NASA CHARGES AGAINST TV NETWORKS VERY MUCH ALIVE AT FCC
Petition filed more than year ago by Network Affiliated Stations Alliance (NASA) asking FCC to investigate alleged illegal practices by Big 4 TV networks still is very much alive, sources within and outside Commission tell us. In- house effort at FCC to dismiss complaint on procedural grounds was unsuccessful -- action at least 2 networks had expected Commission to take -- we're told, and commissioners now are said to be split 2-2 on whether to further investigate charges and/or open formal inquiry.
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NASA Chmn. Alan Frank of Post-Newsweek Stations and its lawyers made April 20 ex parte presentations to Comrs. Abernathy, Copps and Martin, further detailing affiliates’ charges and answering commissioners’ questions. Frank presented some 2 dozen charts to buttress stations’ argument, with emphasis on FCC rule that: “Affiliation agreements must not prevent or hinder a station from exercising its right to reject network programs.” He cited affiliation contract agreements of all 4 networks on clearances that NASA said violated station’s right to preempt network programming.
According to Frank’s presentation, Fox in particular is attempting to illegally gain control of its affiliates’ digital spectrum, citing this Fox requirement: “If the affiliate does not agree to carry the digital content Fox offers -- and eliminate whatever other content [Fox] might deliver with that digital capacity -- Fox may terminate the affiliation agreement [within 60 days] for both analog and digital.” (Note: Fox affiliates aren’t members of NASA, which was formed before there was a Fox TV Network, but its practices are included in complaint.)
In his ex parte presentation, Frank also said networks (except CBS) had attempted to “extract unfair private advantage” before permitting affiliation contract to be transferred along with sale of station, citing sale of 4 ABC affiliates by Continental TV (CD Aug 24 p3). He also attempted to dispel what NASA called “the top 10 network myths” -- including argument that network/affiliate rules are outdated and should be changed. Argument “is irrelevant to whether network affiliation agreements comply with existing rules,” NASA argued in presentation. Another “myth” is that networks have only one source (national advertisers) of revenue, NASA said in citing syndication of network-owned programming, repurposing of network shows on cable and over air, and, “increasingly, reverse compensation payments by affiliates to the networks.”
Final network myth NASA attempted to dispel is that FCC should eliminate or not enforce rules because “they are outmoded in today’s marketplace.” NASA countered that rules were “even more critical today” because most of TV programming was owned “by only a few megacompanies”; growing practice of repurposing programming on “sister networks [UPN- CBS] and cable channels under common ownership”; increased ownership of TV stations by networks in major markets, with Fox and CBS owned stations covering 40% of U.S. TV households.