Read the letter below and click on the link to sign the petition.
Dear President Obama and Members of Congress:
We represent a broad group of industry, labor and public interest organizations that are gravely concerned about Comcast’s proposed acquisition of NBC-Universal. We believe that a merger of this size and scope will have a devastating effect on the media marketplace. It will result in less competition, higher consumer costs and fewer content choices. It also will give one company unprecedented control over innovative new media that offer news, information, entertainment and cultural programming through emerging technologies.
A combined Comcast/NBCU would control a major television network and film studio, the nation’s largest cable company and its largest residential broadband provider. The merged giant would have strong incentives to discriminate against other multi-channel video providers in granting access to its wealth of programming, including all of its broadcast stations and “must-have” national and regional networks that air live or same-day sporting events, as well as the market power to enforce anticompetitive “bundling.” The proposed deal could make it even harder for diverse and independent voices to find an audience, as Comcast would have the incentive to prioritize NBC channels and programs over others. Control of NBCU programming also would give Comcast the opportunity to prioritize its own online video products over those of its competitors – or sharply reduce online video distribution altogether – pushing independent producers out of the picture.
Comcast has proposed to voluntarily agree to a handful of commitments in an attempt to avoid the imposition of more effective, and competitively essential, conditions on this merger. While these “commitments” purport to address concerns about localism and program diversity, and would extend the current (and arguably ineffectual) program access rules to broadcast and HD programming, they are mere window dressing. Moreover, they do not mitigate the competitive danger of the vastly increased vertical integration that would result from a Comcast/NBCU marriage, and they do not address the competitive issues raised by the merged company’s control over online video distribution – an increasingly important platform for television distribution. To prevent a disastrous impact on competition and consumer choice, any approval of the merger must include meaningful conditions that extend well beyond those previously imposed on less significant mergers.
The proposed deal raises the most basic antitrust and public policy issues for an administration that has declared both the importance of media diversity and an intention to be more vigilant against anticompetitive conduct and abuses of market power. We ask that you take a hard look at this merger and take the necessary measures to prevent harm to both consumers and competition.
Signed,
American Cable Association
Center for Media Justice
Common Cause
Communications Workers of America
Concerned Women for America
Consumer Federation of America
Consumers Union
Free Press
Kids First Coalition
Media Action Grassroots Network
Media Access Project
Media and Democracy Coalition
Morality in Media
National Association of Independent Networks
National Consumer League
National Organization for Women
National Telecommunications Cooperative Association
Organization for the Promotion and Advancement of Small Telecommunications Companies
Parents Television Council
Public Knowledge
Satellite Broadcasting and Communications Association
Sports Fans Coalition
U.S. PIRG
Writers Guild of America East
Writers Guild of America West
Dear SFC,
This is more of a suggestion, or an addendum to your position which pushes the FCC to protect local sports coverage by preventing service providers like Comcast from holding the networks hostage.
I believe you must address this issue. I just signed the petition and strongly believe in your work as one more important means to bring democracy to the USA.
Recently, as I imagine you are aware, Time-Warner Cable threatened to black out the primary FOX channel due to the latter’s demand for an increase in fees in major markets. Last I read (and I may not be completely up to date) a temporary settlement was reached though not a permanent one. Nor, in the big picture, does any mechanism exist to prevent such threats of blackmail between networks and service providers going forward. Short of the FCC involving itself for the protection of consumer interests in such matters, at some point we will see outcomes which do harm consumers and prevent us from having the choices we deserve. (I, as a Direct TV subscriber, already have seen this play out with the loss of the Versus channel.)
The higher the stakes of the games being played on the field, the higher the stakes will be in the board rooms and executive suites. Regulation is the only answer to stem the flow of greed before it becomes a tsunami.
Regards,
Jeff Weinberger
Jeff,
You are absolutely right. And it’s only going to get worse (look at what’s happening right now between Cablevision and HGTV). The government can and should do something. It can require arbitration between the parties while requiring that the programming stay on the air. The FCC did exactly that when it approved the News Corp/Directv merger. Guess what: it worked. Disputes were resolved through arbitration and no one lost their programming.
–SFC