PolicyBlog

As readers of this blog know, Cablevision has refused to make the MSG channels that it owns available in HD to Verizon.  That's why we haven’t provided the HD versions of the MSG regional sports programming to our customers in New York and New Jersey.  Now we’re asking the Federal Communications Commission for a ruling – within five months – that could change all that.

In something called a Program Access Complaint filed yesterday, we ask the FCC to compel Cablevision to provide this programming to Verizon FiOS TV.  It was only after we filed a similar complaint in 2006 that Cablevision finally agreed to sell its sports networks in standard definition to Verizon.

In our current complaint, we told the FCC that Cablevision has “continually denied Verizon access to the high definition versions of its regional programming on any terms."  We note that Cablevision provides this same programming to other cable operators – Comcast and Time Warner. 

Since the MSG Network carries the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils and Buffalo Sabres, this programming is “must have” programming for many sports fans in the region.  Moreover, increasingly customers expect that this unique programming be offered in HD.  It seems pretty clear that Cablevision is withholding this programming in hopes of thwarting competition from FiOS.

If there was any doubt about that, we said in our filing, Cablevision has advertised that it is the only HD source for four of the nine professional sports teams in the New York City metro area.

Since Cablevision won’t voluntarily provide this programming, consumers in the New York area don’t have the choice they should have for subscription TV, and it doesn’t look like they will until the federal regulators force Cablevision to do the right thing.

We’ll keep you posted.