American EXXXstacy Case in Alabama
Bruce Klopfenstein
of American EXXstacy and the Tuxedo network due to an obscenity
charge in Alabama. ANyone know more of the details? Hughes
satellite apparently pulled the plug rathe than risk getting
involved.
--
Bruce C. Klopfenstein | klop...@barney.bgsu.edu
Radio-TV-Film Department | klopfe...@bgsuopie.bitnet
318 West Hall | klop...@bgsuvax.UUCP
Bowling Green State University | (419) 372-2138; 372-8690
Bowling Green, OH 43403 | fax (419) 372-2300
Kurt Strain
by what he decided was in poor taste. Alabama will probably blacken most
television programming if it gets its way. Tuxxedo Network wasn't even hard
core porn. To be consistent, Playboy Channel must go next. Then all sexually
explicit R-rated movies from HBO, Showtime, etc. Then all soap operas,
etc. I'm sure book burning is on the list. A child may be harmed if he learns
the world is not flat, according to these people.
Mike Northam ext 2651
| I saw the story on ABC News tonight about the decline and fall
| of American EXXstacy and the Tuxedo network due to an obscenity
| charge in Alabama. ANyone know more of the details? Hughes
| satellite apparently pulled the plug rathe than risk getting
| involved.
I don't have all the details in front of me, but basically some jr. high
students in (Montgomery?) Alabama were caught selling 'pornographic'
tapes to other students. They apparently taped American EXXXtasy
programs. It's not clear whether (their parents, presumably) had valid
subscriptions to the service or not.
The indictments were served on Home Dish Only (HDO), the programmer of
EXXtasy, as well as the satellite uplinker in Salt Lake City, and the
transponder owner (GTE?). Almost immediately, EXXXtasy on Spacenet 1,
transponder 18 went on with an ID slide, saying they were trying to get
alternate transponder space. I think they had made a deal with another
uplink facility in Buffalo, NY.
HDO has now laid off a majority of their employees. Their other
services (along with EXXXtasy) have gone dark (Stardust Theatre on G2-2
and TuXedo on G2-4). Their was a statement in one of the satellite
guides that they were in a severe cash flow crisis, since EXXXtasy
revenues were being used to subsidize their other services.
--
Mike Northam m...@fpssun.fps.com Home:123 11' 40"W 45 37' 14"N
(503) 641-3151 x2651 {tektronix}!fpssun!mbn
*FPS Computing has a company spokesperson, and it's certainly not me*
"Every now and then things become clear." Jane Siberry, "The Walking"
Jeff White
>In article <57...@bgsu-stu.UUCP> klop...@bgsu-stu.UUCP (Bruce Klopfenstein) writes:
>| I saw the story on ABC News tonight about the decline and fall
>| of American EXXstacy and the Tuxedo network due to an obscenity
>| charge in Alabama. ANyone know more of the details? Hughes
>| satellite apparently pulled the plug rathe than risk getting
>| involved.
>
>services (along with EXXXtasy) have gone dark (Stardust Theatre on G2-2
>and TuXedo on G2-4). Their was a statement in one of the satellite
>guides that they were in a severe cash flow crisis, since EXXXtasy
>revenues were being used to subsidize their other services.
Just a curious question (since I got a couple of free issues of Satellite
magazine a while ago, and noticed they sold subscriptions for $240/year
($20/month), or $480 for 3 years (1 year free)) - has anything been said
about reimbursement of this money to subscribers (I would guess these amounts
were prepaid)? While I'd be upset about the service going off the air (if
I had a dish and did subscribe to it), I'd be REALLY upset if I had prepaid
a couple of hundred dollars and it wasn't going to be refunded.
Jeff White
je...@eniac.seas.upenn.edu
Mike Northam ext 2651
|
| Just a curious question (since I got a couple of free issues of Satellite
| magazine a while ago, and noticed they sold subscriptions for $240/year
| ($20/month), or $480 for 3 years (1 year free)) - has anything been said
| about reimbursement of this money to subscribers (I would guess these amounts
| were prepaid)? While I'd be upset about the service going off the air (if
| I had a dish and did subscribe to it), I'd be REALLY upset if I had prepaid
| a couple of hundred dollars and it wasn't going to be refunded.
|
From _Satellite Retailer_ magazine, May, 1990:
"Exxxtasy, Stardust Off The Air--Showtime To The Rescue
In case you haven't heard, the Montgomery County, Alabama, grand jury
recently indicted GTE, GTE Spacenet, Home Dish Satellite Network, U.S.
Satellite, and 10 individuals on charges of distributing obscene
materials, namely the American Exxxtasy programming service.
U.S. Satellite, the uplink site out of Murray, Utah, ceased transmitting
Exxxtasy as soon as it was served papers regarding the indictment
leaving the service without uplinking facilities. Shortly after Home
Dish Satellite Networks (HDSN) secured another uplinker, GTE pulled out
of its contract to provide satellite space for Exxxtasy leaving the
service without a transponder.
