News

The chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has taken aim at blackouts with a new proposal that could lead to customer rebates from service providers if blackouts last for more than 24 hours.

FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel put forward two Notices of Proposed Rulemaking on Wednesday, Oct. 11. Both of the notices address blackouts.

“Enough with the blackouts,” Rosenworcel said.  “When consumers with traditional cable and satellite service turn on the screen, they should get what they pay for.  It’s not right when big companies battle it out and leave viewers without the ability to watch the local news, their favorite show, or the big game.  If the screen stays dark, they deserve a refund.”

Rosenworcel’s first proposal, if passed, would seek comment on whether and how to require cable and satellite providers to issue rebates to subscribers in the event of a blackout due to a failure to reach a retransmission consent agreement with a broadcast station or group owners, according to a release from the FCC.

The second proposal would seek comment on a proposal to require multichannel video program distributors (MVPD’s) to notify the FCC via an online public portal when there is a blackout of 24 hours or more of broadcast programming due to a failure to reach a retransmission consent agreement, a release from the FCC stated.