I 

112TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION H. R. 3675 

To repeal certain provisions of the Communications Act of 1934, title 17 

of the United States Code, and the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission that intervened in the television marketplace, and 

for other purposes. 

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

DECEMBER 15, 2011 

Mr. SCALISE introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Energy and Commerce, and in addition to the Committee on 

the Judiciary, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, 

in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned 

A BILL 

To repeal certain provisions of the Communications Act of 

1934, title 17 of the United States Code, and the regulations of the Federal Communications Commission that 

intervened in the television marketplace, and for other 

purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Next Generation Tele5 vision Marketplace Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. REPEAL OF REGULATORY INTERVENTION IN THE 

2 TELEVISION MARKETPLACE UNDER THE 

3 COMMUNICATIONS ACT OF 1934. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The following sections of the 

5 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 151 et seq.) are 

6 hereby repealed: 

7 (1) Section 339 (47 U.S.C. 339). 

8 (2) Section 340 (47 U.S.C. 340). 

9 (3) Section 341 (47 U.S.C. 341). 

10 (4) Section 342 (47 U.S.C. 342). 

11 (5) Section 612 (47 U.S.C. 532). 

12 (6) Section 614 (47 U.S.C. 534). 

13 (7) Section 712 (47 U.S.C. 612). 

14 (b) ADDITIONAL REPEAL.—Section 325 of the Com15 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 325) is amended— 

16 (1) by striking subsections (b) and (e); and 

17 (2) by redesignating subsections (c) and (d) as 

18 subsections (b) and (c), respectively. 

19 (c) AMENDMENTS.— 

20 (1) SECTION 338.—Section 338 of the Commu21 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 338) is amended 

22 to read as follows: 

23 ‘‘SEC. 338. CARRIAGE OF LOCAL TELEVISION SIGNALS BY 

24 SATELLITE CARRIERS. 

25 ‘‘(a) CARRIAGE OBLIGATIONS.— 


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1 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Each satellite carrier pro2 viding signals of a qualified noncommercial edu3 cational television station in that station’s local mar4 ket shall carry upon request the signals of all quali5 fied noncommercial educational television stations lo6 cated within that local market. 

7 ‘‘(2) LOW POWER STATION CARRIAGE OP8 TIONAL.—No low power television station shall be 

9 entitled to insist on carriage under this section, nor 

10 shall any such carriage be considered in connection 

11 with the requirements of subsection (c). 

12 ‘‘(3) NONDISCRIMINATION IN CARRIAGE OF

13 HIGH DEFINITION SIGNALS OF NONCOMMERCIAL

14 EDUCATIONAL TELEVISION STATIONS.— 

15 ‘‘(A) EXISTING CARRIAGE OF HIGH DEFI16 NITION SIGNALS.—If, before the date of enact17 ment of the Satellite Television Extension and 

18 Localism Act of 2010, an eligible satellite car19 rier is providing, under section 122 of title 17, 

20 United States Code, any secondary trans21 missions in high definition format to sub22 scribers located within the local market of a tel23 evision broadcast station of a primary trans24 mission made by that station, then such sat25 ellite carrier shall carry the signals in high-defiVerDate Mar 15 2010 02:08 Dec 21, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3675.IH H3675

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1 nition format of qualified noncommercial edu2 cational television stations located within that 

3 local market in accordance with the following 

4 schedule: 

5 ‘‘(i) By December 31, 2010, in at 

6 least 50 percent of the markets in which 

7 such satellite carrier provides such sec8 ondary transmissions in high definition 

9 format. 

10 ‘‘(ii) By December 31, 2011, in every 

11 market in which such satellite carrier pro12 vides such secondary transmissions in high 

13 definition format. 

14 ‘‘(B) NEW INITIATION OF SERVICE.—If, on 

15 or after the date of enactment of the Satellite 

16 Television Extension and Localism Act of 2010 

17 through the day before the date of enactment of 

18 the Next Generation Television Marketplace 

19 Act, an eligible satellite carrier initiates the pro20 vision, under section 122 of title 17, United 

21 States Code, of any secondary transmissions in 

22 high definition format to subscribers located 

23 within the local market of a television broadcast 

24 station of a primary transmission made by that 

25 station, then such satellite carrier shall carry 


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1 the signals in high-definition format of all 

2 qualified noncommercial educational television 

3 stations located within that local market. 

4 ‘‘(b) GOOD SIGNAL REQUIRED.—A qualified non5 commercial educational television station asserting its 

6 right to carriage under subsection (a) shall be required 

7 to bear the costs associated with delivering a good quality 

8 signal to the designated local receive facility of the satellite 

9 carrier or to another facility that is acceptable to at least 

10 one-half the stations asserting the right to carriage in the 

11 local market. 