According to sources, several junior high school youths were caught
selling and trading videotapes that had been recorded off of the
service. It could not be determined where the programming was being
recorded other than that it was from Exxxtasy.
On the heels of Exxxtasy's demise, HDSN also dropped its premium movie
service Stardust Theater. Industry insiders have long maintained that
the service could not sustain itself on revenues generated from
subscriptions.
In a recent deal between Showtime Satellite Networks and HDSN, Stardust
retail subscribers will get the balance of their subscriptions from
Showtime. Approximately 20,000 dish owners will be affected by this
change."
[further stuff elided]
And from _Multichannel News_ of April 30, 1990:
[stuff deleted}
"Home Dish has since filed a $5 million lawsuit against Hughes [provider
of the Galaxy 2 transponders for Stardust and Tuxxedo, HDSN's hard R
service...ed] because of the discontinuation of Tuxxedo, Younger
[president of HDSN] said. He added that Home Dish was given a
termination notice, 'one and one-half hours before we were shut down.'
He said the network is in the process of filing two other lawsuits, but
declined to say against whom. 'We currently have no operations and
we're trying not to go bankrupt,' Younger said, adding that Home Dish is
hoping that by winning the lawsuits, the network will be able to begin
'paying back our backyard dish owners.' "
[more stuff deleted]
So, to answer your question, it looks like subscribers to EXXXtasy
and TuXXedo will have to get in line for refunds. :-) I suppose
that any EXXXtasy subscribers should really be ticked off at
Montgomery County. After all, EXXXtasy was scrambled, only
available to subscribers (and pirates :-)). It looks a bit like
'shoot the messenger' to me...
Edward C. Regal
>of American EXXstacy and the Tuxedo network due to an obscenity
>charge in Alabama. ANyone know more of the details? Hughes
>satellite apparently pulled the plug rathe than risk getting
>involved.
To give you some idea of how well the cable companies _don't_ tell their
subscribers anything, my local cable service (Cable TV NorthWest, Minneapolis)
ran trailers for about a week indicating that the vendor was not able to
supply service on the adult pay-per-view channel (which is only on from 9:00PM
to 5:00AM anyway). Then, suddenly we have a new vendor, Rondezvous (sp?) - who
is the new vendor. A friend who had them as a supplier at an apartment complex
in the area considered them to be garbage (poor selection of films, bad copies
of same, showing same ones too often in a short period, etc.). But did the
cable company offer any explaination of what was going on? Nope, not a bit -
nobody knew anything (not really unusual considering the people that run the
local office). .
Sorry, that pushes a hot button on my panel - if you don't like adult or,
to push the point, pornographic material - __don't turn it on__!! But,
also, __don't tell me what I can and can't watch__. No, I don't watch a
steady diet of fuck and suck movies - but they do get looked at once in a
while. I have two young children who have, I hope, a fairly good outlook
on the world and the relationships between people. No, I am not in favor
of allowing child pornography (I believe there is a particularly interesting
spot in Hell reserved for child porn exploiters, child molesters, and the like).
But it is also not just to entice persons into offenses against the law by
playing off their sexual orientations or proclivities - nor is it just to
set up situations where children are deliberately exposed to adult materials
so that legal actions can be taken.
Now I'm off the soap box - if anyone disagrees with me, let me know, I'm
always willing to listen (I may not agree but I will listen politely and
then go on about my business).
Ed d
gaf
>about reimbursement of this money to subscribers (I would guess these amounts
>were prepaid)? While I'd be upset about the service going off the air (if
>I had a dish and did subscribe to it), I'd be REALLY upset if I had prepaid
>a couple of hundred dollars and it wasn't going to be refunded.
After EXXXTASY got bumped, but before the transponder went dark, they ran
a scrolling message in the clear saying they were giving subscribers a
4-for-1 deal on TUXXEDO (4 extra months of TUXX for each month of unused
EXXXTASY subscription). Later it went to 5-to-1. I haven't hear what
they're going to do now that TUXX is gone, too. I don't know what else
they can do but declare bankruptcy and force subscribers to take .10
on the dollar.
They *should* press the legal case, of course, for 1st amendment reasons
(and an attempt to enforce a modicum of common sense on Alabama).
I doubt they have the resources to do that now, though.
[soapbox alert]
Really, what's going on here? HDO did everything in their power to ensure
that non-subscribers did not receive their programming, obscene or not.
They would not sell subscriptions to minors. Some kid got a pirate decoder,
made tapes from EXXXTASY and sold them. What's happened to him? Anything
more than a slap on the wrist? Do we really have to protect people from
hurting themselves when they do something illegal? Should I worry that a
burglar in my house tripped over my dog and suffered loss of income?
Good grief! The kid did something illegal, was "hurt" by it (having viewed
obscene material which will compel him to become a rapist :-)), and HDO has
to go out of business because of it??? Huh??
--
Guy Finney It's that feeling of deja-vu
UUCS inc. Phoenix, Az all over again.
ncar!noao!asuvax!hrc!uucs1!gaf sun!sunburn!gtx!uucs1!gaf