The Federal Communications Commission has delayed a vote on a plan that would require pay-TV operators to make free TV applications, so cable subscribers will have to wait longer for an alternative to renting set-top boxes from cable companies.

The FCC was scheduled to vote on final rules at its monthly meeting today, but the item was removed from the agenda just before the meeting began. The commission's Democratic majority still seems determined to issue new rules, but there have been objections from the cable industry and disagreements among Democratic commissioners over some of the details.

"We have made tremendous progress—and we share the goal of creating a more innovative and inexpensive market for these consumer devices," Chairman Tom Wheeler and fellow Democrats Mignon Clyburn and Jessica Rosenworcel said today in a joint statement. "We are still working to resolve the remaining technical and legal issues and we are committed to unlocking the set-top box for consumers across this country.”

The vote could happen at next month's meeting, but the commissioners did not promise any specific timeline.

Split among Democrats, concerns about licensing

The set-top box rulemaking process resulted in a split between Wheeler and Rosenworcel. In February, the FCC approved a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that would have essentially created a software-based replacement for CableCard. Under that now-defunct plan, pay-TV operators from the cable, satellite, and telco industries would have had to provide content and programming information to makers of third-party hardware or applications.

That would have let any company make an app or device that could display the TV channels customers subscribe to. But cable companies opposed the idea during a public comment period and offered to deploy their own applications for third-party set-top boxes.

Rosenworcel said the original plan was "too complicated" and expressed concerns about the proposal's impact on "copyright, privacy, [and] diversity." Wheeler needs the votes of all three Democrats because Republicans Ajit Pai and Michael O'Rielly oppose the plan outright.

Wheeler earlier this month announced a new set of rules that adopts the core of the cable industry's apps plan. But he made changes that displeased cable operators, and Rosenworcel continued to express concerns. The biggest sticking point appears to be how cable company applications would be licensed to third-party device makers. Wheeler wanted to form an industry group that would create a standard license so that device makers won't have to comply with different terms for each pay-TV operator. Cable companies and programmers objected to the standard license, saying that licenses should be negotiated on a one-off basis.

If the FCC can settle on a final plan, cable companies would have to develop free applications for devices such as the Apple TV and Roku or anything that runs iOS, Windows, or Android. Operators would generally have two years to comply, though it's possible they might sue to try to delay or overturn the new rules.

There were reports that Wheeler and Rosenworcel were close to an agreement for today's meeting.

"Industry sources tell [Politico's Morning Tech] that Wheeler this week has been eyeing a complaint-driven process to weed out any anti-competitive provisions in the app license—with the hope that such an approach would mollify critics who oppose broad FCC oversight of the license," Politico reported today before the FCC announced the delay. "Programmers, though, have indicated they would oppose such a plan."

After delaying the vote, the FCC will have at least another month to work out the details.

In a press conference after today's meeting, Wheeler said that commissioners were still going back and forth on edits and content last night. "It was simply a matter of running out of time" for a vote today, but the commissioners will continue discussions about the rules, he said. Wheeler resisted calls to have another public comment period, indicating that he still intends to get the rules in place this year.

Charter has also objected to a proposed requirement that cable company bills detail fees for equipment used to access video, even if companies don't currently charge a separate lease fee.

“Unequivocal loss” for consumers

Cable industry lobby group NCTA-The Internet & Television Association said that it's “pleased that the FCC has chosen to delay consideration of its set-top box item, and [we] hope that additional time will lead to meaningful public review and comment on any newly crafted proposal under consideration."

US Sen. Edward Markey (D-Mass.) criticized the FCC's delay, calling it "an unequivocal loss for the tens of millions of Americans across the country who are forced to spend their hard-earned money on overpriced set-top box leases that cost them hundreds of dollars a year."

Markey and Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) last year released survey results apparently showing that about 99 percent of US customers rent set-top boxes directly from their providers and pay an average of $231.82 a year in rental fees. The survey methodology has been questioned, however. Adjusting for the size of cable company subscriber bases and other factors would put the real number at around $145 a year, according to an analysis published by The Hill.

Even if the real number is only $145 a year, consumers could save quite a bit of money if the FCC plan is adopted. A Roku box costs as little as $30 and doesn't require a rental fee.

Consumer advocacy group Public Knowledge said the delay means that "consumers are getting bilked more each day this drags on."