Comcast, the nation's largest cable company, announced Thursday that it has plans to offer a family programming package early next year.
The bundle, which will include 42 channels and focus on content rated TV-G, is expected to cost about $35 a month, including a $6.95 monthly fee for a digital cable box, said Kelle Maslyn, a Comcast representative.
The family tier adds channels like the Disney Channel, Toon Disney, Discovery Kids, Nickelodeon, the Food Network, CNN Headline News, The Weather Channel and National Geographic to the basic cable lineup.
Cable companies, including Comcast, have been under pressure from the FCC, with Chairman Kevin Martin saying that they should make channels available on an a la carte basis, so people only pay for what they watch instead of having to buy MTV to get Nickelodeon.
Cable programmers have balked at the a la carte suggestion, saying they will lose subscriber fees, viewers and advertising revenue.
People are also reading…
Instead, they are opting for the tier approach. Time Warner, the nation's second-largest cable company, announced a similar plan last Thursday.
That plan was criticized by television watchdog groups such as the Parents Television Council, which faulted Time Warner for not including sports channels, classic movie channels or religious programming and for its limited scope of news channels.
"Family tiers are not the same as providing consumers with cable choice, the ability to take and pay for only what they want. The cable industry is throwing up family tiers as a 'red herring' rather than having to face the real marketplace of fed-up consumers," said L. Brent Bozell, president of the council.
Comcast's plan is open to the same criticisms.
Channels such as ESPN, TMC and AMC didn't make the cut, while C-Span and C-Span 2 did. Trinity Broadcasting Network is also on the family tier.
Customers pay $45.45 a month for a preferred basic package, which has 66 channels, including ESPN, A&E and the History Channel, along with MTV.
"Our family tier includes a broad offering of general entertainment and family-friendly content," Maslyn said.
Vacant Tucson stores could transform into new housing
