It's official: Officials at Fox News "are floating a proposal seeking a license fee of $1 per month per subscriber," Multichannel News reports. "The asking price represents a steep hike over its current rate, largely in the 25 to 30 cents range, according to distribution executives."

Cable ops signed 10-year deals back in 1996, but now "Fox wants five-year deals, with the proposal also covering provisions for a 3-cent hike in the monthly fee for the news network over each year of the contract."

A distributor exec tells Mike Reynolds: "For a lot of people, Fox News is the only channel. There will be push-back, but it's going to be difficult for someone not to take it."