w9wi said:
nocomradio said:
Why doesn't free market work in this business? Or why isn't free market allowed to work in this business?
Do they not like the competition? I own a business and have for over 10 years now. If someone right across town decides to set up shop and do the same exact thing, they are free to do so, and if they do it better, cheaper, or a different way, then they may just have the upper hand on my business and become more successful. That is just the way business works. I have to then stay competitive, or succumb.
If I start a business in your line across town, can I walk into your business, grab your inventory, (without paying for it) carry it to my store, and start selling it there?
Until The Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 was enacted, cable operators were allowed to do exactly that.
Unfortunately, that
is the way business works, but it's sure not a "free market"!
In a free market, if I want to start a business in your line across town, I must have an agreement with suppliers to provide my inventory. And unless those suppliers are incredibly stupid (
), I must pay them for that inventory -- I'm not going to get it for free.
In a free market, cable operators would have been free to either:
- Produce their own programming, of a quality such that people would be willing to give up the OTA networks in order to receive the cable-produced programming,* or:
- Negotiate a deal with OTA broadcasters to pay for access to OTA programming for retransmission on the cable.
* or outbid the OTA networks for the best programs 3rd parties were producing.
Say if I wanted to listen to a radio station from another market online, or buying a newspaper from another place? Why not TV stations from other markets? That's an issue some are debating. Say if I was in California watching a New York station, could the California stations making revenues? They would lose it! Imagine some person said "You can't watch NYC TV stations in Greenville, SC?" the other person said "Why not?", they said "The FCC said so!". Pure baloney.
There was this IPTV company tried to change the way to watch TV online that's different than watching a traditional over-the-air TV or watching TV episodes not in real time like Hulu or premium Hulu Plus. It was called IVI.tv which is ran in Seattle, WA at first provide OTA network feeds from NYC stations (WCBS, WNBC, WNYW, WABC, WWOR, WPIX, WNET, so on) plus Seattle stations (KOMO, KING, KIRO, KCTS, etc.) later the addition of Los Angeles ones (KCBS, KNBC, KTLA, KABC, KCAL, KTTV, KCOP, KOCE, etc.) and last Chicago (WBBM, WMAQ, WLS, WGN local, WTTW, WFLD, etc). They were planning to provide Philly OTA feeds (KYW, WPVI, WCAU, WPHL, WTXF, etc.), but unfortunately plans fizzed thanks to the lawsuits by the meddling broadcasters and sad part, that crackpot Federal Judge by the name of Buchwald put an injuction to IVI.tv for copyright thing. But IVI.tv claims they didn't nothing wrong, and trying to get the injuction lifted by the court of appeals, still depending, but long time. But the problem, The last Copyright Act as passed by politicans was 36 years ago. But still its 20th century laws in 21st century. Also, similar thing recently when Barry Diller (former TV executive) started Aereo with streaming NYC feeds on internet, phone, and I-Pads for those living in the NYC market. Unfortunately, Aereo is now a victim of sorry I had to say it
The Copyright Curse because lawsuits from networks themselves and wanted to shut Aereo down like they did to poor IVI.tv. DirecTV rival Dish had the same feeling years ago when they were forced to shut off DNS feeds from NYC/LA to eligible and ineligible customers because they violated that so-called SHVERA law that Bush 43 signed into law in 2004, got an injunction from another crackpot Federal Judge named Dimitrouleas. As a result, a thirdparty company from Indiana provided the feeds to non-local customers (First SD feeds from Atlanta later replaced by NYC for East/San Francisco for West), then one time they provided HD feeds of Chicago or LA, but stopped. Recently, the main reason for STELA to lift Dish out of the injunction for one case. Served the missing network/s of the big four into a short market.
STELA also renewes the right to deliver distant network feeds for those without Local-into-local or unserved area on satellite. Since nowadays, they broadcast nearly every local channel to their home markets. You know in the UK, you have to buy a license for a TV because of the BBC, it's the law. Australia had a similar thing, but abolished the license thing in the 1970s.
To me the FCC and the NAB aren't Patriotic. People who were Patriotic like the late greats Martin Luther King, Jr. and Susan B. Anthony for example. They succeed in change, Martin changed segregation into intergration in the South, while years back Susan fought Voting Rights for Women, succeed. Unfortunately they're gone but their legacy still lives on. But just like you can't fight city hall. I would say
You Can't Fight the FCC! But the laws are still screwed up.
But, how would you feel if your favorite TV program is pre-empted (once or permantely in its run)? Like for example WLOS 13, the ABC affiliate in the Greenville, South Carolina market licensed in Asheville, North Carolina doesn't air the ABC programming block on Saturday mornings called
Litton's Weekend Adventure. Ironically, distribitor Litton Entertainment is headquarted near Charleston, South Carolina (Lowcounty SC that is). But Greenville, SC is Upstate SC three hour drive into Chucktown. If we were allowed to watch NYC/Los Angeles feeds of the big 4 networks, we could proverbly see network TV in its entirety. But sadly never happen. It's like their favorite program has been denied to the viewer by the local station. Years ago in 2009, the guy who run AAD (now Sobongo who provides DNS feeds to Dish subs without locals) provided a change called
MyTV Rights, he testified in a hearing on Capitol Hill. But unfortunately,
MyTV Rights didn't succeed. It's a sad situation we got to deal with.