12 ‘‘(c) DUPLICATION NOT REQUIRED.—The Commis13 sion shall prescribe regulations limiting the carriage re14 quirements under subsection (a) of satellite carriers with 

15 respect to the carriage of multiple qualified noncommercial 

16 educational television stations. To the extent possible, 

17 such regulations shall provide the same degree of carriage 

18 by satellite carriers of such multiple stations as is provided 

19 by cable systems under section 615. 

20 ‘‘(d) CHANNEL POSITIONING.—No satellite carrier 

21 shall be required to provide the signal of a qualified non22 commercial educational television station to subscribers in 

23 that station’s local market on any particular channel num24 ber or to provide the signals in any particular order, ex25 cept that the satellite carrier shall retransmit the signal 


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1 of the qualified noncommercial educational television sta2 tion to subscribers in the stations’ local market on chan3 nels reasonably contiguous with other television broadcast 

4 channels and provide access to such station’s signals at 

5 a nondiscriminatory price and in a nondiscriminatory 

6 manner on any navigational device, on-screen program 

7 guide, or menu. 

8 ‘‘(e) COMPENSATION FOR CARRIAGE.—A satellite 

9 carrier shall not accept or request monetary payment or 

10 other valuable consideration in exchange either for car11 riage of qualified noncommercial educational television 

12 stations in fulfillment of the requirements of this section 

13 or for channel positioning rights provided to such stations 

14 under this section, except that any such station may be 

15 required to bear the costs associated with delivering a good 

16 quality signal to the local receive facility of the satellite 

17 carrier. 

18 ‘‘(f) REMEDIES.— 

19 ‘‘(1) COMPLAINTS BY BROADCAST STATIONS.— 

20 Whenever a qualified noncommercial educational tel21 evision station believes that a satellite carrier has 

22 failed to meet its obligations under subsections (b) 

23 through (e), such station shall notify the carrier, in 

24 writing, of the alleged failure and identify its rea25 sons for believing that the satellite carrier failed to 


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1 comply with such obligations. The satellite carrier 

2 shall, within 30 days after such written notification, 

3 respond in writing to such notification and comply 

4 with such obligations or state its reasons for believ5 ing that it is in compliance with such obligations. A 

6 qualified noncommercial educational television sta7 tion that disputes a response by a satellite carrier 

8 that it is in compliance with such obligations may 

9 obtain review of such denial or response by filing a 

10 complaint with the Commission. Such complaint 

11 shall allege the manner in which such satellite car12 rier has failed to meet its obligations and the basis 

13 for such allegations. 

14 ‘‘(2) OPPORTUNITY TO RESPOND.—The Com15 mission shall afford the satellite carrier against 

16 which a complaint is filed under paragraph (1) an 

17 opportunity to present data and arguments to estab18 lish that there has been no failure to meet its obliga19 tions under this section. 

20 ‘‘(3) REMEDIAL ACTIONS; DISMISSAL.—Within 

21 120 days after the date a complaint is filed under 

22 paragraph (1), the Commission shall determine 

23 whether the satellite carrier has met its obligations 

24 under subsections (b) through (e). If the Commis25 sion determines that the satellite carrier has failed 


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1 to meet such obligations, the Commission shall order 

2 the satellite carrier to take appropriate remedial ac3 tion. If the Commission determines that the satellite 

4 carrier has fully met the requirements of such sub5 sections, the Commission shall dismiss the com6 plaint. 

7 ‘‘(g) PRIVACY RIGHTS OF SATELLITE SUB8 SCRIBERS.— 

9 ‘‘(1) NOTICE.—At the time of entering into an 

10 agreement to provide any satellite service or other 

11 service to a subscriber and at least once a year 

12 thereafter, a satellite carrier shall provide notice in 

13 the form of a separate, written statement to such 

14 subscriber that clearly and conspicuously informs 

15 the subscriber of— 

16 ‘‘(A) the nature of personally identifiable 

17 information collected or to be collected with re18 spect to the subscriber and the nature of the 

19 use of such information; 

20 ‘‘(B) the nature, frequency, and purpose of 

21 any disclosure which may be made of such in22 formation, including an identification of the 

23 types of persons to whom the disclosure may be 

24 made; 


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1 ‘‘(C) the period during which such infor2 mation will be maintained by the satellite car3 rier; 

4 ‘‘(D) the times and place at which the sub5 scriber may have access to such information in 

6 accordance with paragraph (5); and 

7 ‘‘(E) the limitations provided by this sub8 section with respect to the collection and disclo9 sure of information by a satellite carrier and 

10 the right of the subscriber under paragraphs 

11 (7) and (9) to enforce such limitations. 

