Media Access Project and Other Groups Express Concerns About Comcast-NBCU Merger
Posted: Thursday January 7, 2010
WASHINGTON — Media Access Project (MAP) today joined a coalition of twenty-five industry associations, labor organizations, and public interest groups in an open letter expressing concerns about the proposed merger between Comcast and NBC-Universal.
The letter describes the pernicious effects that the Comcast-NBCU deal would have in the form of reduced media competition, higher prices, and fewer options for viewers and content producers. It also calls upon the Obama administration to review the proposed merger carefully, fulfilling campaign promises to promote media diversity and protect against anticompetitive behavior.
Andrew Jay Schwartzman, MAP’s President and CEO, reiterated his concerns regarding the many harms that the merger could cause.
“The prospect of a Comcast-NBCU combination poses grave threats to national and local video markets – to traditional television platforms and emerging Internet video alternatives alike. The market power wielded by Comcast-NBCU would jeopardize local broadcast stations, independent programmers, cable and satellite companies, and online video distributors, among others. All of these entities would find themselves in the unenviable position of both competing with the merged entity and depending on it for distribution or content.
“These competitive impacts and other adverse implications of the merger ultimately would reduce diversity on the airwaves and online, decreasing Americans’ choices for programming and their outlets for expression.”
Matt Wood, MAP’s Associate Director, noted the breadth of the coalition and the continued need for regulatory scrutiny of the merger.
“The signatories of this letter represent small cable and telephone companies, satellite providers, defenders of civil rights and civil liberties, media justice activists, consumer watchdogs, family and children’s television advocates, communications industry workers, and writers and creators of video programming. These organizations may not agree on everything, but they all realize that Comcast’s acquisition of NBCU would be bad for competition, bad for consumers, and disastrous for an open and robust marketplace of ideas.
“Comcast’s statements and commitments made since the formal announcement of the merger provide no meaningful assurances or concessions. We hope and expect that the Federal Communications Commission and the Department of Justice will consider the proposed merger carefully, and that they will condition any approval of the deal on the adoption of appropriate remedies.”
Read the letter here.