In a 3-2 vote split along party lines, the FCC on Thursday approved a controversial proposal intended to boost competition in the set-top box market.
Over the objections of Commissioners Ajit Pai and Michael O’Rielly, FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler cast the deciding vote in favor of writing new rules to allow consumers to select their box from among competing devices and mandate the sharing of information between Multichannel Video Programming Distributors (MVPDs) and creators. Wheeler was backed by Commissioners Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel in approving the measure.
“This is not complex,” Wheeler said. “The law mandates it. Technology allows it. The industry at one time proposed something similar to it. And consumers deserve a break and a choice.”
Wheeler, who has long been a champion of increased competition, said the new rules will help give consumers a choice and subject the set-top box industry to increased competition from outside creators.
Commissioner Pai, in his objecting statement, said the proposal “takes a 20th century approach to a 21st century problem,” and asked whether the trading of one regulatory scheme for another will yield any different result.
Pai also questioned whether a consensus could be reached to develop the open standards the proposal relies on for information sharing.
The proposed rules, which first surfaced at the end of last month, have also come under fire from industry players, who have argued the proposed rules are a step in the wrong direction. The Future of TV Coalition, a group of 47 companies, has previously said choice already exists in the market and warned a ““one-size-fits-all tech mandate that would harm consumers” and “slam the brakes” on progress.
Comcast Senior Executive VP David Cohen said Thursday the proposed technological mandates would likely join other FCC rules on a playing field “littered with failure.”
“Unfortunately, the majority of Commissioners have chosen to ignore the many voices of reason and instead to pursue a proposal that strays well beyond the FCC’s authority under the Communications Act, and would violate copyright and other statutory and constitutional protections,” Cohen said in a statement. “We look forward to providing constructive input in this proceeding, and we hope the FCC will ultimately decide against this major step backwards for consumers and the video marketplace.”
However, Wheeler on Thursday said much of the industry protest relies on misinformation and scare tactics.
“Try and spin it everywhere you want,” Wheeler said. “Nothing in this item requires a second box in the home. Nothing in this item, likewise, requires consumers to stop using the system they have right now. It only creates the opportunity for them to have choice. There is no multi-billion-dollar reengineering of cable systems, as we have heard, that is required.”
Along with Commissioners Clyburn and Rosenworcel, the chairman was backed on Thursday by advocacy group Consumer Action.
“An open, competitive system should not be viewed as a threat to entrenched interests but as a way for companies to innovate in creating integrated devices that consumers can use to seamlessly watch what they want, when they want—including pay-TV content if they so choose,” the group wrote in a statement. “No one but a pay-TV provider could oppose a future of easier content navigation and fewer remote controls. Consumer Action agrees with the FCC: The day has come to open pay TV’s locked down, closed system and let the innovation begin.”
According to Wheeler, Thursday’s affirmative vote marks the start of an “information gathering process” during which the commission will attempt to address issues with the proposed rules.