12 In the case of subscribers who have entered into 

13 such an agreement before February 6, 2005, such 

14 notice shall be provided within 180 days of such date 

15 and at least once a year thereafter. 

16 ‘‘(2) DEFINITIONS.—For purposes of this sub17 section, other than paragraph (9)— 

18 ‘‘(A) the term ‘personally identifiable infor19 mation’ does not include any record of aggre20 gate data which does not identify particular 

21 persons; 

22 ‘‘(B) the term ‘other service’ includes any 

23 wire or radio communications service provided 

24 using any of the facilities of a satellite carrier 


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1 that are used in the provision of satellite serv2 ice; and 

3 ‘‘(C) the term ‘satellite carrier’ includes, in 

4 addition to persons within the definition of sat5 ellite carrier, any person who— 

6 ‘‘(i) is owned or controlled by, or 

7 under common ownership or control with, 

8 a satellite carrier; and 

9 ‘‘(ii) provides any wire or radio com10 munications service. 

11 ‘‘(3) PROHIBITIONS.— 

12 ‘‘(A) CONSENT TO COLLECTION.—Except 

13 as provided in subparagraph (B), a satellite 

14 carrier shall not use any facilities used by the 

15 satellite carrier to collect personally identifiable 

16 information concerning any subscriber without 

17 the prior written or electronic consent of the 

18 subscriber concerned. 

19 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—A satellite carrier 

20 may use such facilities to collect such informa21 tion in order to— 

22 ‘‘(i) obtain information necessary to 

23 render a satellite service or other service 

24 provided by the satellite carrier to the sub25 scriber; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) detect unauthorized reception of 

2 satellite communications. 

3 ‘‘(4) DISCLOSURE.— 

4 ‘‘(A) CONSENT TO DISCLOSURE.—Except 

5 as provided in subparagraph (B), a satellite 

6 carrier shall not disclose personally identifiable 

7 information concerning any subscriber without 

8 the prior written or electronic consent of the 

9 subscriber concerned and shall take such ac10 tions as are necessary to prevent unauthorized 

11 access to such information by a person other 

12 than the subscriber or satellite carrier. 

13 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTIONS.—A satellite carrier 

14 may disclose such information if the disclosure 

15 is— 

16 ‘‘(i) necessary to render, or conduct a 

17 legitimate business activity related to, a 

18 satellite service or other service provided 

19 by the satellite carrier to the subscriber; 

20 ‘‘(ii) subject to paragraph (9), made 

21 pursuant to a court order authorizing such 

22 disclosure, if the subscriber is notified of 

23 such order by the person to whom the 

24 order is directed; 


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1 ‘‘(iii) a disclosure of the names and 

2 addresses of subscribers to any satellite 

3 service or other service, if— 

4 ‘‘(I) the satellite carrier has pro5 vided the subscriber the opportunity 

6 to prohibit or limit such disclosure; 

7 and 

8 ‘‘(II) the disclosure does not re9 veal, directly or indirectly, the— 

10 ‘‘(aa) extent of any viewing 

11 or other use by the subscriber of 

12 a satellite service or other service 

13 provided by the satellite carrier; 

14 or 

15 ‘‘(bb) the nature of any 

16 transaction made by the sub17 scriber over any facilities used by 

18 the satellite carrier; or 

19 ‘‘(iv) to a government entity as au20 thorized under chapter 119, 121, or 206 of 

21 title 18, United States Code, except that 

22 such disclosure shall not include records 

23 revealing satellite subscriber selection of 

24 video programming from a satellite carrier. 


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1 ‘‘(5) ACCESS BY SUBSCRIBER.—A satellite sub2 scriber shall be provided access to all personally 

3 identifiable information regarding that subscriber 

4 which is collected and maintained by a satellite car5 rier. Such information shall be made available to the 

6 subscriber at reasonable times and at a convenient 

7 place designated by such satellite carrier. A satellite 

8 subscriber shall be provided reasonable opportunity 

9 to correct any error in such information. 

10 ‘‘(6) DESTRUCTION OF INFORMATION.—A sat11 ellite carrier shall destroy personally identifiable in12 formation if the information is no longer necessary 

13 for the purpose for which it was collected and there 

14 are no pending requests or orders for access to such 

15 information under paragraph (5) or pursuant to a 

16 court order. 

17 ‘‘(7) PENALTIES.—Any person aggrieved by 

18 any act of a satellite carrier in violation of this sub19 section may bring a civil action in a United States 

20 district court. The court may award— 

21 ‘‘(A) actual damages but not less than liq22 uidated damages computed at the rate of $100 

23 a day for each day of violation or $1,000, 

24 whichever is higher; 

25 ‘‘(B) punitive damages; and 


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1 ‘‘(C) reasonable attorneys’ fees and other 

2 litigation costs reasonably incurred. 

