Bright House customers could lose CBS

[cablewithaview]

WKMG Local 6 aired news reports, commercials and an editorial warning Bright House Networks customers could lose the CBS television lineup, if the cable company doesn't pay the Orlando station for its signal.

WKMG reported Bright House captures the broadcast signal for free and sends it to customers. Then, Bright House charges a minimum of $52 a month for a basic cable package, WKMG said. By contrast, WKMG general manager Henry Maldonado said Bright House pays a fee to include cable channels ESPN, Lifetime, Spike-TV and AMC. So why not Local 6?

"We think it's fair and it's time that we were treated like any other station," Maldonado said in one Local 6 report.

On average, Maldonado said 200,000 Bright House customers view WKMG weekly. "The closest to that is TNT with about 40,000 people," Maldonado said.

Bright House would not provide statistics on its number of subscribers.

However, Bright House spokeswoman Sara Brady said the cable company does not pay other local network affiliates, which include ABC's WFTV Channel 9, NBC's WESH Channel 2 and Fox's WOFL Channel 35.

"They are not paid," Brady said. "We are not paying them."

Maldonado wouldn't say whether his station was setting a precedent among local stations campaigning for a piece of cable dollars, "but I can tell you that every local station in the country has thought of this or has been agonizing about this," he said. "We are certainly the most interesting market so far by stepping up to the plate."

Meanwhile, WESH Channel 2's news director Barbara Maushard said she could not comment on the issue Monday. WFTV Channel 9 news director Bob Jordan did not immediately return phone calls.

Brady was tight-lipped regarding details of Monday's talks between Bright House and Local 6.

"We are not going to negotiate in public," she said. "But I will say the negotiations have been very positive and public and we want that to continue."

A few readers at floridatoday.com Serving Brevard County and Florida's Space Coast wondered whether Bright House would have the option to air other other CBS affiliates instead. "That's a very good question, but right now we're not intending for WMKG programming to stop," Brady said. "I can tell you that we never will turn off any broadcaster."

But it would stop if Local 6 and Bright House fail to come to an agreement, Maldonado said. Local 6's retransmission contract expired in December. The station has given Bright House extensions through March.

"We are discussing this with the public now because I don't want to blindside people the week before it ends," Maldonado said. "Once we are all exhausted from being afraid, we can get to the point that we look at how important we are to the viewer."

Maldonado said he received e-mails from viewers "intimidated by the threat that their rates might go up," he said. "I doubt that will happen. For one thing, rates just recently went up and secondly, when you buy a package (of cable channels) you are already paying for the local stations. It wouldn't be sane or credible that they could raise your rates because they are paying us."

Maldonado said his grievances do not extend to other providers, such as satellite companies. "We have multiple suppliers who have been fair to us and have been paying us for years," he said.


Bright House customers could lose CBS | floridatoday.com | Serving Brevard County and Florida’s Space Coast