Dish Network Corp. and DirecTV Group Inc. could continue for five years to offer out-of-market network television signals to some subscribers under legislation approved by a House subcommittee.
The legislation would keep "hundreds of thousands" of satellite television viewers from losing access to some network signals, said Representative Rick Boucher, a Virginia Democrat. The measure advanced on a voice vote by the House Subcommittee on Communications, Technology and the Internet that Boucher heads.
The signals go to satellite subscribers beyond the reach of broadcast TV signals. They may receive network programming by satellite from big cities such as New York or Los Angeles.
Those viewers would lose the distant network signals if Congress doesn't pass the legislation by year's end, said Boucher.
The bill likely will be amended to require the satellite companies to provide local signals to all 210 TV markets, Boucher said. DirecTV offers local signals in about 150 markets and Dish offers local channels in 182 markets, he said at a June 16 hearing.
Providing local service uses capacity at a time when satellite companies are under pressure to increase high- definition offerings in competition with cable companies such as Comcast Corp.
The satellite-viewing law must still move through the House Energy & Commerce Committee, the House Judiciary Committee, and the Senate.
