More US cable TV channels to be cut in Jamaica

(Jamaica Gleaner) Jamaicans are set to lose more of their favourite cable channels as the Broadcasting Commission plans to direct local cable licensees to remove additional unauthorised stations from their subscriber packages.

In 2015, the commission issued directives for 19 channels to be removed because of local and international copyright law infringements. But executive director of the commission, Cordel Green, told a Gleaner Editors’ Forum last Thursday that the intention was also to take a phased approach to cleaning up the system.

“I expect that we are going to have other channels, that if they are not licensed for Jamaica, will be going off the cable system sooner rather than later,” said Green.

“But what I expect is that consumers will be provided with appropriate substitutes, unlike what happened the last time where people lost some channels and lost programmes that they were very keen on consuming and it caused some great deal of confusion.”

He added, “The (American) rights holders, I think, are much more sensitised now and sensitive to the need to respond to demand and not just approach this from the point of pure copyright.”

He said the commission and other local stakeholders have been in dialogue with United States (US)-based content owners and have received commitments that will address the Spanish-language content that a lot of Jamaican consumers are rejecting.

“One of the things that is not acceptable in Jamaica is to have people append us to Latin America, organise their content for the Latin America-Caribbean market, and give us Spanish-language content,” Green stated.