[Federal Register Volume 87, Number 234 (Wednesday, December 7, 2022)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 74987-74988]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2022-26482]


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FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION

47 CFR Part 1

[MB Docket No. 22-239; FCC 22-89; FR ID 116204]


Update to Publication for Television Broadcast Station DMA 
Determinations for Cable and Satellite Carriage

AGENCY: Federal Communications Commission.

ACTION: Final rule.

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SUMMARY: In this document, the Commission amends its rules to reference 
a new publication for use in determining a television station's 
designated market area (DMA) for satellite and cable carriage under the 
Commission's regulations. Under the Commission's current rules, 
television broadcasters, cable operators, and satellite carriers 
determine DMA for carriage election and other purposes by reference to 
the Nielsen Station Index Directory (Annual Station Index) in 
combination with the United States Television Household Estimates 
(Household Estimates), or a successor publication. Nielsen Media 
Research division will no longer publish the Annual Station Index and 
has replaced it with a monthly Local TV Station Information Report 
(Local TV Report), which is now the only publication necessary to 
determine a station's DMA. The Household Estimates publication is no 
longer in use. The Report and Order therefore revises the rules to 
identify the Local TV Report as that successor publication. The Report 
and Order also specifies the Local TV Report published in the October 
two years prior to each triennial carriage election as the successor 
publication to be used to determine a station's DMA, as well as for 
determining the local market of broadcast television stations more 
generally.

DATES: This rule is effective January 6, 2023.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Contact Kenneth Lewis, 
[email protected], of the Media Bureau, Policy Division, (202) 418-
2622.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This is a summary of the Commission's Report 
and Order, MB Docket No. 22-239, FCC 22-89, adopted on November 17, 
2022, and released on November 18, 2022. The full text of this document 
is available for download at https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/FCC-22-89A1.pdf. To request materials in accessible formats (braille, 
large print, computer diskettes, or audio recordings), please send an 
email to [email protected] or call the Consumer and Government Affairs 
Bureau at (202) 418-0530 (VOICE), (202) 418-0432 (TTY).

Synopsis

    On July 14, 2022, the Commission adopted a notice of proposed 
rulemaking (NPRM), seeking comment on referencing Nielsen's Local TV 
Station Information Report (Local TV Report) for use in determining a 
television station's designated market area (DMA) for satellite and 
cable

[[Page 74988]]

carriage under the Commission's regulations. Pursuant to the Act, and 
the implementing rules adopted by the Commission, commercial television 
broadcast stations are entitled to assert mandatory carriage rights on 
cable systems located within their market. Similarly, section 338 of 
the Act requires satellite carriers to carry on request all local 
television broadcast stations' signals in local markets in which the 
satellite carrier carries at least one local television broadcast 
signal pursuant to the statutory copyright license. A station's market 
for cable and satellite carriage is its DMA, as defined by The Nielsen 
Company's Annual Station Index and Household Estimates ``or any 
successor publications.'' The implementing regulations also specify 
which edition of the Annual Station Index is to be used for each 
election cycle (specifically, the one published the year prior to the 
election).
    The Nielsen Company has notified the Commission that its Nielsen 
Media Research division will no longer publish the annual Nielsen 
Station Index Directory (Annual Station Index), which has been used in 
combination with the Nielsen Station Index and United States Television 
Household Estimates (Household Estimates), to determine a station's DMA 
for local television stations seeking carriage. Nielsen has stated that 
the information contained in the Annual Station Index is now in the 
Local TV Report, which is published monthly. Thus, the Local TV Report 
is now the only publication necessary to determine a station's DMA. The 
Household Estimates publication is no longer in use.
    Commenters unanimously supported amending our rules to eliminate 
the references to the Annual Station Index and Household Estimates and 
specify the Local TV Report as the successor publication to be used to 
determine a station's DMA. Thus, the references to the Annual Station 
Index and Household Estimates will be deleted and replaced with the 
Local TV Report in pertinent parts.
    Commenters also unanimously requested that the Commission amend the 
rule to specifically reference the October Local TV Report published 
two years prior to each triennial carriage election, which is 
consistent with the Annual Station Index, which relied upon information 
gathered in the October two years prior to each triennial carriage 
election. Based upon the record support for this change, we amend the 
rule to specify that DMA determinations will be based on the October 
Local TV Report published two years prior to the triennial election.
    This document does not contain information collection requirements 
subject to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, Public Law 104-13. In 
addition, therefore, it does not contain any proposed information 
collection burden ``for small business concerns with fewer than 25 
employees,'' pursuant to the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act of 
2002, Public Law 107-198, see 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(4). The Commission has 
determined, and the Administrator of the Office of Information and 
Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, concurs that this 
rule is ``non-major'' under the Congressional Review Act, 5 U.S.C. 
804(2). The Commission will also send a copy of the Report and Order to 
Congress and the Government Accountability office, pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 
801(a)(1)(A).

