
From the U.S. Code Online via GPO Access
[wais.access.gpo.gov]
[Laws in effect as of January 23, 2000]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
  January 23, 2000 and December 4, 2001]
[CITE: 47USC335]

 
          TITLE 47--TELEGRAPHS, TELEPHONES, AND RADIOTELEGRAPHS
 
                 CHAPTER 5--WIRE OR RADIO COMMUNICATION
 
          SUBCHAPTER III--SPECIAL PROVISIONS RELATING TO RADIO
 
                       Part I--General Provisions
 
Sec. 335. Direct broadcast satellite service obligations


(a) Proceeding required to review DBS responsibilities

    The Commission shall, within 180 days after October 5, 1992, 
initiate a rulemaking proceeding to impose, on providers of direct 
broadcast satellite service, public interest or other requirements for 
providing video programming. Any regulations prescribed pursuant to such 
rulemaking shall, at a minimum, apply the access to broadcast time 
requirement of section 312(a)(7) of this title and the use of facilities 
requirements of section 315 of this title to providers of direct 
broadcast satellite service providing video programming. Such proceeding 
also shall examine the opportunities that the establishment of direct 
broadcast satellite service provides for the principle of localism under 
this chapter, and the methods by which such principle may be served 
through technological and other developments in, or regulation of, such 
service.

(b) Carriage obligations for noncommercial, educational, and 
        informational programming

                    (1) Channel capacity required

        The Commission shall require, as a condition of any provision, 
    initial authorization, or authorization renewal for a provider of 
    direct broadcast satellite service providing video programming, that 
    the provider of such service reserve a portion of its channel 
    capacity, equal to not less than 4 percent nor more than 7 percent, 
    exclusively for noncommercial programming of an educational or 
    informational nature.

                 (2) Use of unused channel capacity

        A provider of such service may utilize for any purpose any 
    unused channel capacity required to be reserved under this 
    subsection pending the actual use of such channel capacity for 
    noncommercial programming of an educational or informational nature.

        (3) Prices, terms, and conditions; editorial control

        A provider of direct broadcast satellite service shall meet the 
    requirements of this subsection by making channel capacity available 
    to national educational programming suppliers, upon reasonable 
    prices, terms, and conditions, as determined by the Commission under 
    paragraph (4). The provider of direct broadcast satellite service 
    shall not exercise any editorial control over any video programming 
    provided pursuant to this subsection.

                           (4) Limitations

        In determining reasonable prices under paragraph (3)--
            (A) the Commission shall take into account the nonprofit 
        character of the programming provider and any Federal funds used 
        to support such programming;
            (B) the Commission shall not permit such prices to exceed, 
        for any channel made available under this subsection, 50 percent 
        of the total direct costs of making such channel available; and
            (C) in the calculation of total direct costs, the Commission 
        shall exclude--
                (i) marketing costs, general administrative costs, and 
            similar overhead costs of the provider of direct broadcast 
            satellite service; and
                (ii) the revenue that such provider might have obtained 
            by making such channel available to a commercial provider of 
            video programming.

                           (5) Definitions

        For purposes of this subsection--
            (A) The term ``provider of direct broadcast satellite 
        service'' means--
                (i) a licensee for a Ku-band satellite system under part 
            100 of title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations; or
                (ii) any distributor who controls a minimum number of 
            channels (as specified by Commission regulation) using a Ku-
            band fixed service satellite system for the provision of 
            video programming directly to the home and licensed under 
            part 25 of title 47 of the Code of Federal Regulations.

            (B) The term ``national educational programming supplier'' 
        includes any qualified noncommercial educational television 
        station, other public telecommunications entities, and public or 
        private educational institutions.

(June 19, 1934, ch. 652, title III, Sec. 335, as added Pub. L. 102-385, 
Sec. 25(a), Oct. 5, 1992, 106 Stat. 1501.)


                             Effective Date

    Section effective 60 days after Oct. 5, 1992, see section 28 of Pub. 
L. 102-385, set out as an Effective Date of 1992 Amendment note under 
section 325 of this title.
