[Satellite TODAY Insider 11-30-10] The U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) issued orders and public notices Nov. 29 to implement the new requirements of the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act (STELA).   
    New rules for governing several aspects of satellite operators’ carriage of television broadcast signals will be enacted under STELA, which was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in May. At the time it was passed, U.S. satellite pay-TV operators, such as Dish Network, hailed the bill’s contents. “Dish Network congratulates Congress on passing [STELA], clearing the way for Dish Network to become the first pay-TV provider to make local broadcast stations available in every television market in the United States,” the company said in a statement.
    Under the new laws, satellite providers may find it easier to import signals of major network stations from neighboring markets into a station’s local television market. However, the remaining two orders heavily favor broadcasters by updating procedures for subscribers to qualify and receive distant network television stations from their satellite operator.
    According to the FCC orders under STELA, a satellite subscriber must, “generally subscribe to the local-into-local package before it can receive the signal of an out-of-market station significantly viewed over-the-air in that subscriber’s area.”
    The FCC orders may cause headaches for satellite providers operating in areas where local affiliates are not carried, as the satellite carrier can provide certain subscribers with network programming from an major network station in a neighboring market. Subscribers also do not have to receive the signal of the local affiliate of the same network as an imported major network station. The subscriber’s receipt by satellite of any local station is all that is needed.
    STELA’s rules regarding antennas and unserved households also may disappoint satellite carriers. In negotiating the new laws with the FCC, satellite operators requested the FCC change its standards for unserved households from one that could not receive a viewable signal with an outdoor antenna to one that could not receive such a signal with an indoor antenna. Satellite operators also argued that the FCC broaden its definition of “antenna” to include “indoor antenna,” as the reauthorized bill reclassified “outdoor antennas” as simply “antennas.” 
    While broadcasters argued that satellite operator’s requests were insignificant, satellite carriers argued that the change could have enlarged the pool of eligible households to receive satellite service in areas of high broadcast signal interference.
   In the final order, the FCC denied both of satellite’s requests, saying the bill gives plenty of flexibility. "The Commission has always assumed that households will use the type of antenna that they need to achieve service; if an indoor antenna is insufficient for a particular household, it generally will rely on a rooftop antenna."

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