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Cable access to UCLA sports still limited

By Daily Bruin Staff

Feb. 12, 1997 9:00 p.m.

Thursday, February 13, 1997

TELEVISION:

Fox Sports West 2 not in residence halls’ immediate futureBy
Marie Blanchard

Daily Bruin Senior Staff

For the time being, it seems that the UCLA community, along with
the greater part of Los Angeles county, will be without Fox Sports
West 2, the new channel that was created late last month.

Despite rumors last week that UCLA dorm residents would be
receiving Fox Sports West 2 ­ a second channel created to
split West Coast athletic coverage with the original Fox Sports
West ­ the channel has been deemed too expensive for immediate
installation.

"Within the Los Angeles market, the (two cable-supplying)
companies are saying ‘no’ because the new channel is too costly,
and we (the UCLA residence halls) are following in their
footsteps," confirmed Michael Schilling, the UCLA Director of
Technology for Business and Finance.

The creation of the new channel has meant that all West Coast
athletic events are now split between both channels. Subscribers to
the original Fox Sports West would now have to pay for an
additional cable channel to obtain coverage of events they used to
receive on the original Fox channel.

For UCLA athletic fans in the residence halls, this means that
coverage of UCLA sporting events will now be split about evenly on
both channels.

"Fox decided to split into two channels, doubling the cost to
cable viewers," Schilling said. Residence halls currently have the
original Fox Sports West, but have lost about half of UCLA athletic
coverage, he continued.

As a result of communication problems between UCLA and the Fox
network, confusion within UCLA still surrounds the new sports
channel. The controversy began last week after a Fox representative
told the Daily Bruin that the UCLA dorms would receive the channel
within the next two weeks.

The Fox network’s assumption was made after a cable supplier,
Lamont Communications, sent a letter to Fox expressing an interest
in the nine free months the Fox network was offering customers if
they signed up by February 15th.

UCLA, one of Lamont’s numerous cable clients, was assumed by Fox
to be one of the clients interested in the immediate nine free
month sign-up rate.

Representatives of Lamont Communications did not return phone
calls to comment on the misunderstanding.

However, before last week UCLA was never contacted with the
option of picking up the channel with the free nine month
bonus.

Schilling clarified the reasons why UCLA would not pick up the
channel before the February deadline, citing the additional,
currently uncalculated cost the new channel would mean for future
dorm residents.

Exacerbating the issue is a three-to- five-year commitment that
UCLA must make with the signal broker, UCLA Telecommunications
(Telecom), to receive the new Fox channel. The long-term contract
would include "significantly high inflation rates" once the
nine-month free air time expires, Schilling said.

"(Currently) we simply have to have the information," Schilling
said. "We have not received any tentative cost."

Schilling believes that by rushing in and accepting the initial
offer of nine free months, UCLA would not be practicing sound
financial management.

"We are still gathering costs and are developing a five-year
cost model (which) will take a few weeks to complete. We have a
responsibility to residents in the next few years. We can’t do this
in a vacuum," he said.

However Schilling added that Fox West 2 is "not going to happen"
by the Feb. 15 discount deadline.

Schilling says he has felt some resentment on the part of UCLA
dorm residents who feel cheated by the Fox network.

"Why is it that without notification, Fox can cut programming in
half and demand more money?" Schilling said explaining some
students’ sentiment towards the new channel.

UCLA is not the only community angry about the recent Fox
addition. The Mighty Ducks hockey team of Anaheim filed a suit
against the Fox network last week because coverage of the games has
been dramatically reduced by the split in channel coverage.

"We are most frustrated that no one can see our games, neither
the viewers or the sponsors," said Jason Frank of the Mighty Ducks
media relations.

The Ducks are basing the lawsuit on the television coverage
contract with Fox, which the team says didn’t account for more than
one Fox channel, Frank said.

However, UCLA is not currently considering the same action.

"At this time we are not contemplating a lawsuit against Fox,"
said Mark Dellins, a spokesman for the UCLA athletic
department.

With reports from Vytas Mazeika, Daily Bruin Contributor.

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