Hey! Where'd my MSNBC go?

Democrats in Oregon got a rude awakening this week when they discovered that Comcast had yanked MSNBC from their cable systems.  And they're not alone; the home of Keith Olbermann has been vanishing off basic cable grids across the land.

"Please, oh please, tell me that this isn't Comcast turning out the lights on the only cable news channel that even bothers to air one progressive voice," wrote this blogger.

Actually, the story is not quite so dire or sinister (I think). But you're still not going to like it.

***

I spoke a couple of weeks ago with Comcast spokesman Mark Apple. I was calling to ask him why the Hallmark Channel had suddenly been moved off the basic cable grid in the half of Kansas City's metro area that Comcast serves. And why, when I did a little googling, I found Comcast subscribers in Colorado and Connecticut were suddenly without MSNBC.

"It’s a bandwidth management move," Apple told me. "If we can free up space on the analog tier, we will have more room for digital services like video on demand and HDTV."

OK, let's break that down a little. It's been a few years since I wrote about this but I think I've got my facts straight. In the 1990s most cable companies upgraded their systems so that they were all-fiber optic (except for the last few hundred feet of coaxial cable going into your house). This allowed them to push much more bandwidth to the house -- and much of that bandwidth was now digital, which meant it could be compressed.

Compression is what made the consumer satellite boom possible. DirecTV and Dish were able to squeeze hundreds of channels into the bandwidth that could, at best, handle only a few dozen analog TV channels. (All of this is nicely detailed in Joel Brinkley's book Defining Vision, which is mostly about the digital TV "revolution" -- well, he wrote it in 1996 -- but offers good lay explanations of a lot of technical stuff that would otherwise make my head spin.)

You can't squeeze analog. You must move it to digital before you can compress it. Once you do, though, you almost get back an entire channel. Especially with a channel like MSNBC that features a lot of talking heads. In digital compression, the compressor knows how to delete bits of data the viewer won't usually notice, greatly reducing the size of the video. With sports, the compression isn't as great because the picture is always changing. Not so news television, which means Comcast may be getting compression ratios as high as 10:1 out of Keith Olbermann. Yes, I'm talking about a newscaster like he's an internal combustion engine, which I guess some people would argue he is.

And what do you do with all that newfound bandwidth? Right now, Comcast is trying to keep up with all the high-definition cable offerings being launched. (HD is a bandwidth hog.) Just in the past quarter it's put HGTV HD, Food HD and TBS HD on the KC system — that's right, Time Warner baseball fans, your friends in eastern Jackson County got the playoffs in hi-def and you didn't.  "HD launches will remain a priority throughout 2008," said Apple.

Right up there on the to-do list is adding more video-on-demand channels, because VOD is one thing cable does really well that satellite doesn't do well at all (because you have to be able to interact with a server, which is hard to do when using a relay that's floating 22,000 miles above the Earth).

OK, but why MSNBC? And why, for that matter, Hallmark Channel, one of the 10 most-watched cable networks in all the land? In short, because they can.

"It comes down to our contracts with the various programmers," Comcast's Apple told me. "In some cases they stipulate that we carry their channel on an analog basic tier but with Hallmark Channel there was no such (clause)." That's no surprise; as its CEO Henry Schleiff has been telling reporters ever since he took over late last year, Hallmark Channel is disrespected because it's not owned by a major cable company. As an indie, it has been dropped despite high ratings, paid less money per subscriber than even C-SPAN despite high ratings, and now, banished to a tier many subscribers still don't get ... again, despite high ratings. No wonder Schleiff is trying to sell Hallmark Channel to a major.

Apple said Comcast customers are being offered two digital set-top boxes at no cost for 12 months, which is a pretty standard come-on.

As for the idea that MSNBC was being banished in some Comcast areas for political reasons, Apple said that was nonsense, adding, "I would point out that Fox’s ratings have exceeded MSNBC’s for some time now." (Not a great defense, given that Hallmark was also getting the boot.)

So the question really is -- why did NBC Universal leave MSNBC exposed?  NBC executives typically negotiate cable carriage on behalf of affiliates, and they're supposed to make sure the cable company carries all their channels with the most favorable placements possible. MSNBC has been relegated to the level of Sleuth and Chiller, two NBCU digital offerings that mostly act as rerun machines.

Odd, isn't it, that NBC Universal can figure out how to embed a light-bulb contract into its negotiations for TV rights with the NFL, but it can't figure out how to keep its 24-hour news channel from going dark in hundreds of thousands of homes served by one of the free world's largest cable companies?

I'd put this one at GE's doorstep, not Comcast's.

Comments

[dawson in oregon]

Not that I'm a conspiracy sort, but I would like to point out that the first day without MSNBC happened to also be the day that they were telecasting the Democratic candidate debate. A little more timely than Hallmark.

[Aaron]

Maybe in your neck of the woods -- but follow the links up the page and you'll see others lost their MSN several months ago.

[Greg]

Why cut MSNBC to digital? Censorship? Yes I realize that in some distant future that analog TV broadcasts will go away but why remove MSNBC news analysis which gives varied viewpoints on what is going on east of the Mississippi River. Gone from Concast in Oregon is MSNBC's Countdown. What are us poor people (sorry) lower income people able to aford on the lower level of Comcast listings?
Guess we will just turn off Comcast and go back to digital(HD) broadcast from PBS ABC NBC CBS and FOX that are now available in our area for "free".

