Advertisement
Singapore markets closed
  • Straits Times Index

    3,224.01
    -27.70 (-0.85%)
     
  • Nikkei

    40,168.07
    -594.66 (-1.46%)
     
  • Hang Seng

    16,541.42
    +148.58 (+0.91%)
     
  • FTSE 100

    7,952.62
    +20.64 (+0.26%)
     
  • Bitcoin USD

    70,737.27
    +1,974.52 (+2.87%)
     
  • CMC Crypto 200

    885.54
    0.00 (0.00%)
     
  • S&P 500

    5,264.22
    +15.73 (+0.30%)
     
  • Dow

    39,865.47
    +105.39 (+0.27%)
     
  • Nasdaq

    16,408.46
    +8.94 (+0.05%)
     
  • Gold

    2,241.80
    +29.10 (+1.32%)
     
  • Crude Oil

    83.07
    +1.72 (+2.11%)
     
  • 10-Yr Bond

    4.2060
    +0.0100 (+0.24%)
     
  • FTSE Bursa Malaysia

    1,530.60
    -7.82 (-0.51%)
     
  • Jakarta Composite Index

    7,288.81
    -21.28 (-0.29%)
     
  • PSE Index

    6,903.53
    +5.36 (+0.08%)
     

U.S. probing Comcast's role in 'spot' cable ad sales market

A woman walks past the NBC logo and Comcast displayed at 30 Rockefeller Plaza, formerly known as the GE building, in midtown Manhattan in New York July 23, 2015. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid (Reuters)

(Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating whether Comcast Corp , the biggest U.S. cable TV provider, is hindering competition in cable advertising sales, a source told Reuters. The department's Antitrust Division has sent documents known as civil investigative demands to video distribution companies with questions about whether Comcast was seeking to dominate the "spot" cable ad sales business in areas where Comcast offers service, said the source, who asked not to be identified to protect business relationships. The probe was first reported by the Wall Street Journal. The issue was raised in the fight over whether Comcast would be allowed to buy Time Warner Cable , a deal that eventually fell apart because of antitrust concerns. At that time, Viamedia, an independent spot ad seller, estimated the spot cable advertising market was worth $5.4 billion nationally. Viamedia said then that Comcast, in addition to being a cable company, dominated so-called Interconnects in many areas and used them to exclude Viamedia and other independents from some markets. These Interconnects are used by local advertisers, like car dealers, to buy ad time on cable stations. Analyst Spencer Kurn of New Street Research said in an email interview that Comcast's spot television ad revenue was small compared to its total revenues. "I would guess that if the DOJ (Justice Department) discovers an issue, Comcast would have to change its marketing strategy for their spot TV markets, but overall it’s such a small part of their business model that I don’t think it will impact the company at large in a meaningful way,” he said. Comcast said in a statement that the advertising market was "robustly competitive." The company also said: "We plan to cooperate fully with the Department of Justice's inquiry." The Justice Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment. (Reporting by Diane Bartz in Washington, Malathi Nayak in New York and Anya George Tharakan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila, Anil D'Silva and Tom Brown)