Lynch and Kennedy say theyre worried about NBC Bostons signal strength

[pstokely]

Source: Boston Globe

According to TVB, a television industry trade association, about 4.1 percent of viewers in the Boston-Manchester, N.H. market watch television over the air.

The two Democrats also said that some in Congress had been concerned that Comcast’s controversial acquisition of NBC in 2011 would create a “potential negative impact on access to programming and cost for the consumer.”

Lynch and Kennedy sent their letter four days after US Senator Edward Markey sent one of his own to Roberts expressing similar concerns. Senator Elizabeth Warren also called for more information from Comcast in a tweet on Thursday.

Read more: https://www.bostonglobe.com/business/2016/12/10/lynch-and-kennedy-say-they-worried-about-nbc-boston-signal-strength/EIVTtpqIkGHgaj9sMx9KyI/story.html

[Wellstone ruled]

1. Hey folks,you were warned as to what

the likely outcome would be.

[JDC]

2. They have had a fued with Direct all year

They blacked out the Olympics and the British Open this year. Just blackscreen.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

3. I'm I reading that right?

Only 4 percent of viewers in that very large viewing area watch TV over the air?

I did not think cable/satellite penetration was quite that deep.

While all I have are anecdotes, I do know more and more people who've cut the cable/satellite cord and have gone back to over the air, because they find they can get as many channels as they want.

Me, I don't watch television in any of those ways. I do get as much as I want over the internet. I suspect more and more people are also taking this route.

[Kilgore]

4. I'm in the Portland Oregon TV market and watch zero

Over the air programming. We do 100% streaming & satellite. Can't remember the last time we watched OTA TV.

[bucolic_frolic]

5. I have no television

Cancelled cable, @$90 per month, in 2012. Never bothered with a
converter for the HDTV signal. I catch what I can on the internet.

No commercials for 4 years! More time to do what I want.

Laptop takes double duty and depreciation, but that's fairly cheap.

[mwooldri]

6. And therein lies the problem of the US broadcast system.

The commercial networks have no obligation to provide a full signal for every part of the USA free to air. WHDH will still be around come Jan 1st, but it won't have NBC network programming. Some people who rely on terrestrial broadcasts to receive their stations may not have access to the station that will air NBC programming in Boston.

It's a bit of a problem for Comcasts lawyers to solve. I suppose some enterprising lawyer could represent a bunch of affected viewers on a no win no fee basis and get free basic cable for people who lost broadcast access to the Boston NBC affiliate.... Comcast is the big cable operator in the area and one condition that Comcast agreed to when buying NBC was to not strip existing affiliations and take NBC Cable-only.

It's not a problem in the UK where the networks have from day one owned the licence to broadcast, and the licenses have stipulated a certain amount of population coverage. However I strongly believe the US system results in a better local TV news service, even if this leads to frequent squabbles between terrestrial broadcast stations, cable networks and programming providers like CBS, NBC, ABC, etc. The big 4 would love to own and operate their own network stations in the biggest markets, and are always trying to do this despite station ownership limits.

We don't have a vibrant free to air satellite system like Europe. Many apartment complexes are effectively cable only and if rabbit-ear reception sucks then cable is the only way to get TV. While the USA was early to digital and HDTV, broadcasters didn't catch on to the idea that the transition to digital could have created a new alternative to cable or satellite. I think it was a missed opportunity - Freeview USA could have been a great thing.