Noting a recent series of successful negotiations of retransmission consent agreements between broadcasters and cable MSO – the most headline-grabbing of which was the down-to-the-wire deal by Fox and Time Warner Cable – NAB President and CEO Gordon Smith is hailing the deals as proof that the marketplace works.
“Thousands of retransmission consent agreements have been successfully negotiated between broadcasters and our pay television distribution partners since Congress passed the 1992 Cable Act acknowledging the value of broadcast programming,” said Smith in a statement on the recent retrans deals
“These recent announcements validate our long-standing position that the marketplace is indeed working, and we salute Fox, Fisher and our friends in the cable industry for their commitment to this fair, market-based process,” the NAB CEO added.
The retrans deal by Fisher Communications to keep KBAK-TV (CBS) and KBFX-CA (Fox) Bakersfield, CA on the Bright House Networks cable system in that market was announced on New Year’s Eve, just before the previous deal was due to expire at midnight. It was little noticed because the stand-off between Fox and Time Warner Cable (TWC) was then heading into extra innings. TWC is a part owner of Bright House.
