, while representing many high-profile encounters, have raised fewer legal and policy questions, playing out largely at the negotiation table and in the court of public opinion.
The legal precedent for carriage disputes dates back to 1934 legislation, which required a broadcaster to get permission before using programming from another broadcaster. The law was later applied to cable companies, as well.[5] In the 1950s, cable companies operating in the western United States began retransmitting broadcast signals for the benefit of customers situated too far from the station's transmitter to receive programs with an antenna. Stations objected that they were not being compensated for this retransmission or that they were having to compete with more distant stations that duplicated their content. From February 15, 1966, to December 18, 1968, the United States Federal Communications Commission barred cable companies from importing non-local broadcast signals into the top 100 television markets – while allowing cable companies to petition for exceptions. After an interim period, the FCC partially lifted these restrictions in 1972, eliminating them entirely by the end of the decade.[1][6]
The issue was finally resolved with the 1992
Between 2013 and 2020, the largest cable networks lost about $179.5 million in revenues from carriage disputes "that resulted in blackouts that were eventually resolved", according to the analysis firm S&P Global Intelligence in a 2021 report.
S&P Global said the blackouts came from cable networks seeking better deals "with traditional multichannel operators, which still serve more than half of the video subscription market in the U.S. and still supply billions of dollars in revenues for the cable network industry." Even with steady subscriber losses, the traditional cable industry remained a profitable business.
2010 | 8 |
2011 | 42 |
2012 | 90 |
2013 | 119 |
2014 | 94 |
2015 | 123 |
2016 | 104 |
2017 | 213 |
2018 | 140 |
2019 | 276 (as of Oct.)[11] |
2020 | 336 |
2021 | 105 |
2022 | 303 (est.) |
Examples
United States
The 2009 dispute between Time Warner Cable and Fox is an example of a carriage dispute involving an over-the-air broadcaster. The dispute pitted the second largest United States cable system against one of the four major U.S. television networks, whose broadcasts included the popular prime time series
The 2012 dispute between
Occasionally, a carriage dispute can last for months or even years. In September 2012, Time Warner Cable and the
Blackouts have occasionally extended to broadcasters' websites. In the summer of 2013, CBS blocked access to all Time Warner Cable subscribers, whether or not they lived in the disputed regions. In 2014, Viacom blocked streaming video access to Cable One customers. Broadcasters argued that the practice closes a loophole: if distributors are to feel pressure from their subscribers, those subscribers should not be able to view the content elsewhere. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler said the practice of extending blackouts to the Internet is of broad concern.[25]
A February 2015 carriage dispute between
A subsequent carriage dispute between
Streaming media
In 2019, the distribution of television programming on streaming media began to reduce the impact of carriage disputes on subscribers while weighing on cable companies and other traditional distributors. The primary driver was increased cord-cutting, in which consumers cancel their cable and satellite subscriptions in favor of content sent over the internet. Cord-cutting accelerated as streaming offerings gained a wider audience, and the cost of traditional cable bundles increased for both distributors and their subscribers.[30]
On August 31, 2023, at the beginning of an 11-day dispute between Charter and Disney, Charter told investors that the cable model had become too expensive to be sustained in the wake of direct-to-consumer streaming services. The dispute blacked out ESPN, FX and other Disney channels for Charter's nearly 15 million subscribers.[31] The resulting deal was notable for allowing Spectrum to resell some Disney streaming services at a discount while dropping eight Disney linear channels.[32][33]
New York Times media reporter Benjamin Mullin wrote that "the resolution of the dispute could shape coming negotiations between Charter and other media companies." As cord-cutting continues, "a dwindling number of subscribers are paying rising fees for movies and TV shows that are increasingly being moved to streaming. Despite those challenges, cable TV is still enormously profitable, giving media companies an incentive to keep the business limping along as long as possible."[34]
Streaming service blackouts
Occasionally, carriage disputes have led to channel blackouts on streaming services, echoing those affecting cable and satellite services. In 2020, YouTube TV and Hulu's live TV services lost access to Fox regional sports channels owned by Sinclair.[35][36] YouTube TV also lost Sinclair's Tennis Channel.[37]
In April 2021, the
Aereo
In 2012, a carriage dispute of a different sort arose between
Canada
Under
In 2019, a U.S. style carriage dispute emerged between