3 The remedy provided by this subsection shall be in 

4 addition to any other lawful remedy available to a 

5 satellite subscriber. 

6 ‘‘(8) RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.—Nothing in 

7 this subsection shall be construed to prohibit any 

8 State from enacting or enforcing laws consistent 

9 with this subsection for the protection of subscriber 

10 privacy. 

11 ‘‘(9) COURT ORDERS.—Except as provided in 

12 paragraph (4)(B)(iv), a governmental entity may ob13 tain personally identifiable information concerning a 

14 satellite subscriber pursuant to a court order only if, 

15 in the court proceeding relevant to such court 

16 order— 

17 ‘‘(A) such entity offers clear and con18 vincing evidence that the subject of the infor19 mation is reasonably suspected of engaging in 

20 criminal activity and that the information 

21 sought would be material evidence in the case; 

22 and 

23 ‘‘(B) the subject of the information is af24 forded the opportunity to appear and contest 

25 such entity’s claim. 


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1 ‘‘(h) REGULATIONS BY COMMISSION.—The regula2 tions prescribed under this section shall include require3 ments on satellite carriers that are comparable to the re4 quirements on cable operators under section 615(g)(1) 

5 and (2). 

6 ‘‘(i) DEFINITIONS.—As used in this section: 

7 ‘‘(1) DISTRIBUTOR.—The term ‘distributor’ 

8 means an entity that contracts to distribute sec9 ondary transmissions from a satellite carrier and, ei10 ther as a single channel or in a package with other 

11 programming, provides the secondary transmission 

12 either directly to individual subscribers or indirectly 

13 through other program distribution entities. 

14 ‘‘(2) LOCAL RECEIVE FACILITY.—The term 

15 ‘local receive facility’ means the reception point in 

16 each local market which a satellite carrier designates 

17 for delivery of the signal of the station for purposes 

18 of retransmission. 

19 ‘‘(3) LOCAL MARKET.— 

20 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term ‘local mar21 ket’, in the case of a qualified noncommercial 

22 educational television station, means the des23 ignated market area in which a station is lo24 cated and includes any station that is licensed 


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1 to a community within the same designated 

2 market area as such station. 

3 ‘‘(B) COUNTY OF LICENSE.—In addition to 

4 the area described in subparagraph (A), a sta5 tion’s local market includes the county in which 

6 the station’s community of license is located. 

7 ‘‘(C) DESIGNATED MARKET AREA.—For 

8 purposes of subparagraph (A), the term ‘des9 ignated market area’ means a designated mar10 ket area, as determined by Nielsen Media Re11 search and published in the 1999–2000 Nielsen 

12 Station Index Directory and Nielsen Station 

13 Index United States Television Household Esti14 mates or any successor publication. 

15 ‘‘(D) CERTAIN AREAS OUTSIDE OF ANY

16 DESIGNATED MARKET AREA.—Any census area, 

17 borough, or other area in the State of Alaska 

18 that is outside of a designated market area, as 

19 determined by Nielsen Media Research, shall be 

20 deemed to be part of one of the local markets 

21 in the State of Alaska. A satellite carrier may 

22 determine which local market in the State of 

23 Alaska will be deemed to be the relevant local 

24 market in connection with each subscriber in 

25 such census area, borough, or other area. 


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1 ‘‘(4) LOW POWER TELEVISION STATION.—The 

2 term ‘low power television station’ means a low 

3 power television station as defined under section 

4 74.701(f) of title 47, Code of Federal Regulations, 

5 as in effect on June 1, 2004. For purposes of this 

6 paragraph, the term ‘low power television station’ in7 cludes a low power television station that has been 

8 accorded primary status as a Class A television li9 censee under section 73.6001(a) of title 47, Code of 

10 Federal Regulations. 

11 ‘‘(5) QUALIFIED NONCOMMERCIAL EDU12 CATIONAL TELEVISION STATION.—The term ‘quali13 fied noncommercial educational television station’ 

14 has the meaning given such term in section 615. 

15 ‘‘(6) SATELLITE CARRIER.—The term ‘satellite 

16 carrier’ means an entity that uses the facilities of a 

17 satellite or satellite service licensed by the Commis18 sion and operates in the Fixed-Satellite Service 

19 under part 25 of title 47, Code of Federal Regula20 tions, or the Direct Broadcast Satellite Service 

21 under part 100 of title 47, Code of Federal Regula22 tions, to establish and operate a channel of commu23 nications for point-to-multipoint distribution of tele24 vision station signals, and that owns or leases a ca25 pacity or service on a satellite in order to provide 


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1 such point-to-multipoint distribution, except to the 

2 extent that such entity provides such distribution 

3 pursuant to tariff under this Act, other than for pri4 vate home viewing pursuant to this section. 

