Cable firms face pricing probe

PHILADELPHIA - The Federal Communications Commission has opened an investigation into the pricing policies of major cable operators and Verizon Communications Inc.

The agency wants to ensure that customers are being treated fairly, FCC chairman Kevin Martin said in an interview yesterday.

The FCC wrote to Verizon and 11 cable companies including giants Comcast Corp. and Time Warner Cable Inc. last month about their practice of moving analog channels into digital tiers to free up bandwidth for other uses, such as high-definition channels. Verizon was included because it offers pay-TV through its FiOS service.

To watch channels that have been moved, subscribers to analog service must either subscribe to a more expensive digital tier, rent a digital set-top box, or use an adapter.

About half of the nation's 65 million cable households buy only the analog basic or "enhanced basic" tiers.