Foreign specialty channels available in Canada are not necessarily legally bound by the Wholesale Code, but are still expected by the CRTC to negotiate with Canadian service providers "in a manner that is consistent with the intent and spirit of the Wholesale Code".[59] In any event, disputes involving foreign channels have been relatively rare, and public disputes even more so. AMC has had carriage disputes with Canadian providers from time to time, including a rare Canadian public dispute with Rogers Cable in 2013 (prior to the introduction of the CRTC's Wholesale Code), and several later occasions where providers provided advance notice that they might have to drop the channel; virtually all these disputes were resolved without AMC being dropped.[60][61]
Europe, UK
In 2017, carriage disputes arose between Discovery and Sky in the UK and Germany, Com Hem in Sweden, DNA in Finland, and Boxer in Poland.[62][63] The following year in Germany, Unitymedia and Vodafone settled disputes with public television broadcasters ZDF and ARD over broadcaster payment of carriage fees for cable distribution.[64]
In November 2008, a 19-month dispute was resolved between Sky UK and Virgin Media that had removed Sky's basic channels.[65] Ten years later, Virgin Media and UKTV resolved a weeks-long dispute that had blacked out all UKTV channels from Virgin Media. The settlement resulted in a five-fold increase in on-demand content available on the Virgin platform.[66]
Proposed legislation
Some legislators have sought to dampen the effects of carriage disputes on subscribers by giving more power to the Federal Communications Commission. In 2010, then Senator John Kerry introduced draft legislation that would have given the FCC more oversight responsibility, with the power to monitor negotiations and impose binding arbitration if it deems discussions between broadcasters and distributors are not being carried out in good faith.[13] In 2013, Representatives Anna Eshoo and Zoe Lofgren introduced the Video CHOICE (Consumers Have Options in Choosing Entertainment) Act, which would have enabled the FCC to prohibit channel blackouts during a dispute. The bill would also have prohibited broadcast channels from negotiating for carriage of its non-broadcast channels.[67]
On the same day the Video CHOICE legislation was introduced, Representative Steve Scalise reintroduced legislation first drafted in 2011: the Next Generation Television Marketplace Act. The legislation, more far-reaching than CHOICE, would have repealed key provisions of the 1992 Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act, including "must carry" and retransmission consent requirements, as well as compulsory copyright licenses stemming from 1976 copyright law. The legislative intent was that carriage negotiations for broadcast stations should play out on the same terms as those for non-terrestrial channels. Both bills, while given only narrow chances of passage, were generally welcomed by distributors and criticized by broadcasters.[67][68][69]
A similar measure, The Modern Television Act of 2019, was introduced by Scalise and Representatives Anna G. Eshoo. The measure would repeal retransmission consent but not the must-carry rule, and would require distributors to carry a signal for up to 60 days after a contract has expired.[70]
In January 2024, the Federal Communications Commission sought public comment on whether the agency should require carriers to provide rebates to compensate subscribers for blackouts. FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel argued that blackouts amount to consumer bait and switch, with carriers delivering fewer channels than they promised when subscribers signed up. Commissioner Nathan Simington disagreed, contending that most blackouts are too innocuous to bother with. "And does the sports fan who was deeply impacted and personally offended by the blackout feel satisfied with a rebate that gives him change back from a Costco hot dog?" Also dissenting was the American Television Alliance, which argued that blackouts represent the efforts of service providers to save subscribers from ever higher subscription fees due to rising retransmission costs.[71][72]
Tradeoffs, consequences
As with all negotiations, carriage disputes involve tradeoffs for both parties. Distributors must weigh the effect of the carriage fees they pay on both their revenues and the fees they pass on to subscribers. Distributors also risk antagonizing their subscribers if they drop one or more channels from their lineup. For their part, broadcasters risk losing viewers, which in turn can reduce revenues from commercials and per-subscriber carriage fees. Financial consequences can ensue. Dish Network lost 156,000 customers in the fourth quarter of 2011 after a carriage dispute with Fox resulted in a loss of Fox Sports programming in October.[73] AMC Networks' stock dropped by nearly five percent after the network's programming was dropped by Dish at the end of June 2012.[74]
For distributors, much of the calculation hinges on whether programming content is so compelling that it is worth the retransmission fee. Sports programming provides a good example of how the calculation may favor either party.
