Cablevision, Fox say they'll show 'good faith'
A member of the Fox Sports crew on the side lines during the game between the Detroit Lions and the New York Giants at New Meadowlands Stadium. (Oct. 7, 2010) Credit: Getty Images
As Fox and Cablevision enter the 10th day of a dispute that has blocked out WNYW/5 and My 9 signals to more than 3 million viewers, both companies are expected to meet a deadline Monday for an FCC request to prove they've negotiated in "good faith."
A Fox spokesman said Sunday, "We will respond to the FCC by tomorrow's deadline."
A spokesman for Cablevision, which owns Newsday, declined to comment, referring to a statement late Friday that said: "Whether through FCC action, binding arbitration or any other means, the time has come for News Corp. to end the Fox blackout of 3 million Cablevision households."
Neither company held meetings over the weekend, and there have been no negotiations since the middle of last week, according to an industry source familiar with the negotiations.
In a letter sent to both companies' chief executives late last week, the head of the FCC's Mass Media Bureau, William Lake, reiterated the commission's frustration with the pace of talks, then reminded both executives of a "statutory" obligation to negotiate in good faith. He referred to the so-called "Title 47" federal regulations that govern the FCC. These state that a broadcaster and cable operator are "prohibited" from "failing to negotiate in good faith for retransmission consent." Fox is seeking retransmission fees for use of its signals.
Lake did not say what actions the FCC would take if it determined that one or both parties had not negotiated in good faith -- nor did he define what would constitute good-faith negotiations.
For a week and a half, both sides have insisted they have made proposals that the other has rejected.
The power of the FCC to force a broadcaster and a cable operator back to the negotiating table is not only unknown but ill-defined, according to industry experts.
Richard Greenfield, an analyst with BTIG Research, wrote recently in his blog that the FCC is empowered only to make certain they "negotiate in good faith," but he added if it found the parties were actually negotiating in "bad faith," it doesn't have the authority to correct that.
The FCC has been under intense industry pressure to define the limits of its power in retransmission disputes.
An FCC spokeswoman could not be reached for comment Sunday.
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