On June 12, 2012, the FCC announced the sunset of the FCC’s dual must-carry, or “viewability” rule, and extended for three more years the HD carriage exemption for eligible small cable system operators. 

The Communications Act requires cable operators to make must-carry broadcast signals viewable by all of their subscribers. Operators of systems that carry both analog and digital signals, also known as “hybrid” systems, previously had two ways of complying with the viewability requirement for HD must-carry signals: (i) carry the must-carry signal in analog for all-analog subscribers, in addition to carrying a digital version; or (ii) transition to an all-digital system. After December 12, 2012, operators may make must-carry broadcast signals accessible to analog subscribers by “any effective means,” which includes offering conversion equipment for sale or lease, either for free or at an affordable cost (i.e., less than $2 per month).  

Until the rule sunsets, hybrid systems must continue carrying must-carry stations in both analog and digital. Hybrid operators that want to stop carrying must-carry stations in analog may transition to all-digital signal carriage by: (i) offering analog subscribers conversion equipment at an affordable cost, (ii) providing 90 days prior written notice of the signal carriage change to affected broadcast stations and customers, and 30 days prior written notice to customers affected by a service change.  Note, FCC rules prohibit the deletion or repositioning of broadcast stations during sweeps (generally February, May, July, and November). 

In addition, the FCC extended the small cable system HD carriage exemption for three more years – through June 12, 2015. This rule exempts certain small systems from having to carry must-carry HD broadcast signals in HD. Eligible small systems already relying on the exemption may continue transmitting these signals in SD or analog for at least the next three years. However, the FCC warned that the exemption is not intended to be permanent, and that its purpose is to provide small systems with additional time to come into full compliance with the rules by upgrading their systems without having to make relatively large expenditures over a short period of time. 

The FCC’s Report and Order can be found athttp://transition.fcc.gov/Daily_Releases/Daily_Business/2012/db0612/FCC-12-59A1.pdf ). 

If you have any questions about the FCC’s viewability rules or small system HD carriage exemption, please contact James Moskowitz at (202) 872-6881 or jmoskowitz@cm-chi.com.