TV Everywhere raising concerns elsewhere

Much of the talk at this year's cable convention has been about TV Everywhere, the industry's plan to offer cable programming online for free, provided you already subscribe to cable.

Not all the programmers are on board with TV Everywhere yet. Walt Disney Co. and News Corp. are not entirely sold on the concept. Disney, people close to the company say, wants cable companies to pay them to offer its channels online. In other words, Disney wants to double-dip.

Although the industry sees TV Everywhere as a convenient way to offer cable subscribers access to that content online while insuring that the business formula that drives the industry (subscriber pays cable company which in turn pays programmer) remains intact, consumer activists, lawmakers and rival distributors fear it is little more than a bold land grab by a handful of monopolists and want the government to pull the plug before it gets off the ground.

“ 'TV Everywhere’ is designed to crush online competition while being marketed as a consumer friendly feature,” Free Press, a Washington, D.C.-based media watchdog group, said in a filing to the Justice Department titled “TV Competition Nowhere: How the cable industry is colluding to kill online TV.”

Those opposed to TV Everywhere are not necessarily against the concept of consumers paying to watch content online. The fear is that the cable industry is looking to extend its role as gatekeeper from the television to the Internet and doesn’t want to leave room for competition. 

Lawmakers are also concerned about TV Everywhere being little more than a not-so-subtle attempt to limit consumer choice. Senator Herb Kohl (D-Wis.),chairman of the Senate Antitrust Subcommittee, in particular has been outspoken about the concept. In February, he sent a letter to NBC Universal Chief Executive Jeff Zucker criticizing how the network required viewers to prove they subscribed to a pay television service in order to watch its Olympics coverage online. Kohl wrote that the move “raises questions” as to why NBC wouldn’t instead offer viewers “the opportunity to purchase this select Internet content” and “collect revenues directly.”

So far, the cable industry has shown little desire to create a TV Everywhere business that would allow consumers to subscribe to online without also subscribing to cable. That’s because the industry does not want consumers to cut the cord to cable. Furthermore, if the cable companies were to allow that, it would make it more difficult to prevent the programmers it carries to also sell their networks to rival Web services.

The other argument advocates make in claiming that TV Everywhere is anti-competitive is that cable operators won’t compete against each other online. A Time Warner Cable subscriber cannot subscribe to Comcast’s version of TV Everywhere or vice versa. Though cable companies rarely compete head-to-head in the same markets in part because of the cost of laying the pipe to wire homes, they could in the online world. If they don’t, says Free Press, then that’s a prime example of collusion.

“By design, this plan will exclude disruptive new entrants and result in fewer choices and higher prices for consumers,” Free Press said.

-- Joe Flint

Comments

[Rosario Elliot]

You can always depend on BIG companies like the Cable Giants to invent new ways to keep stealing our money. We need to join the internet TV revolution, cut the cable cord! We cut out cable 2 years ago, my family has saved almost $6000! We bought a new car and put down half of what we saved, bought my children some much needed clothes. Lets be realistic, 200$ a month for sub-par, commercial filled programming when 1000% more Free, Licensed and Legal content is available online for Free. It just makes sense, get your money back, use that money and do something nice for your family or yourself.

This is the one we are going to use when it comes out. - Open Source. http://www.whitehatt.com

[Franklin D]

I agree, we dumped cable some time ago. It was getting so incredible to even afford we was trying to find things to watch all the time. we saved a ton switching thank you for the info on whitehatt I am going to check it out.

[Nate]

I think TV everywhere is good for everybody I work for a big cable company (DISH Network) and we offer TV everywhere with a Sling adapter and 722 DVR. This does not cost anything more as monthly to your bill and if you do not have a Sling adapter DISH can sell you one of $99. You can take this anywhere and this works on Tablets, Smartphone's, and Laptops.