Why AT&T DirecTV Customers May Not Get CBS and Other Blacked-out Channels Back Anytime Soon

The ongoing blackout of CBS is just the latest inconvenience for Dallas-based AT&T's television consumers around the country.But industry groups are hinting that this could be the fight that takes the issue to Congress."AT&T and DISH's strategy appears to be to force retrans[mission] disruptions, then cry to Congress that 'the system is broken' in hopes that Congress will add an amendment to reauthorization legislation of STELAR to 'reform' retransmission consent," National Association of Broadcasters president and CEO Gordon Smith said Tuesday during a speech in Washington.STELAR, the Satellite Television Extension and Localism Act, requires pay-TV providers like AT&T and Dish to receive consent through an agreement from broadcasters like CBS before making their content available to customers. The act expires at the end of 2019.  Continue reading...