Texas TV Stations: July 31 Deadline to Upload Retrans/Must-Carry Contact Info

posted on 7.20.2020

Texas television stations take note – by July 31, stations with the right to elect must-carry status must upload to the station online Public Inspection File both the email and telephone contact information for carriage inquiries from cable and satellite operators.

Paul Feldman, an attorney with TAB Associate Member law firm Fletcher Heald Hildreth, said the requirement applies to all full power commercial, non-commercial and Class A television stations.

Since LPTV and non-commercial educational translators that qualify for carriage do not have an online Public Inspection File, those stations must upload their contact information to the FCC’s Licensing and Management System (LMS) database.

“The email and telephone information must be kept current, and stations must respond promptly to any inquiry from an MVPD received through either contact method,” Feldman said.

He wrote in detail about the new requirement in a post to FHH’s CommLawBlog.com.

Under new FCC rules adopted last year, stations are required to upload their elections for either must-carry or retransmission consent beginning Oct. 1 for the 2021-23 cycle. That’s according to David Oxenford, an attorney with TAB Associate Member law firm Wilkinson Barker Knauer.

Legal Questions? 
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Questions? Contact TAB’s Michael Schneider or call (512) 322-9944.

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