We all know that MTV has gone steadily downhill over the years, selling out as crassly as say, oh, Metallica.
But now Viacom – which owns MTV – is sinking even lower by demanding Time Warner Cable remove a number of channels from an iPad app that supposedly “replicates” the TV viewing experience.
But Viacom isn’t alone in demanding the removal of channels.
No, Discovery Communications and the News Corporation have also made a fuss, resulting in the abrupt removal of FX in addition to MTV.
According to the New York Times, the above-mentioned companies claim the iPad app is a “contract violation” – as Time Warner Cable should supposedly be paying even more for the privilege of streaming their channels to portable devices.
Yeah, right. Seriously, when was the last time you saw anything decent on either MTV or FX?
And no, crappy and (painfully) heavily scripted “reality shows” certainly don’t count. No, I’m talking about a cool series like the short-lived MTV Downtown.
Although TWC removed the channels after receiving nasty cease-and-desist letters, the company (understandably) insisted it had “every right” to carry the programming on the iPad app.
“But, for the time being, we have decided to focus our iPad efforts on those enlightened programmers who understand the benefit and importance of allowing our subscribers – and their viewers – to watch their programming on any screen in their homes.
“In the meantime, we will pursue all of our legal rights against the programmers who don’t share our vision.”
