Comcast Target Of Directv Complaint Accused Of Monopolizing Sports Coverage

The idea behind Comcast's new regional all-sports network is to make the cable system customers' only television option for local sports.

That's great for cable customers, but leaves satellite television viewers in the dark. And that is apparently where Comcast wants to leave them, according to DirecTV, the California-based satellite company.

An unfair competition complaint DirecTV filed with the Federal Communications Commission Tuesday alleges that Comcast's refusal to make the new 24-hour regional sports channel available to its customers amounts to monopoly control of local sports television.

Currently, DirecTV viewers can receive SportsChannel Philadelphia. DirecTV aired a total of 140 sports broadcasts of Flyers, Sixers, Phillies and local college games this year to 43,000 residential subscribers and 100 commercial customers.

But on Sept. 30, SportsChannel Philadelphia, and PRISM, which last season carried most local sports broadcasts, will cease operating. Comcast SportsNet will begin airing Oct. 1 and be offered to many cable customers in the region as part of basic cable service.

Comcast owns the Flyers and Sixers and broadcast rights to the Phillies. Broadcasts of those teams' games will be a major staple of SportsNet's programming.

According to DirecTV spokesman Bob Marsocci, Comcast will not make the new channel available to it.

``They refused to make it available to us,'' Marsocci said. ``As a result, we filed a complaint alleging unfair methods of competition. We are a relatively new and emerging competitor to cable, and we see this as another example of a cable company leveraging its monopolistic power at the expense of the Philadelphia sports fans.''

He added: ``Tens of thousands of subscribers that are DirecTV customers that receive SportsChannel Philadelphia via DirecTV, as opposed to cable, are going to be left without a regional sports broadcast.''

Comcast yesterday said DirecTV's complaint was ``totally without merit.''

According to a statement released by the company, the federal communications laws were written to ``encourage, not inhibit, investment in quality regional programming.''

``That's why it wrote the law in 1992 to give regional programmers the ability to choose how and to whom they market their products,'' Comcast said in the statement.

``Consistent with the law and our business judgment, Comcast SportsNet has been offered to a wide range of local multichannel video providers, not only wireline cable companies, but also wireless cable, and apartment house and condominium cable vendors throughout its market.

``By creating a new basic channel to carry home and away games of the major baseball, basketball and hockey teams, and by ensuring that games of all three teams are also available on broadcast television, we and our partner have ensured that people will have more access to more TV sports in the Philadephia area at a better price than before.''