Via Fark…
I have wanted, for years the ability to pick and choose my channels. I don’t need the full-on Digital Cable 200 channels of complete shite. There’s probably ten channels total I would want:
- CBS
- NBC
- ABC
- Fox
- WB
- YES
- HBO
- Sci-Fi Channel
- BBC America
- TBS
- Bravo
- History Channel
- Travel Channel
- ESPN
- A&E
Okay so it totalled 15 Channels, maybe a little more if you make me pay twice for the HD versions of those channels
And you know what? If push came to shove I’d probably double-tap a couple of those channels as well, if the pricing for them was out of the realm of normalcy.
The good news is that McCain has announced that he intends to attach an amendment some time this year to force cable companies to do a la carte pricing for cable channels. The cable companies are complaining saying basically the “high ratings” channels, like USA and such, subsidize the “low-ratings” channels like BET and Telemundo.
Ya know what? If they can’t support themselves, that’s their own look-out, they’re catering to too narrow an audience. If there’s no market for a channel for “the home shopping channel for gay black rural america”, then don’t try to make me pay for it so those twelve people who want it can have it.
Thank you, Mr. McCain.
So you are in favor of government involvement in setting selections and prices and not leaving it to the marketplace? Just wanted to make sure….
By: Brian on March 29, 2004
at 8:07 am
When the cable company has a mandated monopoly, they are under no real obligation to listen to their customers. Their customers have been screaming for years to let them buy “just the things they need”, but the cable companies in their State-Approved Monopoly have been consistently able to ignore those demands.
In those cases, absolutely. Actually, I’d much prefer that the law was passed down the line (e.g., if “Kingston” was to say to Time-Warner “Do you want your franchise renewed? This is a requirement, otherwise, we’re not signing the deal, and you’re gone.”) but there are a lot of problems with that (not the least of which is that a company like T-W might tell Kingston to go fuck itself, and just walk away from the customer-base rather than set what is to them a dangerous precedent).
By: Derek on March 29, 2004
at 8:12 am
You know how to fix this right? How about just doing away with Franchise rights all together? Put a sunset law in that expires all exclusive franchise rights as of January 1, 2007. At that point it’s open market for everyone.
By: Brian on March 29, 2004
at 10:26 am
Why don’t you go over there to Time Warner and ask them why their prices go up and up and up. Used to be $ 28 now it is $ 50! I think John McCain should go to these companies and treat them like they were P.O.W.’S and beat the ever lovin’ hell out of em
By: Pete on March 29, 2004
at 1:15 pm