Next Generation Television Marketplace Act of 2011

Bill: 112-s-2008
Sponsor: Sen. DeMint, Jim [R-SC]
Introduced: 2011-12-16 in the Senate
Policy area: Science, Technology, Communications
Subjects: Administrative law and regulatory procedures
Broadcasting, cable, digital technologies
Contracts and agency
Federal Communications Commission (FCC)
Intellectual property
Telecommunication rates and fees

Summary:
action_date: 2011-12-16
text: 
Next Generation Television Marketplace Act of 2011 - Repeals provisions of the Communications Act of 1934 concerning: (1) the carriage of distant television stations and significantly viewed signals by satellite carriers, (2) the retransmittal of television signals to eligible state counties in the designated market area of another state by cable operators or satellite carriers, (3) the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) qualified carrier certification process, (4) the designation of cable channels for commercial video programming use, (5) the carriage of local commercial television signals and qualified low power stations by cable operators, (6) the FCC's authority to adopt syndicated exclusivity rules for private home viewing of secondary transmissions by satellite of broadcast station signals, and (7) the requirement that cable systems or other multichannel video programming distributors obtain consent to retransmit a broadcasting station signal.
 
Repeals and revises provisions concerning: (1) the carriage of local television signals by satellite carriers, and (2) the regulation of rates and broadcast signal carriage. Makes several existing requirements concerning the carriage of local television broadcast stations applicable only to qualified noncommercial educational television stations. 
 
Repeals federal copyright laws requiring statutory licenses for certain secondary transmissions of distant and local television programming by satellite carriers. 
 
Extends exemptions from copyright infringement laws to certain secondary transmissions by cable systems and satellite carriers. Repeals provisions concerning cable system: (1) nonsimultaneous transmission infringement, and (2) statutory licenses for secondary transmissions. 
 
Directs the FCC to repeal related FCC rules and eliminate: (1) restrictions on the number of broadcast television stations that a person or entity may own, operate, or control in the same designated market area under the local television multiple ownership rule; (2) the radio-television cross-ownership rule; and (3) limitations on the direct or indirect ownership, operation, or control of a broadcast television station by a person or entity that owns, operates, or controls a daily newspaper under the daily newspaper cross-ownership rule.
 
Requires that this Act take effect on July 1, 2014, subject to the exception that contracts, understandings, and arrangements related to retransmission consent and the distribution of video programming entered into prior to its enactment be provided for under special transitional provisions.


Legislative actions:
action_date: 2011-12-16
text: Read twice and referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation.
action_date: 2011-12-16
text: Introduced in Senate