As has been said many times, there is no such thing as a free lunch when it comes to video entertainment. Morgan Stanley media analyst Ben Swinburne has now said aloud what's been whispered for a while: If TV video cord cutting becomes rampant, cable will raise the price of access to its broadband cord.
A "material" subscriber migration to over-the-top content will force the industry to recoup with higher Internet fees, Swinburne said. It could be a last resort, though, after offering more flexible programming packages and working to put together its own similar OTT programming.
On another point, Swinburne seemed unfazed by cable's recent subscriber losses, blaming them on the economy and especially the slumping housing market.
For more:
- see this story from the New York Post
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