Greater Video Competition Should Prompt Less Regulation, Not More

Dormant for nearly a decade, the FCC's misguided proposal to expand the definition of "Multichannel Video Programming Distributors" (MVPDs) – a category limited to facilities-based offerings such as cable, Direct Broadcast Satellite, and telco TV – recently has received renewed attention. In a letter dated March 24, 2023, responding to an inquiry from Senator Charles Grassley (R - IA), FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel pointed to statutory definitions as the basis for not subjecting MVPDs that stream content over the public Internet – that is, "virtual MVPDs" (vMVPDs) such as YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, Sling TV, and DIRECTV STREAM – to legacy regulations.

This is the right outcome, of course. However, the justification put forth overlooks the forest for the trees. The dramatic rise of vMVPDs, as well as the multitude of other Online Video Distributors (OVDs) that make video content available to consumers – think Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Disney+, Apple TV+, HBO Max, Paramount+, and so on – has rendered the video programming marketplace robustly competitive. Consequently, the goal of the Commission in 2023 should be to identify opportunities to eliminate outdated rules that apply to traditional MVPDs, not extend them to the new entrants whose competitive influence obviates any justification for regulatory intervention.

I, as well as other Free State Foundation scholars, document regularly the rapid growth of streaming services at the expense of traditional MVPDs. Recent examples include "On Video, the FCC's Competition Report Falls Short," a January 2023 Perspectives from FSF Scholars, and "A Tale of Two Trends: Traditional Video Distributors Shrink While Streaming Video Grows," a Perspectives published in September 2022.

In the latter, I followed these changed circumstances to their logical conclusion, writing that:

[I]t is past time for the Commission and Congress to take all necessary steps to eliminate one-sided burdens that impede competition – such as set-top box regulations, program access and carriage requirements, and the network non-duplication and syndicated exclusivity rules [that apply solely to facilities-based MVPDs] – and instead rely on the efficient operation of marketplace forces to drive down prices and expand consumer choices.

Chairwoman Rosenworcel did acknowledge the current competitive reality in her letter to Senator Grassley, highlighting the fact that "the video marketplace has changed significantly with the introduction of streaming services." Nevertheless, and as was the case with the 2022 Communications Marketplace Report, she failed to articulate an appropriate deregulatory response.

While it is true that vMVPDs do not deliver video content within "a portion of the electromagnetic frequency spectrum which is used in a cable system" and therefore do not fall within the statutory definition of an "MVPD," it is equally true that, given the vast array of competitive options available to consumers, regulations premised upon that technical distinction have outlived whatever utility they once may have had and should be eliminated.