The National Association of Broadcasters kicked off Monday with CEO Gordon Smith going on the attack, taking the Federal Communications Commission and its chairman to task for proposals that would take more spectrum from broadcasters and alter the rules of retransmission fee negotiations.
Delivering his first State of the Broadcast Industry speech at the NAB opening in Las Vegas, the former Oregon Republican U.S. senator praised FCC chairman Julius Genachowski for trying to meet congressional requirements in drafting a National Broadband Plan.
But Smith questioned one of the plan's recommendations.
The FCC’s plan says additional spectrum is needed for mobile services — and suggests getting it by having individual broadcasters sell or give up some of their unused spectrum. Smith called the recommendation “the great spectrum grab,” and noted that, in switching from analog to digital signals last year, broadcasters already gave up enough.
“Our concern is that the broadband plan would yank away more than one-third of the spectrum used for TV broadcasting so that wireless broadband companies can have more,” said Smith.
Genachowski speaks Tuesday at the conference.
“Broadcasting is not an ATM that can keep spitting out spectrum," Smith continued. "There is a minimum we need in order to be viable for the future, and to sustain the enduring value of free and local television.
“This plan appears to be an example of unnecessary government intervention when technology in the marketplace is already working through the issue. This spectrum reallocation is bad for consumers and bad for broadcasters.”
Smith also warned about rewriting the rules for TV stations to negotiate retransmission fees with cable companies. In the wake of recent fights that ended up removing TV stations from cable systems — including WABC-TV from Cablevision’s system — some legislators have suggested the FCC should require mandatory arbitration or some other plan.
“The reality is broadcasters create the most compelling and most popular programming on television. … But pay TV doesn't want to compensate us — despite the fact that our content is the backbone of every pay TV package sold," Smith said. "And can you believe this? Cable representatives are now trying to position themselves as consumer-friendly on Capitol Hill. That's right — the cable guy as the consumer advocate!”
Smith also ripped the recording industry's attempt to get new fees every time a song is played on the radio.
“It's what we call a ‘performance tax.’ Labels like to call it a ‘right’ or a ‘royalty,’ but whatever you call it, it's basically a bailout of the major recording companies, three of the four largest of which are foreign-owned. I think the American people have had enough bailouts,” he said.
