STAVRA Bill Passes Senate Commerce

With entangling amendments dropping like flies in deference to the retiring committee chairman and the need to get a bill that would pass, the Senate Commerce Committee swiftly and without drama approved a relatively clean version of the STAVRA satellite reauthorization bill Wednesday.  

A number of cable-unfriendly amendments had been proposed by a variety of senators that would have delayed the ban on integrated set-tops, gotten the FCC more deeply involved in enforcing customer service, probed sports perograming costs, and more.  

But one by one those were withdrawn after their sponsors got to take the floor and make their case, and the bill, S. 2799, The Satellite Television Access and Viewer Rights Act, passed by voice vote. 

To read the full story, visit Multichannel.com.

John Eggerton

Contributing editor John Eggerton has been an editor and/or writer on media regulation, legislation and policy for over four decades, including covering the FCC, FTC, Congress, the major media trade associations, and the federal courts. In addition to Multichannel News and Broadcasting + Cable, his work has appeared in Radio World, TV Technology, TV Fax, This Week in Consumer Electronics, Variety and the Encyclopedia Britannica.