In a 2013 dispute between CBS and Time Warner Cable, CBS's bargaining position improved as the National Football League season approached. In the wake of the settlement, the broadcaster increased its per
On the other hand, some
In January 2013,
Some smaller cable companies, relying on revenues from broadband subscriptions, have been more willing to drop a bundled service, even at the cost of fewer television subscribers. In 2014, for example,
References
- ^ ISBN 978-0313341670. Archived from the original(PDF) on July 12, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2018.
- ^ a b Stelter, Brian (July 10, 2010). "DirecTV-Viacom Dispute May Affect Access for 20 Million Customers". New York Times. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
- ISBN 978-0-471-23639-9.
- ^ Seiden, Martin H. (1972). Cable Television U.S.A.: an Analysis of Government Policy. New York, London: Praeger Publishers. p. 150.
- ^ a b "Cable Carriage of Broadcast Stations". Guides. Federal Communications Commission. Retrieved July 26, 2012.
- ^ Seiden, Martin H. (1972). Cable Television U.S.A.: an Analysis of Government Policy. New York, London: Praeger Publishers. pp. 95–96.
- ^ "Episode 488: The Secret History Of Your Cable Bill". National Public Radio: Planet Money. September 27, 2013.
- ^ Marcelo, Ron (September 9, 2021). "Carriage blackouts cost cable nets millions". spglobal.com. Retrieved January 28, 2023.
- ^ "Broadcasters Shatter TV Blackout Record in 2017". American Television Alliance. January 9, 2018. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
- ^ James, Meg (January 2, 2019). "Tribune TV stations, including KTLA Channel 5 in Los Angeles, blacked out on Charter Spectrum service". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 2, 2019.
- ^ Adgate, Brad (November 12, 2019). "TV Station Blackouts Are Accelerating; Here's Why". Forbes. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ^ Collins, Lauren (January 11, 2010). "King Kong Vs. Godzilla". The New Yorker. Retrieved January 11, 2013.
- ^ Littleton, Cynthia (December 27, 2009). "Fox, TW go down to wire". TV News. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
- ^ Friedman, Wayne (January 4, 2010). "Fallout: Time Warner, Fox Deal May Set Benchmark For Retrans Disputes". MediaDailyNews. Retrieved July 7, 2012.
- ^ Flint, Joe (July 12, 2012). "Viacom and DirecTV continue to negotiate but remain far apart". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
- ^ Fernandez, Bob (July 12, 2012). "Viacom-DirecTV cost dispute highlights concern over pay-TV's future". Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved July 13, 2012.
- ^ Snider, Mike (July 12, 2012). "Viacom channels are off DirecTV systems". USAToday. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
- ^ Ramachandran, Shalini; Jannarone, John (July 20, 2012). "Viacom to Restore DirecTV Channels". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved July 20, 2012.
- ^ Flint, Joe (July 20, 2012). "DirecTV and Viacom reach deal, end blackout". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
- ^ Crupi, Anthony (August 4, 2011). "NFL Network in Carriage Talks With Time Warner Cable". Adweek. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Soshnick, Scott (September 22, 2012). "NFL Reaches Agreement With Time Warner on NFL Network, RedZone". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on January 7, 2013. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
- ^ Sandomir, Richard (September 21, 2012). "Time Warner Will Carry NFL Network". New York Times. Retrieved January 7, 2013.
- ^ Sandomir, Richard (March 13, 2003). "BASEBALL; Cablevision Agrees to Carry the YES Network". New York Times. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
- ^ Terranova, Justin (March 23, 2012). "YES Network marks 10th anniversary". New York Post. Retrieved July 12, 2012.
- ^ Flint, Joe (May 20, 2014). "FCC chairman expresses concern about TV networks blocking websites". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Steinberg, Brian (February 27, 2015). "Fox Sports 1, AT&T In Dispute Over Fees For Nascar, Golf, Soccer". Variety. Retrieved April 15, 2015.
- ^ Florio, Mike (October 5, 2019). "FOX-Dish dispute results in broader NFL Network blackout on Thursday night". ProFootballTalk. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
- ^ "NFL Network now won't simulcast Thursday Night Football over Fox-Dish dispute". Awful Announcing. October 3, 2019. Retrieved October 5, 2019.
