NCTA and Disney Cites Flaws in FCC Study on A La Carte Programming

The National Cable & Telecommunications Association (NCTA) and The Walt Disney Company released new studies that find significant flaws in the FCC Media Bureau's Further Report On the Packaging and Sale of Video Programming Services To the Public (issued February 9, 2006).



The studies, separately commissioned by NCTA and Disney, found that the assumptions, analysis and conclusions in the FCC's Further Report are incorrect, unsubstantiated and severely at odds with the comprehensive analysis in the first FCC study which reached conclusions similar to those of other government, independent and industry reports. An additional study commissioned by Viacom preliminarily supports the same conclusions and will be released at a later date.



"The FCC report is fundamentally flawed," said Disney Media Networks co-chairman George Bodenheimer, also president, ESPN, Inc. and ABC Sports. "The overwhelming body of evidence clearly shows that consumers will pay more and get less with a la carte. Ripping up cable's packaging is not pro consumer, nor is losing the diversity that has been built with today's model."http://www.ncta.comhttp://www.media.espn.com/MediaZone/PressKits/NCTA/main.htm