By John Ourand, Staff Writer
Tennis Channel reacted angrily to Cablevision's announcement that it is
launching its own high-school sports channel on digital basic, releasing a statement late Friday morning that accused Cablevision of giving MSG Varsity full carriage only because it owns the channel. The clear subtext of Tennis Channel's statement is that Cablevision's ownership of MSG Varsity could open the door for the filing of a formal discriminatory complaint at the FCC. "Tennis Channel has negotiated for more than four years to bring the world's best tennis to a New York audience of that size, but Cablevision has awarded that opportunity to a nascent and untried concept simply because it owns the network," the network's statement says. "It is disappointing that the sole criterion we lack for expanded carriage is ownership by Cablevision. Cablevision subscribers who enjoy tennis should insist on an explanation for how MSG Varsity, with no history of ratings or advertising commitments and a reported schedule of largely taped events, will receive widespread distribution to all of Cablevision's three-plus million customers while Cablevision insists that Tennis Channel be available only on a limited tier serving less than five percent of its total subscriber base."