- ^ Steinberg, Brian (October 6, 2019). "Fox, Dish Resolve Contract Dispute After Football Blackout". Variety. Retrieved October 6, 2019.
- ^ Sherman, Alex (October 24, 2020). "Media executives are finally accepting the decline of cable TV as they plot a new path forward". CNBC. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved September 3, 2023.
- ^ Weprin, Alex (September 11, 2023). "Disney and Spectrum Cut New Carriage Deal, Ending Blackout and Returning ESPN and ABC to Lineups". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
- ^ James, Meg (September 11, 2023). "Disney and Charter end blackout. ESPN and ABC return to Spectrum TV". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 11, 2023.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved December 31, 2023.
- ^ Moon, Mariella (September 30, 2020). "YouTube TV loses regional Fox sports channels". Engadget. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ^ Barnes, Jess (December 6, 2020). "Hulu Could Lose Some Sinclair Owned Locals". Cord Cutters News. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ^ Moreno, Johan (November 30, 2020). "YouTube TV Loses Yet Another Sports Channel". Forbes. Retrieved December 19, 2020.
- ^ Solsman, Joan E. (April 30, 2021). "Roku: YouTube TV app removed from channel store as deal with Google ends". CNET. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
- ^ Spangler, Todd (December 8, 2021). "Roku, Google Reach Long-Term Deal for YouTube and YouTube TV". Variety. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
- ^ "Second Circuit Injunction Opinion in WNET v. Aereo". U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit (posted by the Electronic Frontier Foundation). August 30, 2012.
- ^ Stelter, Brian (April 1, 2013). "Aereo Wins a Court Battle, Dismaying Broadcasters". New York Times. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
- ^ Carr, David (March 17, 2013). "Spreading Disruption, Shaking Up Cable TV". New York Times. Retrieved April 9, 2013.
- ^ Bobkoff, David (April 12, 2013). "Startup CEO Wields Small Antenna In TV Streaming Battle". National Public Radio. Retrieved April 12, 2013.
- ^ Flint, Joe (April 17, 2013). "Aereo takes its case to the people as broadcasters press on in court". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved April 17, 2013.
- ^ Johnson, Ted (February 19, 2014). "Utah Federal Judge Halts Aereo in Salt Lake City and Denver". Variety.
- ^ Johnson, Ted (February 25, 2014). "Aereo Granted Two-Week Reprieve As It Appeals Utah Ruling". Variety.
- ^ Markon, Jerry (June 25, 2014). "Supreme Court rules against start-up Aereo, saying it is violating copyright laws". The Washington Post.
- ^ a b "Final offer arbitration request by Quebecor Media Inc. regarding the distribution of TVA Sports by Bell TV". crtc.gc.ca. CRTC. January 17, 2018. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
- ^ a b Faguy, Steve (April 7, 2019). "TVA Sports tries scaring Bell customers as part of carriage dispute". Retrieved April 9, 2019.
- ^ "Quebec's TVA Sports pulled its signal from Bell despite the CRTC warning it not to". Awful Announcing. April 11, 2019. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
- ^ "TVA Sports signal goes black for Bell TV subscribers, contravening CRTC orders". CTV News Montreal. Bell Media. April 10, 2019. Retrieved April 11, 2019.
- ^ "Quebecor takes fight with Bell over TVA Sports into public arena". Montreal Gazette with files from the Canadian Press. Retrieved April 9, 2019.
- ^ Faguy, Steve (April 7, 2019). "TVA Sports defies CRTC, cuts off Bell TV customers as part of carriage dispute". Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- ^ Lovitz, Daniel; Images, Getty (April 11, 2019). "TSN adding Montreal Impact's April 13th and 20th games". TSN. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- ^ "Judge orders Quebecor to stop scrambling TVA Sports signal for Bell TV subscribers". Global News. Canadian Press. April 12, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- ^ Codère, Jean-François (April 12, 2019). "TVA Sports: Québecor sommé de réactiver le signal pour les abonnés de Bell". La Presse (in Canadian French). Retrieved April 12, 2019.
