It concerns local H/D and "must carry"...I.E.
they would be required to carry sub-channels(weather etc) which some stations
have several(especially PBS)...following is
from SKYReport:
"DBS Concerned with Must-Carry Idea
The nation's big satellite TV services were at the Portals during the last week fighting a proposal that could impose digital HD must-carry obligations on DBS platforms.
Both DIRECTV and DISH Network contacted Federal Communications Commission personnel about the issue, fretting that the proposed mandate - if enacted - could impact satellite capacity and operations. The companies described the must-carry idea that has been floated by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin as "burdensome" and that it could take years to comply with such a provision.
DISH Network said in a three-page filing outlining its opposition that its satellite fleet is at or near full capacity today, and that a local HD must-carry mandate would put a lot of pressure on the company's day-to-day capabilities.
HD channels require between three and four times the bandwidth of standard definition channels, the company said. "If DISH Network was required to carry all must-carry channels in HD, approximately three new, state-of-the-art satellites - with access to corresponding new spectrum - would need to be designed and constructed to meet those new burdens," the company said in its comments.
"This is a four-year process with a price tag of over a billion dollars," added DISH Network.
DIRECTV also approached FCC officials about the HD must-carry initiative. The company said that in its meetings it told commission staff the availability of satellite capacity and ground infrastructure, as well as the ongoing digital TV transition, would impact its ability to comply with a must-carry requirement."
