	Background

There are two primary ways for a household to receive broadcast television signals: (1) by using an individual antenna that receives broadcast signals directly over the air from a television station, or (2) by subscribing to a multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD), which brings the retransmitted signals of broadcast stations to homes through a copper wire, a fiber optic cable, or a satellite dish installed on the premises. In 2014, approximately 86% of the 116.4 million U.S. television households subscribed to MVPD services ( Table 1 ). With the rise of cable and satellite television since the 1970s, Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) constructed a regulatory framework for the retransmission of broadcast television signals by both cable and satellite television operators. 100-667 ) and most recently amended by the 2014 Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act Reauthorization Act (2014 STELA Reauthorization Act; P.L. Renewed Provisions of STELA

Certain provisions in STELA are set to expire on December 31, 2019. Consequently, the FCC's rules related to violations of good faith standards, including its prohibition on joint retransmission consent negotiations between two separately owned top-four stations within the same market, would become moot if Congress does not extend this section beyond December 31, 2019. It recommended that
Congress permit copyright owners to develop marketplace licensing options to replace the compulsory provisions of Sections 111, 119, and 122; Congress provide a date-specific trigger for the phase-out and eventual repeal of the distant signal licenses, but delay repeal of the local signal licenses in order to provide stakeholders (including copyright owners and professionals in broadcast, cable, and satellite industries) with an opportunity to test new business models with the least likelihood of disruption to consumers; Congress evaluate the concerns of stakeholders who operate with limited resources in the broadcast programming distribution chain, such as public television stations, small cable operators, and independent program producers, and determine whether special consideration is advisable; before determining the date-specific trigger and transition period for the phase-out of distant signal licenses, and during the transition period, Congress refrain from applying the statutory licenses to any broadcast station that 1) elects retransmission consent (instead of must-carry or carry one, carry all), and 2) has obtained the rights to retransmit all of the content carried on its signal. Additional Provisions Impacting Cable Operators

				Administrative Reforms to Effective Competition Petitions

Section 111 directs the FCC to develop a streamlined process for the filing of "effective competition" petitions by small cable operators within 180 days of the law's enactment. 113-200 . Section 102 of the 2014 STELA Reauthorization Act extends the market modification process to satellite carriers. It directs the FCC to pay particular attention to "the value of localism," by taking into account whether modifying the local market of the television station would promote consumers' access to television broadcast signals originating in their state of residence. This provision might enable the FCC to provide viewers in orphan counties access to more in-state programming. While providing consumers with information about the market modification process, this provision may not necessarily enable them to directly participate. It is possible that the FCC, when issuing new rules to carry out the STELA Reauthorization Act, will allow only broadcast stations and satellite operators to petition to modify a market for satellite service.
One hundred sixteen million U.S. households watch television. Approximately 86% of those households subscribe to a service that carries the retransmitted signals of broadcast stations over fiber optic cables, telephone lines, or through satellite dishes on the premises. Such services, known as multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs), retransmit broadcast television signals pursuant to a regulatory framework constructed by Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The remaining households generally use an individual antenna that receives broadcast signals directly over the air from a television station.
On December 4, 2014, President Barack Obama signed the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act Reauthorization Act (STELA Reauthorization Act; P.L. 113-200), extending legal provisions governing retransmission of distant network broadcast signals via satellite. In addition, the law both extends and changes rules for retransmission consent negotiations between television station owners and operators of satellite and cable systems. These portions of the regulatory framework are scheduled to expire on December 31, 2019.
The STELA Reauthorization Act limits the ability of separately owned broadcasters to jointly enter retransmission consent negotiations (applying FCC rules to more stations), but extends their ability to jointly sell advertising time (delaying enforcement of FCC rules). The act also eliminates FCC rules barring satellite and cable operators from deleting broadcasters' programming or changing their channel assignments during certain periods. In addition, it repeals the FCC's ban on integrating the security and navigation functions of cable set-top boxes on December 5, 2015, one year after the law's enactment. The act directs the FCC to develop a streamlined process for small cable operators to file "effective competition" petitions that would free them from FCC rate regulation of their basic tiers of service.
The act also has provisions to facilitate viewers' access to in-state programming. It directs the FCC, when considering whether to modify the local market of a television station to enable it to be carried on an MVPD, to consider whether doing so would promote consumers' access to in-state programming. The act directs the FCC to post information about the market modification process on its website. The act also extends the market modification process, previously applicable only to cable operators, to satellite operators as well. Finally, the act directs the FCC to issue a report to Congress analyzing alternatives to its current definition of local television markets.