Independent Networks Petition FCC

WASHINGTON, June 5: A
number of independently owned cable networks, including WealthTV and HDNet, are
petitioning the Federal Communications Commission to support a more competitive
pay-TV programming market as they battle to secure carriage on major U.S.
platforms.

Several channels have
banded together under the banner of the National Association of Independent
Networks (NAIN). They met with FCC’s chairman, Kevin J. Martin, yesterday, as
well as with several members of Congress, to call for more competition in the
pay-TV market and “fair” access to widespread carriage.

"Our group, the
National Association of Independent Networks, is working closely with other
trade associations and consumer-advocacy groups to provide a more competitive
environment in cable programming, directly benefiting consumers with higher
quality programming, lower cable prices, more diversity and real choices,"
stated Charles Herring, a spokesperson for NAIN and the president of WealthTV.
"The independent networks have been informally gathering over the years,
but after our industry's recent trade show in New Orleans, we decided that it
was time to formalize our group and push for a number of items long overdue and
limiting cable programming competition."

NAIN has taken issue with
“program tying,” in which media companies force platforms to carry a bundle of
channels. NAIN notes that the practice “consumes bandwidth, limiting cable
companies from considering other programming choices, stifling competition.”

The organization also
wants better enforcement of the 1992 Cable Act, which was developed to prevent
cable companies that controlled programming and distribution from denying
competing platforms access to their channels. NAIN also wants the FCC to
streamline rules that protect independent networks from illegal program
carriage decisions.

—By Mansha Daswani