Responding to pressure from the Federal Communications Commission and several senators, a number of the nation's largest cable TV operators say they will offer "family-friendly" subscription packages early next year.
Though still in the planning stage, the family packages will exclude channels that offer adult content. The companies have not yet decided which channels will be included or what the cost will be.
Kyle McSlarrow, head of the Washington-based National Cable & Telecommunications Association, said that Comcast, Time Warner, Insight, Advance Newhouse and two other cable TV firms will offer the family packages.
The plan does not amount to "unbundling" and will most likely not allow subscribers to pick and choose among channels. Rather, it will offer a new "bundle" that's targeted primarily to families.
FCC Chairman Kevin Martin and several senators have been pressuring cable and satellite companies to offer options that would allow subscribers to avoid channels that may be inappropriate for children.
Until now, the industry has resisted pressure to clean up its content, citing cable operators' free speech rights. Unlike broadcasters, cable operators are not subjected to content regulation.
The cable industry would rather persuade consumers to rely on ratings and parental-blocking features that are included in most cable packages. Former movie industry lobbyist Jack Valenti, who helped develop movie ratings, has been working with cable programmers to better educate parents about television ratings.
While the FCC's Martin and Sen. Ted Stevens (R-Alaska) praised the progress, Parents Television Council President Brent Bozell was dissatisfied, saying it was a "red herring" and that the cable industry would "force consumers to buy programming they may or may not want."
