Date: 22nd January 2001

Broadcasters Win Battle Over Digital "Must Carry"


The FCC has decided not to require cable providers to carry both the analog and digital signals of over-the-air broadcasters, published reports said today (Monday).

The commission is expected to announce its controversial decision as early as this morning. Although the broadcasters had argued that cable carriage was essential to the transition from analog to digital, the cable industry argued successfully that to include the digital stations under the commission's "must carry" rule would mean forcing them to bounce cable-only networks off their systems.

Source: Studio Briefing