ABC ASKS AFFILIATES TO HELP COVER THE COST OF NEW NFL DEAL

          ABC has asked its affils to contribute cash or return
     some commercials to the network to help pay the costs of its
     new $550M "MNF" NFL package, according to Bill Carter of the
     N.Y. TIMES.  ABC is seeking as much as $50M a year.  CBS and
     Fox have made, or are expected to seek, similar deals from
     its affils.  Carter reports that the deals, "if agreed to,
     would represent the first time that networks have sought
     this kind of sizable contribution" from their affils to help
     pay for program costs.  But Carter adds that while CBS and
     Fox affils are more likely to agree to the request, ABC's
     are "expected to resist," because the stations "would not be
     getting new programming from the deal" (N.Y. TIMES, 2/4).