FCC Releases GSN/Cablevision Carriage Complaint Order
The record in Game Show Network's discrimination complaint against Cablevision shows the MVPD's 2011 retiering of GSN was based on business reasons and the independent programmer hasn't proven Cablevision’s action was based on its nonaffiliation with the operator, said the…
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memorandum opinion and order released Friday. FCC members voted 2-1 to adopt the order, reversing its administrative law judge's 2016 advisory ruling (see 1707070065). The order said the GSN evidence doesn't establish on its face that Cablevision took the adverse carriage action because GSN wasn't affiliated and instead leaves open the question of why GSN was retiered. It said the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit's Tennis Channel decision rejected the approach that any time an MVPD looked favorably on its affiliates is direct evidence without having to show such a policy was the reason for a particular adverse carriage action.