Adelphia Leaves Eminem on PPV Slate
By R. Thomas Umstead -- Multichannel News, 2/7/2001 9:19:00 AM
Adelphia Communications Corp. will apparently offer In Demand L.L.C.'s Feb. 17 Eminem pay-per-view concert to subscribers after all.
Although neither MSO executives nor In Demand would officially confirm Adelphia's decision to carry the event, the rap star's performance is on Adelphia's PPV schedule in most of its systems, including its huge Los Angeles-area systems.
Three weeks ago, Adelphia executive vice president of operations Michael Rigas said in a prepared statement that the concert is 'not programming that we wish to be providing.' A two-time Grammy Award winner, Eminem has drawn criticism from several groups for his often misogynist and anti-gay lyrics.
Adelphia, known for its conservative views, also doesn't carry adult-PPV programming.
It's unclear what led the operator to do an about-face and offer the concert. Pre-empting the event would have forced the MSO's systems to make several technical alterations at all of its headends.
While Adelphia will carry the event, it has no plans to provide any marketing support for the show, which will retail at a suggested price of $19.95. In that aspect, Adelphia will not be alone: At least one other MSO and several systems have also indicated that they will not aggressively market the event.
Atlanta-based Cox Communications Inc. has said that it will limit its marketing efforts for the show. 'There will be very low-key advertising,' for the concert, an MSO spokeswoman said.
A midsized Southeast system also said it would not provide extensive promotion for the concert in an effort to limit customer complaints about the show. 'Those people who want to see it will be able to find it,' the operator said.
But In Demand said the majority of systems are promoting the concert, which has the potential of generating a record-setting PPV-buy performance for a music event. A 1991 New Kids on the Block concert currently holds the record at 286,000 buys, according to Showtime Event Television.
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