Time Warner Cable has called off its decision to drop the New England Cable Network from its western New England programming.
“I think it was important for them to hear how concerned we were,” said Markey.
State representativeSmitty Pignatelliof Lenox was one of the local lawmakers who asked the Washington delegation, specifically Senator Edward Markey, to get involved.
“We’ve been working very closely with them over the last couple of weeks,” Pignatelli said. “I think they’ve been a key player in this whole discussion with Time Warner and NECN. The good news today is that Time Warner has told them that there will be no interruption of service on December 31 which was the deadline we were all concerned about. So it’s great news all the way around for all of the folks in the Berkshires who have Time Warner Cable.”
In an email to WAMC, Time Warner spokesman Scott Pryzwansky wrote, “After further discussion, we’re pleased to announce continued carriage of NECN for our customers in New England. Time Warner Cable customers who currently have access to NECN will continue to have access after January 1, 2014; there will be no disruption in service. NECN has now agreed to work with our leadership at Time Warner Cable News to improve the quality of their local programming for our customers.”
The cable network serves more than 350,000 customers in New England and Maine. Pignatelli says the number of people who would have lost the region’s main 24-hour television news network played a role in the cable company reversing its decision.
“We knew full well that the real ultimate responsibility was going to fall onto our federal delegation, and I think Senator Markey in particular, who actually wrote the laws back in the mid-1990s when he was in the House of Representatives,” said the democrat. “I think he was the key guy. To get him on board with this and understanding what the Berkshires needed. I think the fact that it was impacting folks in New Hampshire as well as the entire state of Maine added to the federal responsibility. I think senators and representatives from those other states also stepped forward in contacting Time Warner. So I think it was good a New England effort to save New England Cable Network.”
NECN Senior Vice President and General Manager Mike St. Peter tells WAMC in an email, quote “We appreciate that the residents of Maine and New England view NECN as a critical service. We are thrilled Time Warner heard their customers’ voices and will continue to carry NECN. We remain committed to quality programming and our partnership with Time Warner.”
Before receiving the letter from the commonwealth’s federal delegation, Time Warner released a statement saying the company would keep an open line of communication, but had no plans to add the channel back to its lineup.
The statement continued, “We’re always evaluating the value of the programming on our lineup, and we occasionally add or drop channels. We do not believe NECN represents a good value for all of our New England customers. Value includes several factors, including cost, viewership and unique content.” Time Warner already blacks out two Springfield stations and Boston’s ABC affiliate in the Berkshires for much of the day due to competition with Albany stations. UnderFCC rules, Berkshire County is considered part of the Albany TV market.
Under FCC rules, Berkshire County is part of the Albany TV Market. Markey, a democrat, who has served on the Telecommunications Committee for 37 years, says the decision maintains a valuable news link for the region.
“We are going to have to continue to have this discussion, this debate, over the issue,” Markey said. “But, ultimately the Berkshires are part of Massachusetts.”
