D.C. Memo: FuboTV, Hulu + Live TV Oppose NAB on Key Video Policy

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FuboTV: The merger between FuboTV and Disney's Hulu + Live TV will unite two online TV providers that for years have been waging a public policy battle against the National Association of Broadcasters and the 600 TV stations that are affiliated with the Big Four broadcast networks. NAB wants the FCC to classify FuboTV and Hulu + Live TV as if they are traditional cable TV companies. Such a move would force FuboTV and Hulu + Live to negotiate carriage fees and terms directly with local TV stations – something handled today by the Big Four networks. In House testimony last September, FuboTV CEO David Gandler objected to NAB's approach, saying "larger station groups are pushing to force online video providers and streaming platforms to negotiate with them for content that they do not own." Last week, the FCC said the regulatory classification of virtual Multichannel Video Programming Distributor (MVPD) like FuboTV "remains an open question," even though FCC Chairwomans Jessica Rosenworcel has said at least twice that Congress needed to pass a law authorizing reclassification. "Chairwoman Rosenworcel has been clear about her position on this issue. However, the vMVPD docket does remain open before the Commission, where interested parties continue to file comments, so therefore it is considered an open question before the agency," said Rosenworcel spokeswoman Paloma Perez Christie. NAB in part wants the regulatory change because Big Four affiliates have said they are being shortchanged by the networks in sharing fees paid by vMVPDs. At the same House hearing, NAB President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt said the FCC should continue to explore the legal status of vMVPDs. "There is simply no reason the FCC should not at least refresh its record in this proceeding to better reflect current marketplace realities," he said. FuboTV and Hulu + Live TV are members of the Preserve Viewer Choice Coalition, formed to counter NAB’s lobbying. "Their proposed rule changes would turn back the clock and force online video providers and streaming platforms to be regulated like the cable industry of decades past,” Gandler told Congress.