# InDemand In Talks with DirecTV, DISH



## Nick (Apr 23, 2002)

InDemand, cable's pay-per-view programming provider, said it
has initiated settlement discussions with DirecTV and EchoStar, 
and is hoping to reach an agreement concerning the satellite TV 
companies' complaints about access to its high-def programming 
slate.

Both DBS services have been vocal at the Federal Communications 
Commission and elsewhere concerning access to In Demand's INHD 
product. InDemand disclosed in a FCC filing last week that it's holding 
discussions with DirecTV and EchoStar concerning its high-def content.

But that didn't stop InDemand from defending its practices for 
distributing INHD.

The company said its INHD rate card is "a non-discriminatory,
technology-neutral approach that is fully consistent with the
commission's program access rules."

In Demand told the FCC the price offered to DirecTV and
EchoStar for INHD services "is precisely the same price" it
has offered all distributors. The company also said it has
negotiated carriage deals based on that price with numerous
cable operators, and not just its owners, which includes the
nation's largest cable operator, Comcast.

The company added in its FCC filing, "The simple fact remains
that the INHD rate card rewards higher HD penetration by its
distributors by giving them lower effective rates. In fact, the 
rate card allows every MVPD (multichannel video program
distributor) to achieve the same effective rate as any other
competing MVPD simply by matching the competing MVPD's HD
penetration rate."

www.SkyReport.com - used with permission


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## David_Levin (Apr 22, 2002)

So it that the trick?

Does cable have a higer penetration then Cable? Is the rate a % or raw numbers? Must be a %.


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## RAD (Aug 5, 2002)

I thought the big issue was concerning digital vs. analog subscribers. The rates were based on the number of digital subscribers, which cable has less of while everyone on DBS is counted as digital. That's what D* and E* were ticked off about, they wanted to count only HD subscribers, not all digital enabled.


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