Ladies & Gentlemen,
Last fall, you sent RFD-TV a letter of support in regards to Comcast dropping our channel in Colorado and New Mexico. Last month we took those e-mails to Washington DC and shared them with Congressmen, Senators, the FCC and the Department of Justice showing how important rural, independent programming was to your home. Thousands of e-mails. Boy, was it effective!!!
These same people are now reviewing the potential merger between Comcast Cable and Time Warner Cable, along with the pending merger of AT&T with DIRECTV. Together, if approved, these two mergers will control cable in over 54 million homes in all 50 states. This is a big deal, and will essentially determine RFD-TV and RURAL TV’s carriage for the next several years on all these cable and satellite systems. You can make a difference, and help influence this important decision.
We have the attention of Washington DC, and it sure appears that they want to do something to address the problem for rural, independent television channels like ours. Let me be clear - RFD-TV is NOT against either of these mergers, but we see this as an opportunity to not only get RFD-TV back on Comcast in Colorado and New Mexico, but on all their combined cable systems with the merger.
At this time, the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) wants to get comments from the public about RFD-TV and Comcast. Here is your chance to really make a difference. There is a short and simple process to register your comments directly to the FCC. Here’s how:
1. Click here to go directly to the FCC page for making comments.
2. Select Proceeding Number 14-57: Applications of Comcast Corporation and Time Warner Cable Inc. for Consent to Assign or Transfer Control of Licenses and Applications
3. Fill out the form with your name, address, and comments in the boxes provided. Note - you must put the right proceeding number on the first line - Our Proceeding is 14-57. Be sure to put 14-57 in that first line when asked for the Proceeding Number.
4. Click “Continue” at the end, where you will review your information and comments one more time.
5. Click “CONFIRM” and your comments are then delivered to the FCC.
I ask that you do this in the next few days, as there will be a limit to the time for public comment.
Note - Again,this is Proceeding Number 14-57 - Comcast Corporation and Time Warner Cable. Mr. David Cohen, VP at Comcast, explained the dropping of RFD-TV in Colorado/New Mexico in the House Judiciary Hearing on the merger by stating that Comcast is “primarily an urban-cluster cable company”. That did not sit well with the rural Congressmen on the panel. Mr. Cohen gave no explanation for adding Al Jazeera America two days after taking RFD-TV down on those same Colorado and New Mexico cable systems, or for carrying BBC World News as an independent channel on all their systems. I also testified at that same hearing, and asked the rhetorical question “Can’t there be room for at least one channel that serves the interests of rural America”?
I told you all that RFD-TV would never give up, and would get back on Comcast. Together, we can still get this done. I hope that you will take this opportunity to support RFD-TV one more time.
Please feel free to contact me direct with any questions at [email protected]
Again, please make your personal comments to the FCC today by clicking the FCC Banner at the top of this page.
Thank you for your continued support of RFD-TV and rural, independent programming.
Patrick Gottsch
Founder
Rural Media Group, Inc.