Cablevision Breaks Ranks on Pricing

As the debate on so-called a la carte pricing reverberates through the cable industry, one hard-charging player is taking a contrarian approach.

Breaking with the rest of the industry, Cablevision (CVC Quote) Chairman Charles Dolan Thursday released a statement in support of Federal Communication Commission Chairman Kevin Martin's pick-the-channels-you-like push.

"Cablevision agrees with FCC Chairman Kevin Martin's assertion before the Senate Commerce Committee on November 29 that the opportunity to purchase programming on an a la carte basis would be in the best interests of consumers," says Dolan. "Like Chairman Martin, we do not believe in the long term that selling programming a la carte will be detrimental to either programmers or cable operators." ...