Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin visted the American Cable Association convention in Washington (DC) Tuesday to pitch a new proposal he circulated to help smaller cable operators with their capacity concerns. Chairman Martin is proposing to allow the smallest systems -- 552 megahertz and below -- to convert HDTV signals into standard-definition signals, essentially granting them a waiver from a 2001 decision that required cable operators to pass along HD signals in HD. But the he does not plan to grant them the blanket waiver they had sought from the FCC's decision last fall to require cable operators to carry TV stations in both analog and digital formats if that is what is necessary to deliver a "viewable signal" to their subscribers. Chairman Martin is said to still believe that it is "critically important" that all cable subscribers see their broadcast signals after the transition. Chairman Martin also told small cable operators that he stood with them on the issue of program tying, suggesting afterward that it might include untying programming bundled in retransmission-consent deals. These smaller companies want the FCC to require cable programmers to offer their channels individually, as well as in bundles. http://www.broadcastingcable.com/article/CA6548866.html?rssid=193
