{"id":426,"date":"2012-09-18T15:03:07","date_gmt":"2012-09-18T15:03:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bejone03.expressions.syr.edu\/trf594\/?p=426"},"modified":"2012-12-13T03:07:28","modified_gmt":"2012-12-13T03:07:28","slug":"regulation-of-distribution-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bejone03.expressions.syr.edu\/trf594\/2012\/09\/18\/regulation-of-distribution-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Regulation of Distribution"},"content":{"rendered":"
by Baindu N. Saidu<\/pre>\n
Distribution refers to the means by which television programming is delivered to consumers. It is done through traditional means like Broadcast, Cable or Satellite television, or through newer means like Video on Demand (VOD), Digital Video Recording (DVR), and online Subscription Video On Demand (SVOD) services like HULU Plus and Netflix.<\/p>\n
When it comes to overseeing and regulating of these different means of mass television distribution, the Federal Communication Commission (FCC)<\/a> is the principle government agency in charge. Its jurisdiction covers the means of mass emerging television technologies at the intersection of telephone, internet, computing, and digital signals. [1].<\/p>\n
 <\/p>\n
\"\"<\/a>
via the FCC website (http:\/\/www.fcc.gov\/logos)<\/p><\/div>\n
Several events have been ongoing during this semester related to the regulatory and legal aspects of distribution include a satellite provider, Dish\u2019s disputes with both cable and broadcast networks, and the FCC\u2019s ongoing plans for an incentive auction to reclaim spectrum space for wireless operators.<\/p>\n
Dish Network vs. AMC Networks<\/h2>\n
The Networks\u2019 dispute started years earlier with Cablevision\u2019s lawsuit against Dish over their Voom HD channel<\/a> which Dish stopped carrying in 2008. AMC was spun off from Cablevision in 2011. In April 2012, Dish notified AMC that it would drop their channels and by July, when their contract expired, Dish removed AMC Network channels AMC, WEtv, IFC, and Sundance from its lineup [2].<\/p>\n
The companies indicated different reasons for the dispute. AMC stated that DISH dropped its programming because it wanted to gain leverage in an unrelated lawsuit involving Cablevision and their Voom HD channel [3]. DISH, conversely stated that the dispute was over “bundling,” in which big networks like AMC try to sell several of their channels, both high- and low-rated, to providers in a bundle to get a better price [4].<\/p>\n
 <\/p>\n
\"\"<\/a>
Image via Deadline website (http:\/\/www.deadline.com\/tag\/dish-network\/)<\/p><\/div>\n
By September, Dish\u2019s 14 million subscribers had been without any AMC channels for more than two months and feared not be able to view the season premiere of the AMC hit show, The Walking Dead<\/a>, <\/em>set to premiere October 14. Speaking on the dispute, Dish\u2019s senior vice president of programming, Adam Shull stated that “The problem is they’re asking me to pay for four channels for really what is the price of three shows,\u201d thus Dish wouldn\u2019t be paying for any AMC shows [5].<\/p>\n
On their part, AMC turned to social media in a quest to get their channels back on Dish, launching a YouTube video contest for angry Dish subscribers called “Hey DISH, Where’s my AMC?”<\/a> [6].<\/p>\n