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We understand how important local news, weather and primetime programming is to our customers. We are currently negotiating with broadcasters to retransmit this programming. Their fees are skyrocketing. We’re fighting to keep them as low as possible.
Q: What are retransmission consent negotiations?
A: A decades-old federal law empowers broadcasters, including corporations that own TV stations such as ABC, CBS, FOX and NBC, to charge fees to local cable providers for the rights to carry or “retransmit” their signals.
Q: Why are you negotiating fees with broadcasters to carry stations like ABC, CBC, FOX and NBC? Aren’t shows on these stations free?
A: Yes and No. While broadcasters offer their signals for free over the air, cable operators, including us, can’t offer these signals to our cable customers without the broadcasters’ permission. We need to pay fees to the broadcasters to get that permission. Most people don’t realize they are paying fees for what most consider “free TV” such as national network programs like The Big Bang Theory and NFL games.
Q: If you are trying to control costs, why does my bill seem to go up every year?
A: We strive to keep prices as low as possible, but we don’t control how much we are all forced to pay to carry local TV stations. Fees to carry local programming have grown 30 times or 3,000% over the last decade as broadcasters charge increasingly more to retransmit their signals.
Q: Can I watch any local TV station I want with an antenna?
A: If you have a TV antenna and the signal is strong enough, you can probably access some of your local stations like ABC, CBC, FOX and NBC.
Q: Why don’t you want to pay for the local news? I find it very valuable.
A: We are committed to providing this valuable programming such as news, weather and sports to our customers. We are fighting to keep the rate increases at reasonable rates for programming that the broadcasters are required to provide for free, over the air.
Q: Where can I see a list of stations with which you're currently negotiating?
A: We've created a website to keep you updated on negotiation status with each station. Click here to see the stations with which we're currently negotiating in your area.