5 ‘‘(7) SUBSCRIBER.—The term ‘subscriber’ 

6 means a person or entity that receives a secondary 

7 transmission service from a satellite carrier and pays 

8 a fee for the service, directly or indirectly, to the sat9 ellite carrier or to a distributor. 

10 ‘‘(8) TELEVISION BROADCAST STATION.—The 

11 term ‘television broadcast station’ means an over12 the-air commercial or noncommercial television 

13 broadcast station licensed by the Commission under 

14 subpart E of part 73 of title 47, Code of Federal 

15 Regulations, except that such term does not include 

16 a low-power or translator television station.’’. 

17 (2) SECTION 623.—Section 623 of the Commu18 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 543) is amended 

19 to read as follows: 

20 ‘‘SEC. 623. REGULATION OF RATES AND BROADCAST SIG21 NAL CARRIAGE. 

22 ‘‘No Federal agency, State, or franchising authority 

23 may regulate— 

24 ‘‘(1) the rates for the provision of the service of 

25 a multichannel video programming distributor; or 


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1 ‘‘(2) the retransmission of television broadcast 

2 signals by a multichannel video programming dis3 tributor except in accordance with the requirements 

4 of sections 338 and 615 related to qualified non5 commercial educational television stations.’’. 

6 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.— 

7 (1) SECTION 336.—Section 336(b)(3) of the 

8 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 336(b)(3)) 

9 is amended by striking ‘‘614 or’’. 

10 (2) SECTION 613.—Section 613 of the Commu11 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 533) is amended 

12 by striking subsection (a). 

13 (3) SECTION 615.—Section 615 of the Commu14 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 535) is amended— 

15 (A) in subsection (a) by striking ‘‘In addi16 tion to the carriage requirements set forth in 

17 section 614, each’’ and inserting ‘‘Each’’; 

18 (B) by striking subsection (f); and 

19 (C) in subsection (l), by striking paragraph 

20 (1) and inserting the following: 

21 ‘‘(1) QUALIFIED NONCOMMERCIAL EDU22 CATIONAL TELEVISION STATION.— 

23 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The term qualified 

24 noncommercial educational television station 


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1 means any full-power television broadcast sta2 tion which— 

3 ‘‘(i) under the rules and regulations of 

4 the Commission in effect on March 29, 

5 1990, is licensed by the Commission as a 

6 noncommercial educational television 

7 broadcast station and is owned and oper8 ated by a public agency, nonprofit founda9 tion, nonprofit corporation, or nonprofit 

10 association; or 

11 ‘‘(ii) is owned and operated by a mu12 nicipality and transmits predominantly 

13 noncommercial programs for educational 

14 purposes. 

15 ‘‘(B) INCLUSIONS.—Such term includes— 

16 ‘‘(i) the translator of any noncommer17 cial educational television station with five 

18 watts or higher power serving the franchise 

19 area; 

20 ‘‘(ii) a full-service station or trans21 lator if such station or translator is li22 censed to a channel reserved for non23 commercial educational use pursuant to 

24 section 73.606 of title 47, Code of Federal 


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1 Regulations, or any successor regulations 

2 thereto; and 

3 ‘‘(iii) such stations and translators op4 erating on channels not so reserved as the 

5 Commission determines are qualified as 

6 noncommercial educational stations.’’. 

7 (4) SECTION 621.—Section 621(b)(3)(D) of the 

8 Communications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 

9 541(b)(3)(D)) is amended by striking ‘‘sections 611 

10 and 612’’ and inserting ‘‘section 611’’. 

11 (5) SECTION 622.—Section 622(c) of the Com12 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 542(c)) is 

13 amended by striking ‘‘pursuant to section 623’’. 

14 (6) SECTION 625.—Section 625(d) of the Com15 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 545(d)) is 

16 amended by striking ‘‘ under section 623’’. 

17 (7) SECTION 632.—Section 632(c) of the Com18 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 552(c)) is 

19 amended by striking ‘‘section 623(b)(6) or’’. 

20 (8) SECTION 635.—Section 635(c) of the Com21 munications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 555(c)) is 

22 amended by striking ‘‘614 or’’ each place it appears. 

23 (9) SECTION 638.—Section 638 of the Commu24 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 558) is amended 


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1 by striking ‘‘or on any other channel obtained under 

2 section 612 or under similar arrangements’’. 