List of Subjects in 47 CFR Part 76

    Carriage of Television Broadcast Signals.

Federal Communications Commission.
Marlene Dortch,
Secretary, Office of the Secretary.

Final Rules

    For the reasons discussed in the preamble, the Federal 
Communications Commission amends 47 CFR part 76 as follows:

PART 76--MULTICHANNEL VIDEO AND CABLE TELEVISION SERVICE

0
1. The authority citation for part 76 continues to read as follows:

    Authority: 47 U.S.C. 151, 152, 153, 154, 301, 302, 302a, 303, 
303a, 307, 308, 309, 312, 315, 317, 325, 338, 339, 340, 341, 503, 
521, 522, 531, 532, 534, 535, 536, 537, 543, 544, 544a, 545, 548, 
549, 552, 554, 556, 558, 560, 561, 571, 572, 573.


0
2. Section 76.55 is amended by revising paragraphs (e)(2) introductory 
text and (e)(2)(i) to read as follows:


Sec.  76.55  Definitions applicable to the must-carry rules.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (2) A commercial broadcast station's market, unless amended 
pursuant to Sec.  76.59, shall be defined as its Designated Market Area 
(DMA) as determined by Nielsen Media Research and published in its 
Nielsen Local TV Station Information Report or any successor 
publications.
    (i) The applicable DMA list for the 2023 election pursuant to Sec.  
76.64(f) will be the DMA assignments specified in the Nielsen October 
2021 Local TV Station Information Report, and so forth using the 
publications for the October two years prior to each triennial election 
pursuant to Sec.  76.64(f).
* * * * *

0
3. Section 76.66 is amended by revising paragraphs (e)(2) and (3) to 
read as follows:


Sec.  76.66  Satellite broadcast signal carriage.

* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (2) A designated market area is the market area, as determined by 
Nielsen Media Research and published in the 1999-2000 Nielsen Station 
Index Directory and Nielsen Station Index United States Television 
Household Estimates, the October 2021 Nielsen Local TV Station 
Information Report, or any successor publication. In the case of areas 
outside of any designated market area, any census area, borough, or 
other area in the State of Alaska that is outside of a designated 
market area, as determined by Nielsen Media Research, shall be deemed 
to be part of one of the local markets in the State of Alaska.
    (3) A satellite carrier shall use the October 2021 Nielsen Local TV 
Station Information for the retransmission consent-mandatory carriage 
election cycle commencing on January 1, 2024 and ending on December 31, 
2027. The October 2024 Nielsen Local TV Station Information Report 
shall be used for the retransmission consent-mandatory carriage 
election cycle commencing January 1, 2028, and ending December 31, 
2030, and so forth using the publications for the October two years 
prior to each triennial election pursuant to this section. Provided, 
however, that a county deleted from a market by Nielsen need not be 
subtracted from a market in which a satellite carrier provides local-
into-local service, if that county is assigned to that market in the 
1999-2000 Nielsen Station Index Directory or any subsequent issue of 
that publication, or the Local TV Station Information Report commencing 
with October 2021, and every three years thereafter (i.e., October 
2024, October 2027, etc.). A satellite carrier may determine which 
local market in the State of Alaska will be deemed to be the relevant 
local market in connection with each subscriber in an area in the State 
of Alaska that is outside of a designated market, as described in 
paragraph (e)(2) of this section.
* * * * *
[FR Doc. 2022-26482 Filed 12-6-22; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6712-01-P