NAB pushes for new regulations for vMVPDs during FCC visit

WASHINGTON– The National Association of Broadcasters continued its efforts to push the FCC to regulate vMVPDs like YouTube TV as traditional pay-TV operators during a recent visit with Commissioner Anna Gomez, her chief of staff Deena Shetler and her policy advisor Harsha Mudaliar .

The issue is important for broadcast groups that believe they can increase their retransmission revenue if they can negotiate directly with YouTube TV, Fubo, Hulu and other vMVPDs.

Currently, broadcast groups are conducting retrans negotiations with traditional multichannel video programmers (MVPDs) such as Charter Communications and Comcast. But broadcasters and major programming providers such as The Walt Disney Co. and Paramount Global are conducting retrans deals with virtual MVPDs because the streaming services are not classified as traditional pay-TV operators (or MVPDs) under FCC rules.

Some members of Congress have supported the change, but FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel argues that the agency may not have the authority to change these rules without action from Congress.

The discussion has also divided the broadcast industry between station owners who want vMVPDs reclassified and broadcast networks of major media companies who want to continue doing business with online providers under much larger distribution agreements.

Attending the meeting with Gomez and her staff were NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt and NAB Chief Legal Officer and Executive Vice President Rick Kaplan.

During the conversation, NAB emphasized the urgent need for the FCC to investigate how streaming has affected local broadcasting. “It is impossible to understand the needs of local broadcasters without addressing the fundamental changes brought about by streaming,” Kaplan said in a letter to the FCC after the Oct. 3 meeting. “The Commission's rules were designed for a different world, and if the agency is truly committed to ensuring local services for communities across the country, then it must address the interplay between local broadcasting, the dramatic rise of streaming and unregulated Big Tech Investigate giants have destroyed the economic foundations of local journalism.”

NAB officials also expressed surprise at the meeting that the commission had not shown greater interest in the impact of streaming, Kaplan added.

“While broadcasters in filing after filing comment on topics such as identifying foreign government sponsors, cybersecurity plans, disaster reporting, proposed rules for generative AI disclosures in political ads, public reporting on individual broadcasters' staff demographics, and the retransmission consent impasse “We must wait for the Commission to address the one issue that is so severely impacting broadcasters’ ability to serve their local communities,” Kaplan wrote. “How come the Commission has not seriously addressed this issue since 2014, for example, when it first proposed modernizing the definition of Multichannel Video Programming Distributor (MVPD) to include virtual MVPDs? Despite all the obvious changes in the market, why has the Commission failed to consider how these changes affect services to local communities?”

The NAB letter also states that “many members of Congress believe that this is exactly what the Commission should be examining” and that the FCC should investigate the issue even as it defers to its authority to change the Rules are not certain. “Why not still survey the market to report its findings to Congress?” Kaplan's letter asked.

“As we have explained, NAB stands ready to work with the Commission to help it better understand the current market,” Kaplan wrote. “This requires the FCC to seek additional comment from the parties, as it has now been 10 years since it last sought public input on the issue of virtual MVPDs. The Commission should not be afraid of information and different points of view; rather, it should welcome them.”

You can find the full letter here.

In response to NAB's comments, a spokesperson for the Preserve Viewer Choice Coalition, which is backed by vMVPDs and major programmers such as Disney, Fox and Paramount, said: “Despite claims to the contrary by some, the FCC has consistently reiterated its lack of authority.” to transform the streaming market in the way major affiliate groups seek to do – a fact that bipartisan members of Congress have acknowledged. The reality is that local news is widely available on streaming, giving consumers multiple ways to watch it. Polls show that few Americans support more streaming regulations. We commend the FCC for its fact-based assessment of the streaming market.

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