Deadlines Set On New Joint Retransmission Rule

The new Federal Communications Commission rule barring Top 4 TV stations from negotiating retransmission consent deals together in the same market will go into effect June 18 -- the same day petitions seeking agency reconsideration of the new ban are now due.

In addition, legal challenges to the new bar on joint retransmission negotiations will be due in federal appeals court by July 18, they added.

The clock on the legal filing deadlines was set into motion by the official publication of the FCC’s March 31 order in the Federal Register. The Federal Register, according to the agency’s website, is planning to publish the official order on the FCC’s March 31 crackdown on joint sales agreements, setting off another set of legal filing deadlines.