ACA Educational Series Retransmission Consent Part III: ACA Toolkit - Communicating About Retrans with Customers and Others American Cable Association Webinar June 22, 2017 Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 1 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
On Today’s Webinar Introduction : Matt Polka, President and CEO, ACA Moderator : Rob Shema, Executive Vice President of Member Services, ACA Panelist : Philippa Levenberg, Senior Director, Digital Communications and Advertising, Story Partners Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 2 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Antitrust Compliance • All members, participants, consultants and others involved in this and other ACA activities must comply with U.S. and state antitrust and similar laws. Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws. • In general, antitrust laws prohibit agreements or actions that unreasonably restrain trade, such as agreements between competitors that fix selling prices, limit supply, or allocate customers or territories; and agreements to refuse to deal or boycott. Violations of antitrust laws carry severe consequences and may expose ACA officers, directors, employees, and its members companies’ owners, officers, directors and employees to substantial civil and criminal fines and imprisonment. • Members must make their own individual decisions about price, terms, negotiating strategies, tactics, etc., including about arrangements with suppliers, programmers, broadcasters, etc. ACA members should not discuss or exchange information about their retransmission consent negotiations that may affect prices, including levels, costs, profits, discounts, allowances, rebates, credit terms, formulas, patterns, procedures, and terms and conditions with respect to any product, service, or company. Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 3 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Key Findings: Member Interviews • ACA members make individual, different decisions in approaching the negotiation of retransmission consent deals. For example: 1. Some never accept blackouts 2. Some seek to avoid blackouts in most cases 3. Some welcome blackouts if a fair deal can’t be negotiated • There is no unified messaging to customers and stakeholders around negotiations • Appetite to bolster retransmission negotiation communications and increase consumer education • Retransmission consent negotiations regularly cited as frustration, but not anticipating policy shift this year Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 4 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Member Toolkit Objectives This multimedia member toolkit is intended to help ACA members communicate better, more accurately and more efficiently with their customers and the public surrounding retransmission consent negotiations no matter what strategy each member may independently choose. Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 5 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Member Toolkit Theme KEEP THE CONNECTIONS Local cable operators work hard to ensure our communities have access to quality TV, broadband and phone services at the most affordable cost. We are your voice when it comes to negotiating deals with broadcasters and our goal is to keep the connections – with you and the programming you love – by fighting on your behalf. Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 6 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Toolkit Materials Preview Microsite: Educational resource explaining retransmission consent: keeptheconnections.com Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 7 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Toolkit Materials Preview Microsite: Educational resource explaining retransmission consent: keeptheconnections.com Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 8 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Toolkit Materials Preview Microsite: Educational resource explaining retransmission consent: keeptheconnections.com Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 9 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Toolkit Materials Preview Social Media Assets: Editable infographics, shareables and other sample social media posts to communicate issue visually Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 10 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Toolkit Materials Preview Animated Video: :30 and :25-27 versions that can be used in TV advertising or social media with ability to customize with local voiceover or branding Keep the Connections Animated Video Voiceover Script Frustrated by rising cable prices? You’re not the only one. As your local communications business, we work hard every day to ensure our communities have the uninterrupted access you need – to do business, to enjoy family night in front of the TV, to communicate with your loved ones across the country. We fight to keep your rates fair and access broad. But at the negotiating table, large, corporate broadcasters use their market power to extract higher fees for their programming. As TV viewership goes down, rates for the rest of us go up. It’s not fair, and their actions shouldn’t fall on you. [Optional generic ending/social media ending: Visit keep the connections dot com for more information on how we’re working for you.] Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 11 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Additional Toolkit Materials • Print Advertising Designs: Three print ad variations for use in local print papers and magazines • Sample Data Points: Key statistics and sources members for use in materials (e.g. number of blackouts) • Template Materials: Sample press releases, op-eds, letters to the editors, stakeholder letters, and talking points for customer service representatives • Member Resource Library: Collection of materials housed in the members-only section of ACA’s website (e.g. customer and stakeholder letters, bill inserts, print and TV ads) No matter what individual approach you independently take toward communicating with your customers and the public about retransmission consent, we anticipate the ACA toolkit will be a handy resource. Neither this webinar nor the ACA member toolkit is intended to facilitate or encourage collusive or anticompetitive 12 behavior on the part of ACA members, or any other actions that could run afoul of state and federal antitrust laws
Q & A 13
Contact us Matt Polka Phone: (412) 922-8300 Email: mpolka@americancable.org Rob Shema Phone: (412) 922-8300 Email: rshema@americancable.org 14
ACA Educational Series We value your feedback! Please complete our survey at: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/27VY5JB 15
ACA Educational Series SAVE THE DATE! Retransmission Consent Part IV: What Public Data Says about Today’s Retrans Market Wednesday, August 23, 2017 2:00 – 3:00 p.m. EDT 16
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