St. Sen. Avella Wants To Force Arbitration In Cable Disputes
NEW YORK (WCBS 880) - If you have Time Warner Cable, you still can't watch the Rangers, Knicks, or Devils, and at least one New York State lawmaker is taking notice.
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That's because of the dispute the provider is having with MSG.
Michael Feiner says all he wants to do is plop down on the couch and watch his hockey team.
"They finally made their two crappy teams halfway decent. The Rangers might even win the cup and they're doing this. How ethical could it be?" he said to WCBS 880 reporter Alex Silverman.
Queens St. Sen. Tony Avella says if this were the first cable battle, he might see it differently.
"But this is the third time this has happened, to my knowledge, in the city of New York," he said Tuesday.
His bill would force the companies into binding arbitration to smooth out disputes between MSG and Time Warner.
"These are public franchises. There has to be more public input and more oversight by the municipalities, because at the end of the day we're the ones - I hate to use the word - being screwed," said Avella.
Avella thinks this law would be the first of its kind and says it could be retroactive to get MSG back on in this case.
"These disputes have to stop," said Avella.
What do you think of the idea? Sound off in the comments section below!
