Tennis Channel Ruling Could Open Door for Future Challenges to Comcast

By Christopher Peleo-Lazar  //  December 22, 2011 | 7:29 a.m.

The Tennis Channel won a significant victory against Comcast on Wednesday, becoming the first network to win a ruling against the cable provider over its position in the lineup relative to other channels that provide similar content. The ruling could have a significant impact on future conflicts between Comcast and other independent networks.

Federal Communications Commission administrative law judge Richard Sippel ruled that Comcast must move the Tennis Channel from the premium sports tier to the more broadly distributed sports tier, where the Comcast-owned Golf Channel and Versus are located. Sippel found Comcast had "unreasonable restraints on the ability [for the Tennis Channel] to compete fairly." Comcast Vice President Sena Fitzmaurice told Hotline On Call that they were seeking a stay on the ruling for 50 days.

Other prominent networks have sparred with Comcast over channel positioning. Bloomberg TV, for example, has fought with Comcast over the positioning of its network in the cable listings lineup. In the Washington, D.C. market, CNN Headline News, CNN, FNC, MSNBC and CNBC occupy channels 35-39 while Bloomberg TV is channel 103. The concern raised by the Tennis Channel and Bloomberg was cited by critics when NBC Universal and Comcast merged earlier this year. Comcast was positioned to promote the networks it owned over the interests of the ones it did not, the argument went.

The Tennis Channel's victory gives a "glimmer of hope," as media watchdog group Free Press Policy Counsel Corie Wright put it, to other networks who might come into conflict with Comcast.

But Fitzmaurice argued that the Tennis Channel's case and Bloomberg TV's "are totally different." Bloomberg TV is in a basic package where Tennis Channel was in an extra paid tier, she argued, adding that Bloomberg TV is a relatively new channel compared to the other news networks and Bloomberg TV is stationed next to C-SPAN channels which is an important spot for D.C. markets. Nonetheless, the Tennis Channel ruling could spur other networks to challenge Comcast along similar lines. In 2012, several independent networks will be renegotiating their carriage deals, meaning several new cases could be raised. Tennis Channel's complaint differs from Bloomberg TV's, as Bloomberg is on the same tier as the other networks, just in a different location. In the Tennis Channel ruling, Sippel wrote "the requirement of non-discriminatory treatment also requires Comcast Cable to provide Tennis Channel with equitable treatment as to channel placement." The possibility of applying the principle to Bloomberg TV as well as other networks considering action is not outside the realm of possibility. "Yesterday's decision in the Tennis Channel case is a victory for independent programmers and further proof that Comcast is abusing its dominant position. FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski was correct to condition approval of the merger on the requirement that independent channels like Bloomberg TV be included within news neighborhoods," Bloomberg Government Affairs Chief Greg Babyak told Hotline On Call. "We are confident the FCC will move promptly to enforce its own order."

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