• The Hill, Wednesday, July 28, 2010 11:23 PM

The push to get the Federal Communications Commission to change "retransmission consent" rules has been slow to gain ground on Capitol Hill so far. Reps. Steve Israel (D-N.Y.) and Pete King (R-N.Y.) circulated a "Dear Colleague" letter this month promoting changes to retransmission consent rules, a contentious set of regulations governing negotiations between broadcasters and paid distributors such as cable and satellite operators, reports The Hill.

But enthusiasm is not exactly spreading like wildfire. A copy of the final letter obtained by The Hill shows only 13 members of Congress signed on. King is the only Republican on the letter. Broadcasters want to leave the rules as they are, but cable and satellite distributors want an overhaul.

Industry push back has come from six major media organizations, which wrote King and Israel. Signed by executives from News Corporation, Walt Disney, CBS Corporation, the National Association of Broadcasters, NBC Universal, and Univision Communications warned that the changes could have "serious consequences to not only New York City viewers and the New York economy" but the entire nation, the media companies argued that current policies are working.

They added that cable companies are profitable, and that there is "no evidence" broadcast fees are have resulted in rising cable bills for consumers.

Read the whole story at The Hill »