Submission + - Mediacom Loses SBG Local TV Stations
dlapine writes: "As of midnight, 1.5 million subscribers to Mediacom cable tv will lose access to 24 local TV stations owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group, due to ongoing dispute between the cable company and the station operator over access fees. SBG stations no longer available through Mediacom include NBC, CBS, FOX, ABC, CW & MNT. The stations affected all offer free broadcast services, and will continue to do so- it's just that the SBG has denied Mediacom, and only Mediacom, the continued use of their channels for cable delivery.
This is potentially interesting to us slashdotter's, beyond the obvious, "I see can't Deperate Housewives" ranting and "Honey, where'd I put the rabbit ears?" search. This is the first time that a large cable network will be denied use of broadcast stations from a large supplier for monetary reasons. What does this imply for Internet TV? There's also the other issue that SBG can be considered to have a conservative agenda, from it's current and past actions. Does the loss of 1.5 million viewers on a conservative conglomerate imply that the media is once again liberal?"
This is potentially interesting to us slashdotter's, beyond the obvious, "I see can't Deperate Housewives" ranting and "Honey, where'd I put the rabbit ears?" search. This is the first time that a large cable network will be denied use of broadcast stations from a large supplier for monetary reasons. What does this imply for Internet TV? There's also the other issue that SBG can be considered to have a conservative agenda, from it's current and past actions. Does the loss of 1.5 million viewers on a conservative conglomerate imply that the media is once again liberal?"
