The really important policy affecting the future of TV that no one is talking about

The future of television in the United States may hinge, oddly enough, on the government’s interpretation of an 80-year-old law. Regulators are close to determining whether some Internet TV services, like Sling TV and whatever Apple is planning, should be treated like more traditional pay TV services. The decision will have a large impact on what kind of programming is available in these new Internet bundles and how they compete with other options. The proceeding is being handled by the Federal Communications Commission. It hasn’t received much attention among the press or general public, but many of the companies affected by the ruling, from Disney to Verizon to AMC Networks, weighed in during a comment period that ended this week. The FCC’s decision is expected later in 2015.

The most important implication of that rule change is that programmers would then be forced to negotiate with Internet TV services just as they have to negotiate with cable companies. Services like Sling TV and Sony’s PlayStation Vue currently offer small bundles of channels from companies with which it has been able to strike deals. The same is expected of Apple. But if the definition of MVPD is changed to include these new services, they could have access to many more channels, and thus offer a more diverse slate of programming.