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<< Eating Your Own Garbage | Main | Has She No Shame? >> February 12, 2004Saving the MouseIt would be a bad thing if cable giant Comcast takes over Disney. I'm a greate believer that the best way to protect competition and diversity on television and on the Internet is to make sure that those who control the wires don't own any of the content being distributed. That way, they won't have an incentive to promote some content at the expense of other content. In the ideal, the law would require such unbiased distribution of content, much as the old Bell system as a common carrier was required to allow anyone to call anyone else on their system. But short of that regulation, which has not been imposed on the cable companies, preventing a merger of content and wires is of key importance. It's bad enough that Time-Warner has monopoly control of customers in their region-- at least the WB is too minor a content player to create that much bias in content distribution. But Disney/ABC has massive interests in television, both broadcast channels and cable channels, and giving them control of Comcast is a recipe for self-interested censorship and bias against content rivals in the areas where Comcast has monopoly control of customers. A bad idea-- the merger should be blocked. Posted by Nathan at February 12, 2004 08:25 AM Related posts:
Trackback PingsTrackBack URL for this entry: CommentsWe can be sure that the FCC will not intervene here. Michael Powell's definition of the public interest obligations of media companies is restricted to covering the female breast - an obsession he shares with the Attorney General. Posted by: Chuck at February 12, 2004 10:01 AM Terry MacAuliffe, steal Chuck's line! Posted by: David W. at February 12, 2004 02:48 PM anti-corporatism is a loosing issue and a stupid one. the fcc should be gutted. Posted by: zero the hero at February 13, 2004 10:02 AM losing issue is what i meant Posted by: zero at February 13, 2004 10:06 AM This looks like another Fox/Direct TV type deal. It should be stopped, but like that deal the current administration will probably let it go. I have spoken to people in the DoJ who admit they gave up on Microsoft when Bush entered office (giving them the easiest settlement that would not be overturned on appeal). This is just one more reason to support a democratic administration. If, of course, you would like a competitive marketplace. Too bad rebuplicans are generally for free markets (except when their friends need help) rather than competitive markets. Posted by: mrkmyr at February 13, 2004 09:28 PM The point about combining the wires with the content is very important, and people don't think about it. This was a big deal when Disney bought ABC; ABC immediately started giving preference to Disney content. Feh. Redintegro Iraq, Posted by: Vardibidian at February 16, 2004 10:09 AM Love can damage more than you can heal with drinking. Posted by: Spingarn Evan at June 30, 2004 01:48 PM Post a comment
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