On Tue, 21 May 2013 11:52:10 -0700, Jeff Liebermann
wrote:



You can see it happening...all the interesting and entertaining
programming is being sequestered to the cable=only stations. Then,
they'll plead that nobody watches OTA.

Nope. CATV has the "Must Carry" rule:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Must-carry
The result of requiring CATV to carry local OTA broadcast TV signals
is causing an odd problem in demographics. Many OTA stations find
that the bulk of their viewing audience is watching via CATV and not
via OTA. In some cases, the stations are so isolated, that the OTA
viewers could be counted on both hands. Other stations merely recycle
the same syndicated programming that can be watched on other channels,
resulting in massive duplication. So, why are they doing this?
Because the Must Carry rule has dramatically increased the number of
viewers, which keeps the stations afloat with advertising revenue. The
FCC could easily mandate that all OTA broadcast station should get a
fiber feed to the local CATV or DBS feed point, turn off the
transmitter, and only those few watching OTA TV will notice. It's
been discussed, but the FCC wants to hold onto the OTA broadcast
license revenue, making such a transition unlikely.

Acronym decoder:
OTA = Over the air
CATV = Cable Television
DBS = Direct Broadcast Satellite (Sirius-XM
, DefecTV).
FCC = Federal Communications Commish.
TV = Television

?-)