New Contributor

Consumer Choice in Online Video Act - Senate bill S.1680

I have asked Cox to remove access restrictions from my INTERNET ONLY account. You see, Cox SELECTIVELY blocks access to online video streaming services and limits access in order to "encourage" the purchase of their traditional cable TV offering. Senate bill 1680 identifies this and other actions as an unfair business practice and would outlaw this and similar practices.

https://www.congress.gov/bill/113th-congress/senate-bill/1680

The core of the bill addresses the following:

Consumer Choice in Online Video Act - Amends the Communications Act of 1934 to direct the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to promulgate regulations requiring Internet service providers (ISPs) to provide plain language disclosures to assist consumers in making informed decisions about the purchase of Internet service, including: (1) network management practices that limit service speeds or prioritize content, (2) usage-based billing terms, and (3) information regarding different tiers of service.

Directs ISPs offering usage-based billing to establish an appeals process for consumers to challenge an ISP's determination of a consumer's data usage.

Requires the FCC to extend its truth-in-billing rules to ISPs.

Prohibits ISPs, multichannel video programming distributors (MVPDs), online video distributors (OVDs), and video programming vendors (VPVs), in various circumstances and in their relationships with one another, from engaging in unfair methods of competition, or unfair or deceptive acts or practices, that hinder significantly or prevent an OVD from providing video programming to consumers.

Prohibits MVPDs or OVDs from entering agreements (for periods longer than 30 days) that limit or prohibit a VPV from making its video content available to consumers for free over the Internet.

Permits VPVs to establish different prices, terms, and conditions that: (1) relate to substantial, real, and legitimate business concerns; and (2) are not used in an anticompetitive manner.

Prohibits broadcast television licensees or television networks from: (1) refusing to negotiate with OVDs for the carriage of television content, or (2) restricting an OVD's ability to make such content available to subscribers on any platform or device.

Prohibits broadcast television licensees from providing an over-the-air signal that differs from a retransmission of that signal provided to a MVPD or an OVD, subject to exceptions for certain commercial advertisements embedded in such signal when the variation is not used to increase overall advertising time.

16 Replies

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Bruce
Honored Contributor III
Which sites does Cox block?
Health_Edge
Valued Contributor III
Do you also think you should get HBO Go and WatchESPN without having a video subscription? How about Netflix? Cox isn't blocking the traffic. The website are blocking you because you didn't pay Cox, and Cox didn't pay them. Heck, why not make everything free. That will be REALLY good for consumers.
pkfrye
New Contributor
Bruce, they block the latest episodes on most sites, FoxNow.com is a good example. You get an error code back that states that your TV package does not allow you access to this site because there is a flag in the Cox credentials system that identifies internet only customers. You can actually unlock the episode on the Fox site using internet only account settings and password, then watch Cox block it and send the "error" message. The same is true on other providers like Watch ESPN. It's "selective" content access designed to "offer incentive" to purchase the cable TV service.
pkfrye
New Contributor
Actually HealthEdge, I'm not talking about subscription services. I was speaking specifically about traditional over the air broadcasters. And I'm sorry but you are misinformed. Cox is blocking the access from FoxNow.com because, as I stated twice before, FoxNow.com has confirmed that to me, in writing. But now that you mention HBO, the good news is they are going to start offering their service on their own systems without requiring purchase of a specific cable provider. Honestly I'd love nothing better than being able to subscribe or purchase OnDemand only the shows I want to see, when I want to see them without a monthly bill from a cable company that constantly raises rates on loyal, long term customers to lure new customers with lower fees.

http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/10/15/hbo-online-streaming-service/
pkfrye
New Contributor
Interesting that you followed me from a different forum Health Edge. Are you a Cox employee?
Health_Edge
Valued Contributor III
pkfrye said:
, as I stated twice before, FoxNow.com has confirmed that to me, in writing.

Then post that data. How are they blocking it? DNS? QoS? How is Cox blocking traffic to FoxNow.com. Unless you can show some technical data that shows how the HTTP request is being blocked, I don't buy your argument. Your also fighting against the current, since this has been the norm for a long time with multiple cable companies.
pkfrye
New Contributor
Happy to show you and provide the text of a chat transcript with Cox customer service also confirming same, right after you answer my question. Are you a Cox employee or are you perhaps related to a Cox employee?
Domino
Valued Contributor III
pkfrye said:

Interesting that you followed me from a different forum Health Edge. Are you a Cox employee?

Bzzzt! Playing the "are you a Cox employee" card. Credibility meter - 0....\....10.
Health_Edge
Valued Contributor III
All you have to do is look at my profile, and the attached posts, to answer that question. I have taken many stances against certain Cox policy, and if anything, I am probably a thorn in their side.
Bruce
Honored Contributor III
FoxNow is restricting your access...not Cox. However, by restricting your access, I'm sure Fox and certain providers are agreeing to "encourage" you to pay for a cable or satellite subscription. That’s just business.

FoxNow is a "catch-up" service. It's a catch-up service that follows the usual rule of restricting access to online content unless viewers also subscribe to a participating cable or satellite service. The participating providers are AT&T U-verse, Cablevision Optimum TV, Comcast Xfinity TV, Cox, DirecTV, Dish Network, RCN, Suddenlink, Verizon FiOS and Wide Open West.

If you're a subscriber, you have access to more content, much of which is available the day after its original broadcast.

If you're not a subscriber...there will be an 8-day delay, limitations on what you can watch as well as no guarantee you can watch on all platforms, such as iOS, Roku, Samsung Smart Hub, etc.

If you don't have a cable or satellite subscription, Fox will flag you. You can still watch stuff on FoxNow, just not their latest and greatest shows.

There is a growing generation of young people not bothering with cable or satellite because it's not a value. They're right. It's a complete ripoff. They're using HD antennas, catch-up services and à la carte subscriptions. They don't care about the latest and greatest and when the couch potatoes eventually die off, the marketplace will cater to them. That will be the new business. When it becomes the new business, the service providers will try to recoup lost subscriptions with throttling, data caps and whatever else they can dream up.