- ^ "CRTC rules in favour of Quebecor in battle with Bell over TVA Sports". The Globe and Mail. April 12, 2019. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ "Quebecor wins battle with Bell over disagreement about TVA Sports". CTV News. Canadian Press. December 19, 2019. Retrieved December 19, 2019.
- ^ "Revised list of non-Canadian programming services and stations authorized for distribution". Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission. March 25, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2021.
- ^ Vlessing, Etan (March 1, 2013). "Rogers and AMC Networks End Carriage Dispute With Multi-Year Canadian Deal". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
- ^ Faguy, Steve (December 16, 2020). "Videotron threatens to drop AMC again". Fagstein. Retrieved June 17, 2021.
- ^ "Discovery channels disappear from Sweden's Com Hem and Boxer". Digital TV Europe. September 1, 2017. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ Thomson, Stuart (December 8, 2017). "Discovery threatened with another carrriage blackout in Europe". TBI Vision. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ Krieger, Jorn (September 13, 2018). "Unitymedia and ZDF settle cable carriage fee dispute [UPDATE]". Broadband TV News. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ Barnett, Emma (November 4, 2008). "Sky and Virgin confirm end to carriage dispute". campaignlive.co.uk. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
- ^ White, Peter (August 11, 2018). "Liberty Global's Virgin Media & UKTV End Carriage Dispute". Deadline. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
- ^ a b Flint, Joe (December 12, 2013). "Proposed bills seek to rewrite media rulebook". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Eggerton, John (December 12, 2013). "Scalise Reintroduces Video Reform Bill". Broadcast & Cable.
- ^ Eggerton, John (July 20, 2012). "Padden: Get Rid of Compulsory License and Retrans". Broadcast & Cable.
- ^ Eggerton, John (May 21, 2019). "Sources: Stars Aligning for Hill STELAR Act Hearing Kick-offs". Broadcasting+Cable. Retrieved September 18, 2019.
- ^ Butts, Tom (January 18, 2024). "FCC Proposes New Rules on Pay-TV Blackouts". TVTechnology. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
- ^ "Customer Rebates for Undelivered Video Programming During Blackouts" (PDF). Federal Communications Commission: Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. January 17, 2024.
- ^ Lowry, Tom (February 24, 2011). "Dish Network loses subscribers". Variety. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Goldsmith, Jill (June 28, 2012). "AMC Networks stock drops 5%: News of AT&T carriage dispute on top of Dish feud hits company". Variety. Retrieved July 6, 2012.
- ^ Carter, Bill (September 2, 2013). "CBS Returns, Triumphant, to Cable Box". New York Times. Retrieved September 3, 2013.
- ^ "Analysis: Changing economics of retrans". Advanced Television. September 2, 2013.
- ^ Grover, Ronald; Baker, Liana B. (September 3, 2013). "CBS win squeezes Time Warner Cable's margins: analysts". Reuters. Retrieved September 3, 2013.
- ^ Sherman, Alex (September 3, 2013). "CBS Deal Ends Time Warner Cable Blackout Ahead of NFL". Bloomberg. Archived from the original on October 16, 2013.
- ^ Ben Block, Alex (August 26, 2013). "How the Time Warner Cable, CBS Strandoff Could Set the TV Standard". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 3, 2013.
- ^ Carter, Bill (September 6, 2013). "Bold Play by CBS Fortifies Broadcasters". The New York Times.
- ^ a b c Stetch, Katy (July 14, 2014). "Houston Teams Want Potential Buyers for Sports Channel Kept Secret". The Wall Street Journal.
- ^ Pulsinelli, Olivia (March 21, 2014). "Comcast SportsNet Houston's bankruptcy case headed to mediation". Houston Business Journal.
- ^ Flint, Joe (February 24, 2014). "Dodger channel debuts Tuesday but much of region will be shut out". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved February 26, 2014.
- ^ "Time Warner Cable says talks with DirecTV for Dodgers channel are over". Los Angeles Times. April 3, 2014. Retrieved April 4, 2014.
- ^ Flint, Joe (July 17, 2014). "Standoff over Dodgers games could be defining moment in sports TV". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Steel, Emily (March 8, 2015). "Provider's Dispute With Viacom Highlights Skirmish Over the Cable Bundle". The New York Times.
External links
- American Television Alliance Blackout List: a spreadsheet linked from the organization's media page giving a running tally from 2010