Syndication Exclusivity - History

History

The first syndex law came into effect in the early-1970s. The law at the time was similar to the present-day law, except that it applied to almost all programming, including shows such as the Jerry Lewis Telethon. WTBS in Atlanta, the original "superstation", had programming blacked out in some areas where duplication existed.

In 1980, the FCC lifted the old syndex law, as a way to bolster the growing cable TV market. This led to cable systems picking up more superstations and more regional out-of-market independents, at a time when the popularity of both was growing.

The current syndex law was tied in part to the Satellite Home Viewer Act of 1988. In the run-up to that legislation's passage, Tom Meek of WOFL-TV Orlando, with the assistance of Preston Padden of INTV, presented a study utilizing custom Nielsen audience data showing significant ratings dilution in the 7-8 p.m. time period directly attributable to the carriage of identical programming via WGN-TV Chicago on numerous local cable systems, with an estimated loss of several hundred thousand dollars in advertising revenue. The legislation, H.R. 2848, had been blocked by the late representative Mike Synar (D-OK), who represented the district including United Video, WGN's satellite carrier, headquartered in Tulsa. After the study was presented to and subsequently validated by Synar's staff, Synar dropped his opposition under pressure from committee chairman Rep. Al Swift (D-WA). H.R. 2848, sponsored by Rep. John Bryant (D-TX), then passed.

Before the reimposition of the syndex rules, stations like WGN and WTBS were paying local single market rates for programming, but gaining national coverage, and were selling that extended coverage to advertisers. After syndex, in at least some cases, pricing paid by superstations better reflected their actual national distribution, depending on arrangements with any given syndicator.

There have been a number of legal cases, most notably in Miami, Florida, and efforts in Washington, D.C. by terrestrial broadcasters to keep satellite providers from exploiting a provision in the law where satellite providers can offer programming where a broadcast station's signal is not available. In the Miami case, satellite providers were found to have allowed carriage of outside stations in households within a few miles of broadcast transmitters in violation of the law. Syndex is often unpopular with satellite subscribers and companies who would rather not afford local broadcast stations program rights protection.

Syndex is currently being used to block Dish Network superstations from being picked up in certain markets. In this case, the CW and MyNetworkTV affiliates in given markets can invoke the syndex law to keep the superstations affiliated with the same network from coming into the market in any form. CW stations are using the law in order to block KTLA, WPIX, and KWGN, while WWOR-TV and WSBK-TV are presently blocked in markets where MyNetworkTV affiliates are invoking the law.