3 (10) SECTION 653.—Section 653 of the Commu4 nications Act of 1934 (47 U.S.C. 573(c)(1)) is 

5 amended— 

6 (A) in subsection (b)(1)(D) by striking 

7 ‘‘(47 C.F.R. 76.67), network nonduplication 

8 (47 C.F.R. 76.92 et seq.), and syndicated exclu9 sivity (47 C.F.R. 76.151 et seq.)’’; and 

10 (B) in subsection (c)(1)— 

11 (i) in subparagraph (A) by striking 

12 ‘‘623(f),’’; 

13 (ii) in subparagraph (B)— 

14 (I) by striking ‘‘, 614,’’; and 

15 (II) by striking ‘‘, and section 

16 325 of title III,’’; and 

17 (iii) in subparagraph (C)— 

18 (I) by striking ‘‘sections 612 and 

19 617’’ and inserting ‘‘section 617’’; 

20 and 

21 (II) by striking ‘‘623(f),’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. REPEAL OF REGULATORY INTERVENTION IN THE 

2 TELEVISION MARKETPLACE UNDER THE 

3 COPYRIGHT ACT. 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—The following sections of chapter 

5 1 of title 17, United States Code, are hereby repealed: 

6 (1) Section 119. 

7 (2) Section 122. 

8 (b) AMENDMENT.—Section 111 of title 17, United 

9 States Code, is amended— 

10 (1) in subsection (a)— 

11 (A) in paragraph (1)— 

12 (i) by striking ‘‘local service area of 

13 such station’’ and inserting ‘‘designated 

14 market area (as defined in section 

15 501(f)(2))’’; and 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘or’’ after the semi17 colon; 

18 (B) in paragraph (2) by striking ‘‘or’’ after 

19 the semicolon; and 

20 (C) by amending paragraph (4) to read as 

21 follows: 

22 ‘‘(4) the secondary transmission— 

23 ‘‘(A) is made by— 

24 ‘‘(i) a cable system in accordance with 

25 section 615 of the Communications Act of 

26 1934; or 


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1 ‘‘(ii) a satellite carrier in accordance 

2 with section 338 of the Communications 

3 Act of 1934; and 

4 ‘‘(B) is consistent with the rules, regula5 tions, and authorizations of the Federal Com6 munications Commission; or’’; 

7 (2) in subsection (b) by striking ‘‘subsections 

8 (a) and (c)’’ and inserting ‘‘subsection (a)’’; 

9 (3) by striking subsections (c), (d), and (e); 

10 (4) by redesignating subsection (f) as sub11 section (c); and 

12 (5) in subsection (c), as so redesignated— 

13 (A) in paragraph (3), by striking the sec14 ond sentence; 

15 (B) by striking paragraphs (4) through 

16 (13); and 

17 (C) by adding at the end the following new 

18 paragraph: 

19 ‘‘(4) SATELLITE CARRIER.—The term ‘satellite 

20 carrier’ means an entity that uses the facilities of a 

21 satellite or satellite service licensed by the Federal 

22 Communications Commission and operates in the 

23 Fixed-Satellite Service under part 25 of title 47, 

24 Code of Federal Regulations, or the Direct Broad25 cast Satellite Service under part 100 of title 47, 


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1 Code of Federal Regulations, to establish and oper2 ate a channel of communications for point-to3 multipoint distribution of television station signals, 

4 and that owns or leases a capacity or service on a 

5 satellite in order to provide such point-to-multipoint 

6 distribution, except to the extent that such entity 

7 provides such distribution pursuant to tariff under 

8 the Communications Act of 1934, other than for pri9 vate home viewing pursuant to this section.’’. 

10 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—Title 17, United 

11 States Code, is amended— 

12 (1) in chapter 1, by amending the table of con13 tents of such chapter— 

14 (A) by striking the item relating to section 

15 119; and 

16 (B) by striking the item relating to section 

17 122; 

18 (2) in section 106, by striking ‘‘122’’ and in19 serting ‘‘121’’; 

20 (3) in section 110(8), by striking ‘‘section 

21 111(f)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 111(c)’’; 

22 (4) in section 114(d)(1)(B)(iii), by striking 

23 ‘‘section 111(f)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 111(c)’’; 


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1 (5) in chapter 5, by amending the table of con2 tents of such chapter by striking the item relating 

3 to section 510; 

4 (6) in section 501— 

5 (A) in subsection (a), by striking ‘‘122’’ 

6 and inserting ‘‘121’’; 

7 (B) by striking subsections (c), (d), and 

8 (e); and 

9 (C) by amending subsection (f) to read as 

10 follows: 

11 ‘‘(f)(1) With respect to any secondary transmission 

12 that is made by a cable system or by a satellite carrier 

13 of a performance or display of a work embodied in a pri14 mary transmission and is actionable as an act of infringe15 ment under section 111, a television broadcast station 

16 holding a copyright or other license to transmit or perform 

17 the same version of that work shall, for purposes of sub18 section (b), be treated as a legal or beneficial owner if such 

19 secondary transmission occurs within the designated mar20 ket area of that station. 

