Quote:
Originally posted by Cynthetiq
geep...I'm looking at your comments as simply opinion as you don't seem to know about the history of facts that have happened within the industry, or even how it works in today's current setup.
You seem to say that the market should let it all shake itself out.
You can call your cable company and ask until you are blue in the face. Cablevision refused to carry YES (Yankees channel) and then when they finally did it was under extreme government pressure from the governor of NY. In fact under the agreement that they made, they pay less than any other cable operator, and if a current one tries to get the same deal, Cablevision is to pay for all court costs assocaiated with that challenge.
Expansion of the industry came from government regulation, the cable industry was heavily regulated in the 70's.
Viacom was never really a small company, it was a library owned by CBS and in the 70's the regulations changed limiting the ownership of libraries and CBS had to sell it off.
Why should I raise the stink? Shouldn't they be allowed to be carried and not bullied into obscurity by the larger outlets? Even if I did as did millions of yankee fans, Cablevision did not bow until the governor stepped in.
No free lunch for equal access? It costs a few million dollars to run for president, no longer can you say to a son,"One day you can be president."
Cancel my subscription? Cut off my nose to spite my face? I think that you really need to think this out a little bit clearer, this isn't about REMOVING all choices, but making sure that the market will bear what it can failry and evenly and still provide choices.
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Sounds like the person who negotiated the deal with the cable company in your area should be fired or maybe even run out of town, he sure gave away the baby wth the bathwater. Believe me the deal
was negotiated, too. In my community we negotiated a more sensible contract with the cable company. Someone who represented you and your community had to sign. He or she is just as much to blame as the cable company. Despite what you think of me, I am not ignorant enough to believe that regulation caused the growth in any industry, let alone cable television. No matter what regulation there is, if people do not believe they can invest and make a profit, (ie. there is a market) an industry will not grow. People do not throw their money away, just because the government has a regulation or two. I will concede that regulation may have
encouraged growth but it did not cause it. That is not opinion, either, just basic economics. And by the way, just because you don't like the choice, doesn't mean they don't exist.
You're right about Viacom, my bad. I just saw Microsoft and ignored the rest of the list. Sorry.