ACA Laments That FCC Seems Likely To OK AT&T/DirecTV Without RSN Action
The FCC apparently won't require AT&T/DirecTV to make regional sports networks available to competitors on reasonable terms, the American Cable Association said in a news release Tuesday. ACA is "deeply disappointed" the FCC appears headed toward approving AT&T's takeover of…
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DirecTV "without shielding consumers from being overcharged for three Root Sports regional sports networks (RSNs) owned by DirecTV and a fourth Roots [sic] Sports RSN currently co-owned by AT&T and DirecTV," ACA CEO Mathew Polka said in a statement issued in the release. "The FCC's action would fly in the face of overwhelming evidence that AT&T and DirecTV have overcharged for their RSNs and have every intention of continuing to do so and to an even greater extent. Consumers, particularly those who are customers of smaller rivals to DirecTV and AT&T U-verse, will be forced to pay these costs" in the greater Denver, Houston, Pittsburgh and Seattle markets. "While the FCC Chairman espouses ‘competition, competition, competition,'" if the FCC approves the transaction without protections for smaller video providers and their customers, consumers will see only "higher prices, higher prices, higher prices," Polka said. ACA Senior Vice President Ross Lieberman told us the group's sense of the commission's direction was "based on feedback we've received from the FCC in our discussions." ACA and member enTouch have lobbied FCC officials recently in support of attaching a program-access condition to approval of AT&T/DirecTV (see 1507020047). AT&T and FCC spokesmen had no comment.