21 ‘‘(2) For purposes of this subsection, the term ‘des22 ignated market area’ means a designated market area, as 

23 determined by Nielsen Media Research and published in 

24 the 1999–2000 Nielsen Station Index Directory and 


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1 Nielsen Station Index United States Television Household 

2 Estimates or any successor publication.’’. 

3 (7) by striking section 510; 

4 (8) in section 511(a), by striking ‘‘122’’ and in5 serting ‘‘121’’; 

6 (9) in section 708(a)— 

7 (A) by striking paragraphs (10) and (11); 

8 and 

9 (B) by striking ‘‘Fees established under 

10 paragraphs (10) and (11) shall be reasonable 

11 and may not exceed one-half of the cost nec12 essary to cover reasonable expenses incurred by 

13 the Copyright Office for the collection and ad14 ministration of the statements of account and 

15 any royalty fees deposited with such state16 ments.’’; 

17 (10) in section 801— 

18 (A) in subsection (b)— 

19 (i) in paragraph (1) by striking 

20 ‘‘119,’’; 

21 (ii) by striking paragraph (2); 

22 (iii) by redesignating paragraphs (3), 

23 (4), (5), (6), (7), and (8) as paragraphs 

24 (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7), respectively; 

25 and 


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1 (iv) in paragraph (2), as so redesig2 nated— 

3 (I) in subparagraph (B), by 

4 striking ‘‘, as the case may be’’; and 

5 (II) in subparagraph (C), by 

6 striking ‘‘section 804(b)(8)’’ and in7 serting ‘‘section 804(b)(7)’’; 

8 (B) by striking ‘‘sections 111, 119, and’’ 

9 each place such term appears and inserting 

10 ‘‘section’’; and 

11 (C) by striking ‘‘111, 119, or’’ each place 

12 such term appears; 

13 (11) in section 803— 

14 (A) in subsection (b)(1)(A)(i)— 

15 (i) by striking ‘‘111,’’; 

16 (ii) by striking ‘‘119,’’; and 

17 (iii) in subclause (V), by striking ‘‘, 

18 except that the publication of notice re19 quirement shall not apply in the case of 

20 proceedings under section 111 that are 

21 scheduled to commence in 2005’’; 

22 (B) in subsection (d)(2)(C)(i)— 

23 (i) by striking ‘‘111,’’; and 

24 (ii) by striking ‘‘119,’’; and 

25 (C) in subsection (e)(2)— 


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1 (i) by striking ‘‘111,’’; and 

2 (ii) by striking ‘‘119,’’; and 

3 (12) in section 804— 

4 (A) in subsection (a)— 

5 (i) by striking ‘‘paragraphs (1) and 

6 (2)’’ and inserting ‘‘paragraph (1)’’; 

7 (ii) by striking ‘‘111,’’; and 

8 (iii) by striking ‘‘119,’’; and 

9 (B) in subsection (b)— 

10 (i) by striking paragraph (1); 

11 (ii) by redesignating paragraphs (2), 

12 (3), (4), (5), (6), (7), and (8) as para13 graphs (1), (2), (3), (4), (5), (6), and (7), 

14 respectively; and 

15 (iii) in paragraph (7), as so redesig16 nated— 

17 (I) by striking ‘‘section 

18 801(b)(2)’’ and inserting ‘‘section 

19 801(b)(1)’’; and 

20 (II) by striking ‘‘111, 119, or’’. 

21 SEC. 4. REPEAL OF COMMISSION’S RULES RELATED TO 

22 REGULATORY INTERVENTION. 

23 The Federal Communications Commission shall take 

24 all actions necessary to— 


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1 (1) repeal section 73.658 of the Commission’s 

2 rules (47 CFR 73.658); 

3 (2) repeal subpart D of part 76 of the Commis4 sion’s rules; 

5 (3) repeal subpart F of part 76 of the Commis6 sion’s rules; and 

7 (4) modify the broadcast ownership limitations 

8 set forth in section 73.3555 of the Commission’s 

9 rules (47 CFR 73.3555) by eliminating— 

10 (A) the restrictions on the number of 

11 broadcast television stations that a person or 

12 entity may directly or indirectly own, operate, 

13 or control in the same designated market area 

14 (as such term is defined under section 501(f)(2) 

15 of title 17, United States Code), as described in 

16 subsection (b) of such section 73.3555; 

17 (B) the radio-television cross-ownership 

18 rule, as described in subsection (c) of such sec19 tion 73.3555; and 

20 (C) the limitations on the direct or indirect 

21 ownership, operation, or control of a broadcast 

22 television station by a person or entity that di23 rectly or indirectly owns, operates, or controls a 

24 daily newspaper, as that term was defined in 

25 note 6 to section 73.3555 of the Commission’s 


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1 rules (47 CFR 73.3555) in effect on October 1, 

2 2011, as described in subsection (d) of such 

3 section 73.3555. 

