Carriage of Digital Television Broadcast Signals

In this document, the Commission considers several petitions for reconsideration of its First Report and Order (FCC 01-22) and various comments submitted in response to the Further Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (FCC 01-22) in this proceeding, but limited to two issues raised therein: Whether cable operators are required to carry both the digital and analog signals of a station during the transition when television stations are still broadcasting analog signals (also referred to as the "dual carriage" issue); and how to construe the "primary video" carriage limitation under Sections 614(b)(3)(A) (for commercial stations) and 615(g)(1) (for noncommercial stations) under the Communications Act of 1934, as amended, if a broadcaster chooses to broadcast multiple digital television streams (also referred to as the "multicast carriage" issue). In this document, the Commission grants in part and denies in part the petitions for reconsideration. The Commission affirms its tentative conclusion in the First Report and Order not to impose a dual carriage requirement. With regard to the digital multicast carriage issue, the Commission affirms its earlier conclusion in the First Report and Order and declines to require cable operators to carry any more than one programming stream of a digital television station. Although the Commission found that the operative statutory language at issue is ambiguous on the subject of multicast must carry, it also found, based on the current record, that such a requirement is not necessary to further the purposes of the must carry statute, as defined by the Supreme Court.