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By Staff -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/21/2004 7:00:00 PM
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Engel Pans Powell Plan FTC Settles Idol Scam |
Engel Pans Powell Plan
Washington—New York Democrat Eliot Engel is worried about the Powell Plan to redefine DTV penetration.
In a letter to FCC Chairman Michael Powell last week, Engel said he is concerned by Powell's proposal to speed the takeback of analog spectrum by counting cable customers receiving a digital signal converted to analog toward the 85% of households threshold.
He thinks it to will disadvantage the poor among the remaining 15%. "I am concerned that such a proposal would require the poorest Americans to pay 'aficionado prices' for the new TVs or set-tops," he wrote.
In addition, he said, the proposal "will create a disincentive for the American consumer to purchase digital televisions." That would discourage manufacturers from producing and marketing the products, he added.
Powell has proposed that the government subsidize those set-tops, but, given the budget crunch, that part of the plan could be DOA.
FTC Settles Idol Scam
Washington—A Utah-based telemarketing company has agreed to pay $40,000 to settle an FTC complaint that it scammed callers to American Idol in its first two seasons.
Telemarketing Inc. bought copycat numbers similar to that of American Idol and deceived about 25,000 misdialers into paying $2-$3 per call. What they got for their money was a recitation of the correct number they were trying to dial in the first place.
While greed drove the scam, it also helped nail the scammers. In the 2002 season, the company charged $1.99 per call. In season two, the price was upped to $2.97. The FTC's pay-per-call rule says that any provider charging more than $2 per call must disclose certain relevant information, which the company didn't.
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