[Mark Roberts]

What a naive article. Comcast is clearly pursuing an agenda to push
subscribers into higher-priced digital tiers. I have little sympathy to spare
for cable channels but, in this case, Comcast is throwing its weight around by
picking off channels that it sees as vulnerable.

[DG]

Hey, you guys still have CNN. I'd say they give MSNBC a run for their money when it comes to liberal ideology and views. As for as I'm concerned, good riddance to MSNBC.

[cgeye]

OK, so it's all about squeezing bandwidth.

Why did C-SPAN 2 go away? The TV Guide channel, which would be useful for all the other changes they're making with switching channels? If it's all about the benjamins, why in hell is CNBC still on? They still program crap, and kept their channel.

And locking subscribers into a digital cable box just when next year brings a mess of HDTV changes, is suspicious. They'd probably say those boxes won't work once the conversion hits.

[Matt Galvin]

CSPN2 106 intill Fox Business Channel goes their and then to 104
100 TV Guide Channel
103 would be for Bloomberg News.
276 NHL Network
Probley other channels moving or being added to.
Maybe Aaron can find out for us.

[Matt Galvin]

MSNBC here still on 39 at the Moment.

Ratings wise, MSNBC has always been the ugly stepchild to the other 2 "News Networks"....I personally don't need 3 Opinion networks...

[Fred Cantu]

NBC paid for prime channel space in NYC. Maybe they wouldn't pay in Kansas City.

http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6475668.html

The cable companies are looking for revenue streams from everyone.

[Jondy Britton]

At least Comcast is trying to compete with DirecTV and Dish Networks HD lineup. I'd like to hear what Time Warner's HD plans are in KC.

[Aaron]

It's nice to see Mark Roberts thinks my article is "naive" and then repeats the same conclusion I reached. I mean, you can't buy that kind of affirmation apart from therapy. Next time, Mark, read all the boldface parts.

[Matt Galvin]

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=234120&page=208 somebody said 7 more HD channels coming to Comcast before the end of the year
The first 4 would be CNN,History Channel,USA and MYKSMOTV then either Fox Business Network, Team,Game,Discovery's and NHl Network HD.
The last non Hd channels they added other then Comcast Central and On Demand Link Channels ESPN Deportes and 2 other Spanish Channels and before that Fox Realty Channel,CSPN3 and Outdoors Channels.
Don't forget MTV Hits will be renamed here sometime to URGETV.
Others channels will be moved to Digital side and the only ones left on Analog will be Local Channels.
Also we might be getting a RTN Affliate,ACCU Weather Channel,ABC News Now,24/7 L0cal News Channel and so on.
IFC,Fuse,SHOPNBC,FITTV and so oncould also be added.
Also 961-News isn't working at the moment.

[Bloque]

Call Comcast and complain!

[Matt Galvin]

What should we coplain about?
Starz On Demand coming soon to TWCKC.

[Mark Roberts]

I re-read the article. I just don't see how Aaron can say that he reached the same conclusion as I did when he wrote, "I'd put this one at GE's doorstep, not Comcast's." Whether GE left a contractual opening isn't the issue; the issue is Comcast's motivation. To make it clear, I doubt there is a political motivation on Comcast's part. I think it's basic greed. Aaron's station that "HD is a bandwidth hog" begs the question, compared to what? Compared to analog, it's about the same (6 megaHertz if you must know). It is true that compressing the stuffing out of a standard signal does save bandwidth. But the loss of quality is quite perceptible to many people (just as it is with satellite TV). There are limits. Again, though, I think the real motivation is for Comcast to push digital tiers onto its customers to get more money from those customers. And that's where I was disappointed in the story - it didn't answer the question of what *Comcast* gets out of it. It's obvious but I think it should have been stated.

[Tyler T.]

Comcast has yanked MSNBC here in Pittsburgh as well, along with EWTN, CSPAN 2, Hallmark, CourtTV, and TV Guide - all to the digital tier. What idiots.

[morpheusX]

Its not conspiracy, I can tell you that cable and satellite companies consider HD a priority and cable needs that space it currently gives analog to compete. The sale of HDTV's are finally starting to really pick up and the Sat and Cable companies know that these customers spend money to get content. My prediction is that within 3 years the only channels you will still be able to receive with out having a set top box will be your local over the air channels.

[Roger Moore]

Welcome to the Comcast Runaround. On Friday, ll/02/07, I tele-talked with 3 different Comcast reps--and got 3 different stories about the WHY of the MSNBC move and not CNN/FOX/etc.... Of course, it's a conspiracy! The same people have Judge Crater and Dick Tracy hidden away in Rupert Mudock's basement. Too effin' bad there is no Hell in which to fry the lot of them!... PS: Has anybody heard directly from Universal/NBC (or whatever it's called nowadaze)?

[Matt Galvin]

Comcast will be adding the BTN in January and "will have many features".
Why are people posting here who live some where else other then Olathe/MO because this story is mostly about Comcast here in Olathe/MO?

[Aaron]

Because, Matt, TV Barn gets read all across North America. Because it's the Internet. Because they can.