Stevens Concerned About Lack of Ratings of Sports, Other Programs
The lack of ratings for some TV programming, including sports, is an issue the Senate Commerce Committee is looking at, said Chmn. Stevens (R-Alaska). “We're still going to deal with that,” said Stevens of program ratings, saying it “only works with programs that are rated by the programmers.” His comments to reporters after a video content hearing Tues. followed complaints at a recent forum from legislators including Sen. Allen (R-Va.) that family tiers offered by cable operators lacked popular programs including ESPN. Sports shows often aren’t rated.
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The problem isn’t with televised movies, said Stevens in response to our question: “It is a local problem in some ways… I hope we won’t get to the point where we have to censor.”
Another issue his committee will examine is retransmission consent, Stevens said. He and the only other senator at the hearing, Dorgan (D-N.D.), queried executives from Comcast, Disney’s ESPN and DirecTV on what one group said were problems with congressional rules governing talks to carry the signals of TV stations. Retransmission consent is “something we have to look at,” Stevens told reporters, but the answer isn’t in mandating arbitration.
Stevens asked witnesses at the hearing for ideas to “level this playing field.” Among his questions was whether program exclusivity enjoyed by cable operators should end. Responding, Comcast External Affairs Vp Joseph Waz said the market for programming is competitive. Congress “didn’t have a crystal ball” when it granted a terrestrial exclusivity loophole in the Cable Act of 1992, said Stevens. Waz said he believed Congress made the right decision.
Broadcast and pay TV firms squared off on whether the market for programming is competitive. Other issues included the Adelphia deal, a la carte and family programming. Comcast, ESPN and a broadcast executive said retransmission consent spurs competition. Retransmission consent burns small cable operators, said a group representing them, while DirecTV and The America Channel repeated pleas for the FCC to place curbs on the Adelphia deal.
To meet concerns of small cable operators, ABC offers a “stand-alone carriage option” costing less than $1 monthly, said ESPN Vp Ben Pyne: “We have worked particularly hard to accommodate the needs of smaller cable operators.” He called it “a fair exchange of value for either cash or carriage.” Matt Polka, American Cable Assn. pres., disagreed: “Broadcasters escalating retransmission demands are resulting in higher…costs.” Under cash for carriage, programming prices aren’t “determined by market forces,” he said. Such demands add as much as $800 million to costs for cable operators annually, he said.
Congress should impose several rules to help the organization’s members shop beyond a cable system’s market for programming, said Polka: (1) “We should be allowed to consider neighboring markets… so that the marketplaces can moderate retransmission consent demands.” (2) Broadcasters should be prevented from cutting off their signals to cable operators during carriage negotiations. (3) All cable operators should be allowed to offer a family tier under programming contracts.
Waz and an NAB board member said the programming market is efficient. “The retransmission consent system is in fact working,” said Robert Lee, pres. WDBJ Roanoke, Va., representing the NAB. “Don’t take that from me, listen to the expert agency,” said Lee, citing a FCC Sept. report that recommended no change to retransmission consent rules: “Retransmission consent enables broadcasters to offer viewers more locally oriented programming.” Congress shouldn’t fix what’s not broken, said Waz: “Competition in video distribution and content is booming… Everything is becoming a video device.”
Independent programmers -- like small cable operators -- get a raw deal, said an executive. “If you don’t get carriage at Comcast you are viewed with skepticism elsewhere,” said Doron Gorshein, CEO of The America Channel: “The critical barrier for entry is for Comcast to say it lets you in.” Rising cable rates indicate an overall problem in the market, said Gorshein: They've more than doubled over the past 10 years, an increase matched by no other consumer good other than gasoline.
EchoStar didn’t testify at the video franchising hearing. Dish Network officials said after the hearing that EchoStar shares many of ACA’s retransmission concerns. Dish wants Congress to reform retransmission consent for all pay TV subscribers, company officials said, claiming broadcasters have benefited from a “favorable regulatory environment, including local monopoly rights and free spectrum.”