CWA Urges Congress to Enact Consumer Choice in Cable Industry     7/14/2005

Washington, DC – Concerned Women for America (CWA) released a letter signed by 24 other national and state-based organizations to Senate and House leaders, calling on them to enact legislation that would require cable monopolies to offer “a la carte” pricing to consumers.

In a letter addressed to Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska), Chairman of the Senate Commerce Committee, and Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), Chairman of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, the organizations urge Congress to get involved in changing the way the cable industry offers its programming.

"The industry is touting its new $250 million campaign to educate consumers about rating systems and the v-chip,” said Lanier Swann, CWA’s director of government relations. “This shows that the cable industry is missing the point. We’ve had a parental blocking system since the invention of the TV – it’s called the ‘off’ switch. What offends us is that because cable operators essentially function as a monopoly in the communities they serve, they can get away with forcing consumers to subsidize programming that is obscene, violent and immoral. We as consumers should only have to pay for the channels that we want in our home, not the filth that they force us to buy in their current bundles.”

In the letter, the groups argue that Congress must act now:

Why must Congress act? Very simply, it is because the cable industry refuses to even consider programming options that would allow the consumer to pay for what they want, not for what the industry wants. Recently the head of the National Cable Television Association was asked if the industry would consider offering consumers ‘family friendly’ program packages to subscribers. His answer was short but speaks volumes about the attitude of his member companies: “The answer is no.” (National Journal Technology Daily, May 3, 2005)

“This effort is only the tip of the iceberg,” said Swann. “As Sen. Stevens and Rep. Barton collect information for the reworking of Telecom Act legislation expected later this year, we will continue to make sure that consumers’ voices are heard. If the cable monopolies won’t listen to the legitimate concerns of consumers, then maybe Congress will.”

For Information Contact:
Demi Bardsley
(202) 488-7000, ext. 1020
media.cwfa.org

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