Burke’s Right; There Are Too Many Channels
NBCU chief Steve Burke says the company will get rid of some of its “marginal channels.” I give that idea an enthusiastic thumbs up. The glut of these second- or third-rate channels has been a bane to broadcasting, siphoning off viewers, national advertising dollars and, in many cases, programming fees paid by the MVPDs. Most networks offer a few quality shows, but the good ones are scattered across too many networks. It’s time for consolidation.
The NRA produces or sponsors six cable TV shows that appear on either the Outdoor or Sportsman channels, which are each available in more than 30 million homes, including many gun owners.
Cable TV will evolve into a “Pandora-like model,” with a viewer’s personalized favorites playing sequentially, predicts Peter Stern, Time Warner Cable EVP and chief strategy officer. In the future, “customers can consume television in a passive way, so they don’t have to plan ahead like they do with the DVR model.”
Ohio’s highest court ruled 5-2 against satellite companies that complained a sales tax is unfair because it doesn’t also apply to cable TV. The court affirmed a lower court’s decision that the tax does not amount to unconstitutional discrimination because it’s based on the different nature of the companies’ business activities.
Exclusives
Internet TV services such as Netflix and Hulu may finally be starting to entice people to cancel cable, though company executives are pointing to the weak economy and housing market to explain the quickening losses.
