Rep. Blunt to FCC: Reconsider retransmission consent

Rep. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) wrote Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski on Monday to urge him to open a proceeding on the rules for negotiations between television broadcasters and the cable and satellite operators who redistribute their programming.

Blunt told Genachowski he is not choosing sides on the divisive issue, but the volume of comments the FCC has received on the retransmission consent suggests "this issue deserves further study and consideration."

Broadcasters would prefer to leave the rules as they are, but cable and satellite distributors want an overhaul. They say television broadcast stations have too much power in the talks because they can pull their content.

Broadcasters, meanwhile, argue that cable and satellite's dependence on their programming means that broadcasters deserve muscle to negotiate their compensation.

When negotiations break down, TV viewers can lose their programming. When Cablevision and Disney, for example, fought over fees around the retransmission of ABC shows, programming went down before the Oscars in March.