MVPDs have been making a lot of noise during the past few years in pursuit of federal intervention in the retransmission consent process. The NAB has taken to the pages of the Capitol Hill newspapers to point out that almost all impasses are attributable to only three MVPDs.
The message is in the form of an ad that will be seen by legislators and key staff members.
Here is the text of the ad:
Who’s the problem?
90% Time Warner Cable, DirecTV and Dish
The great majority of the time, retransmission consent negotiations between TV providers (such as cable and satellite) and local stations are successfully negotiated with no fanfare or disruption in service for viewers.
But what about those rare occasions when negotiations break down and viewers are denied the popular broadcast programming they love?
There are three big companies involved in 90 percent of viewer disruptions – Time Warner Cable, DirecTV and DISH.
Agreements that have worked for all the other guys don’t fly with these big three TV providers, who put their political agendas before viewers to encourage government intervention in a free market process.
Viewers – especially pay TV subscribers – benefit from the retransmission consent process, which enables local stations to reinvest in content and services for their communities.
Keep the process fair.
Learn more at KeepMyTV.org.
