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Congress To Force Cable a la Carte Plans
unassimilatible writes "Senate Commerce Committee Chairman John McCain seems to be leaning towards sponsoring legislation mandating something I have wanted for a long time: Forcing cable companies to offer "a la carte" programming packages. No U.S. cable or satellite currently offers such a plan. However, as the Washington Post reports, "That may change, if some lawmakers and consumer groups get their way, as the cable industry finds itself under increasing scrutiny. Lawmakers report that their constituents are angry about cable bills that have risen at three times the rate of inflation since the industry was largely deregulated in 1996." McCain money quote: "I go down to buy a loaf of bread. I don't have to buy broccoli and milk to go with it." Bottom line is, cable companies have a government-authorized monopoly, so maybe they need to recieve government-mandated "innovation." Why should I pay for 15 non-English channels?"
Market's decision != Monoply's decision
^(oo)^pig~
Well, what is happening to niche shows NOW? Can the cable companies really disambiguate which shows are valuable? Critically acclaimed shows get cancelled all the time for mind rotting sitcome pastiche. Maybe a show's audience simply isn't prone to buying stuff through advertising. Right now I can't effectively vote with my dollars. If I buy a package, I vote for 100 different things, when I really wanted to vote for 3. I would be GLAD to pay a higher per-channel fee if I got ONLY the channels/shows I wanted, as I am sure that my end cost would be lower. As it is, I am cancelling my introductory "extended cable" simply because even the discounted rate is way too fucking high for the handful of shows I actually give a damn about. What do the cable companies think about that? Would they rather have my $0 because their package is too high, or would they want my $20 because I got to pick the 4 or so channels I wanted?
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
That's not the point irregardless...
It's 10 PM. Do you know if you're un-American?
Most people aren't idiots with 5 TVs & Tivos, so they would save money.
If your life is so empty that you need multiple Tivos, your problems extend well beyond cable rates.
Conformity is the jailer of freedom and enemy of growth. -JFK