---------------------------------------------------------------------- Message-ID: <d57cb452672708da0dd600343f25fdad.squirrel@email.fatcow.com> Date: 22 Feb 2020 16:52:31 -0600 From: "Neal McLain" <nmclain.remove-this@and-this-too.annsgarden.com> Subject: Cable and Satellite TV Committed Suicide Long Ago Message-ID: <20200219151601.GA13999@telecom.csail.mit.edu> > Date: Wed, 19 Feb 2020 15:16:01 +0000 > From: Moderator <telecomdigestsubmissions@remove-this.remove-this.telecom-digest.org> > Subject: Cable and Satellite TV Committed Suicide Long Ago (And > Didn't Even Know It) > > Sure, greed was a factor. But it goes much deeper than that. > > by Harry J. Kazianis > > > Over at Cable Cutters News, Luke Bouma makes the argument that > "greed" was a big factor that led cable TV companies into the bind > they are in today. Cable TV could spend whatever it wanted on pro- > gramming and expensive content like ESPN - at very expensive rates - > and just pass on the cost and a lot more to the customer. When there > is no competition, you can do whatever you want. Sure. Let's look at a couple examples, citing the Houston DMA [1] as a case in point: . The Walt Disney Company owns the ABC Television Network. . The Walt Disney Company owns broadcast station KTRK, Channel 13, Houston If a cable TV company in the Houston DMA wishes to carry ABC programming it must carry KTRK, and it must pay "retransmission consent" [2] fees to KTRK. There is no alternative source for ABC programming: the 1992 cable act does not permit the cable company from carrying any other ABC-affiliated station. When there is no competition, you can do whatever you want. Especially if federal law prohibits competition. The Walt Disney Company owns numerous non-broadcast channels including ESPN (80%), ABC Family, Disney Channel, Toon Disney, A&E (partial), History Channel (partial), Lifetime Real Women. (partial). If a cable TV company in the Houston DMA wishes to carry any of these non- broadcast channels it must enter into a contract with Walt Disney Company. Under the 1992 Cable Act, Disney may, and usually does, bundle permission to carry non- broadcast channels with permission to carry KTRK. When there is no competition, you can do whatever you want. Especially if federal law prohibits competition. As I've noted before in this space: If you let one industry write the "consumer protection" regulations for its principal competitor, whose interests do you think it will protect: consumers or its own? +--------------------------------------------------------------+ [1] Houston Texas Designated Market Area https://www.adsforcarts.com/houston-designated-market-area-map/ [2] Retransmission Consent. https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/47/76.64 Neal McLain Retired cable guy Telecom Digest member since 1995 ------------------------------ Message-ID: <20200222032016.GA25061@telecom.csail.mit.edu> Date: Sat, 22 Feb 2020 03:20:16 +0000 From: Moderator <telecomdigestsubmissions@remove-this.telecom-digest.org> Subject: CWA Members Prepare for Possible Frontier Bankruptcy February 20, 2020 This week, CWA members and retirees joined a town hall call with CWA President Chris Shelton, CWA District 9 Vice President Frank Arce, and CWA General Counsel Pat Shea to discuss the possible bankruptcy situation at Frontier Communications. The call was full of important information that every CWAer at Frontier should know. You can listen to the recording of the call at https://soundcloud.com/cwaunion/cwa-national-frontier-communications-call-february-13-2020 . Original story at: https://cwa-union.org/news/cwa-members-prepare-for-possible-frontier-bankruptcy -- Bill Horne Telecom Digest Moderator ------------------------------ Message-ID: <20200222032125.GA25087@telecom.csail.mit.edu> Date: Sat, 22 Feb 2020 03:21:25 +0000 From: Moderator <telecomdigestsubmissions@remove-this.telecom-digest.org> Subject: AT&T Mobility Members Authorize Strike Feb 20, 2020 - AT&T Mobility Members Authorize Strike This week, CWA members at AT&T Southwest Mobility voted to authorize a strike, with a vote supported by 98% of workers. Their contract with AT&T, covering more than 8,000 workers in Texas, Missouri, Oklahoma, Kansas, and Arkansas, is set to expire on Friday. https://cwa-union.org/news/e-newsletter/2020-02-20 -- Bill Horne Telecom Digest Moderator ------------------------------ ********************************************* End of telecom Digest Mon, 24 Feb 2020