CJ.anitnl ~tatrs ~rnatr 
WASHINGTON, DC 20510 
The Honorable Thomas E. Wheeler 
Chairman 
Federal Communications Commission 
445 121h Street, SW 
Washington, DC 20554 
Dear Chairman Wheeler: 
October 9, 2015 
In March 2014, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) adopted a further notice 
of proposed rulemaking (FNPRM) to solicit additional comment on whether it should eliminate 
or modify its network non-duplication and syndicated exclusivity rules (exclusivity rules). On 
August 12, you wrote that you were putting forth an order that would eliminate both rules. We 
write to express concern about your proposal to eliminate these long-standing rules in the 
absence of complementary statutory reform of the compulsory copyright laws. 
The cable compulsory copyright license is designed to work in tandem with the FCC's 
exclusivity rules. As the FCC noted in the 2014 FNPRM, the Copyright Act was amended by 
Congress to provide a compulsory license under which cable systems may retransmit the signals 
of all local broadcast stations and distant broadcast stations to the extent that carriage of such 
distant stations is permitted under FCC rules. Eliminating these rules without making 
corresponding changes to the compulsory copyright license system will potentially alter the way 
in which the cable compulsory copyright license is intended to function and disrupt local 
television businesses and viewing households. 
Recognizing the interrelated nature of communications and copyright law in this area, 
Congress and the FCC have previously worked together with stakeholders to craft a 
comprehensive and consensus approach to governing the retransmission of broadcast signals and 
copyrighted content by cable systems. This approach produced a regime that has both 
successfully fostered the growth of the cable industry and ensured the continued viability of the 
local broadcast system. To the extent that this regime is now outdated, any reassessment of it 
should be done in a similarly coordinated and comprehensive manner. 
Our committees have Jong acknowledged the close interplay between the compulsory 
copyright license system and the Communications Act. We have worked together to reauthorize 
and amend key provisions of each when called for. We feel it would be premature for the FCC 
to repeal the exclusivity rules while the current compulsory copyright license regime remains 
unchanged. We ask that the FCC cooperate with our committees to identify an approach that 
appropriately balances both copyright and communications regulation. 
MB- 
Competition
Media 
Ownership
1031
Chairman 
Committee on the Judiciary 
PATRICK LEAHY 
Ranking Member 
Committee on the Judiciary 
cc: The Honorable Mignon Clyburn 
The Honorable Michael O'Rielly 
The Honorable Ajit Pai 
The Honorable Jessica Rosenworcel 
Sincerely, 
Chairman 
Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation 
/)~ 
BILL NELSON 
Ranking Member 
Committee on Commerce, Science, 
and Transportation