4 SEC. 5. EFFECTIVE DATE. 

5 Except as provided in section 6, this Act, and the 

6 amendments made by this Act, shall take effect on July 

7 1, 2014. 

8 SEC. 6. TRANSITIONAL PROVISIONS. 

9 (a) CONGRESSIONAL FINDING.—The Congress finds 

10 and declares the enactment of this Act will change laws 

11 that have provided the basis for certain contracts, under12 standings, and arrangements related to retransmission 

13 consent and the distribution of video programming entered 

14 into prior to the enactment of this Act and that, accord15 ingly, certain transitional measures are necessary to pre16 serve an orderly marketplace for the provision of video 

17 programming to consumers. 

18 (b) RETRANSMISSION CONSENT.— 

19 (1) NO NEW CONTRACTS.—No contract, under20 standing, or arrangement for retransmission consent 

21 shall be entered into pursuant to section 325(b) of 

22 the Communications Act of 1934 after the date of 

23 enactment of this Act. 

24 (2) EXTENSION OF PRIOR CONTRACTS.—Any 

25 contract, understanding, or arrangement for retransVerDate Mar 15 2010 03:38 Dec 21, 2011 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00031 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H3675.IH H3675

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1 mission consent entered into pursuant to such sec2 tion prior to the date of enactment of this Act that 

3 by its terms expires prior to July 1, 2014, shall be 

4 deemed extended through July 1, 2014, based on the 

5 terms of said agreement in effect on the day before 

6 its scheduled expiration date. 

7 (3) EXPIRATION OF PRIOR CONTRACTS.—No 

8 contract, understanding, or arrangement for retrans9 mission consent entered into pursuant to such sec10 tion prior to the date of enactment of this Act shall 

11 be enforceable by any person or entity after July 1, 

12 2014. 

13 (4) APPLICABILITY.—All references to section 

14 325(b) of the Communications Act of 1934 in this 

15 subsection refer to such subsection as in effect on 

16 the day before the date of enactment of this Act. 

17 (c) RESTRICTIVE AGREEMENTS.— 

18 (1) ENFORCEMENT OF PRIOR RESTRICTIVE

19 CONTRACTS.—After July 1, 2014, no person or enti20 ty may enforce the provisions of any contract, un21 derstanding, or arrangement entered into prior to 

22 the date of enactment of this Act that prevents a 

23 multichannel video programming distributor from 

24 obtaining the rights under title 17, United States 

25 Code, to engage in the secondary transmission of a 


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1 performance or display of any or all of the works 

2 embodied in a primary transmission made by a 

3 broadcast television station licensed by the Federal 

4 Communications Commission. 

5 (2) TEMPORARY MORATORIUM ON NEW RE6 STRICTIVE CONTRACTS.— 

7 (A) IN GENERAL.—No person or entity 

8 may enter into any contract, understanding, or 

9 arrangement after the date of enactment of this 

10 Act that prevents a multichannel video pro11 gramming distributor from obtaining the rights 

12 under title 17, United States Code, to engage 

13 in the secondary transmission of a performance 

14 or display of any or all of the works embodied 

15 in a primary transmission made by a broadcast 

16 television station licensed by the Federal Com17 munications Commission. 

18 (B) APPLICABILITY.—The prohibition con19 tained in subparagraph (A) shall not apply 

20 after July 1, 2016, unless the Federal Commu21 nications Commission finds, in a proceeding 

22 conducted during the final year of such prohibi23 tion, that such prohibition continues to be nec24 essary to preserve and protect competition and 


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1 diversity in the distribution of video program2 ming. 

3 (d) CONTINUED COLLECTION AND DISTRIBUTION OF

4 PREVIOUSLY DUE ROYALTIES.—Notwithstanding section 

5 5, the collection and distribution of royalties due for sec6 ondary transmissions made pursuant to sections 111 and 

7 119 of title 17, United States Code, prior to July 1, 2014, 

8 shall continue to be governed by such title and the rules 

9 of the Register of Copyrights and Copyright Royalty 

10 Judges as in effect prior to the date of enactment of this 

11 Act until such time as the Register certifies that all royal12 ties collected pursuant to such provisions have been dis13 tributed. 

Æ 


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