Cable Channels Object to a la Carte Programming

Light Reading published an article describing the reaction of the major U.S. cable networks to the FCC Chairman's proposal for a la carte programming that operators should be allowed to strip from expanded basic tier any network that required a monthly carriage fee of 75 cents per. The position of the cable networks is that this will raise the cost to the subscriber and, consequently, hurt consumers.

Both the FCC and the cable networks should take a good look at Manitoba Telecom's (MTS) IPTV content strategy. It breaks the premium channels down into small groups of three to five channels. Each subscriber decides which set of groups that they want to receive. MTS's has found that its customers really like its approach. They spend the same as they do with more structured offerings, but they get a much more useful set of channels for their money.