ATVA Statement: Hold The Applause for News Corp Extortion Tactics

Government Must Bar Broadcasters from Holding Up Viewers for Ransom

“News Corp deserves no credit for ending its two week blackout of 3 million Cablevision households during the baseball playoffs and World Series and even bullying consumers by cutting off access to major websites.  The only way to guarantee broadcasters can’t hold up viewers for ransom as a negotiating tool is for Congress and the FCC to change outdated rules. Broadcaster blackouts are at their highest level in a decade and will continue without government action. Telling consumers to switch providers is no solution with broadcasters using the same extortion tactics over and over again.”

The American Television Alliance (ATVA) brings together an unprecedented coalition of consumer groups, cable, satellite, telephone companies and independent programmers to raise awareness about the risk viewers face as broadcasters increasingly threaten viewers with service disruptions.”