Another TV boss has welcomed moves to make viewers pay for the privilege of watching home-grown shows on their cable TV service.

And Rick Richardson, who heads the Bermuda Broadcasting Company, is going along with an idea that would bring an extra $1 a month to his company from every cable viewer who has access to either the ZBM or ZFB channels on their home service.

That proposal would result in cable viewers being billed an additional $3 per month to watch the Island?s three local channels, the other being VSB, on their cable system.

Those watching local free-to-air terrestrial channels through antenna reception would not be charged.

Mr. Richardson believes cable viewers will see the sense in paying a small amount extra to help the Bermuda broadcasters survive and continue to provide local news programmes together with syndicated shows from US networks ABC and CBS.

And next year?s soccer World Cup will be brought into the homes of Bermudians through the Bermuda Broadcasting Company, another example of the ?value? that Island viewers are being given by the local broadcaster, according to Mr. Richardson

The Department of Telecommunications is seeking to change arrangements concerning cable TV operators in order to make it possible for Bermudian broadcasters to levy a fee, if they wish, from cable TV firms that show their channels.

Currently cable TV firms on the Island are obliged to carry local channels but do not pay any money for doing so. The proposed new rule would continue the ?Must Carry? stipulation along with a mechanism for payment if so desired by the TV companies.

?In our view, the existing regulation ?must carry? without ?must pay? is terribly flawed. While it was intended to help the broadcaster it ultimately served to give away the broadcaster?s product,? said Mr. Richardson, who chief executive officer of the Bermuda Broadcasting Company.

He said his company has been pushing for a change for a number of years, as it is paying more and more for the right to show additional programming from US affiliated channels ABC and CBS, including sporting events like the Olympics and World Cup Rugby and popular shows like Sesame Street and The Young & The Restless, which fill the airtime between local shows and news broadcasts.

His company is seeking $1 a month from cable subscribers to help cover both the cost of locally produced broadcasts and the fees for bringing in US and sporting shows, and he believes cable subscribers would support paying the small extra amount ? pointing out that a recent poll taken by cable system operators showed that local channels were in the top ten of the most requested in the cable line-up, with ZBM in the top three.

Kenneth DeFontes, owner of the rival VSB channel, has suggested a $3 per month increase in cable TV bills with the money being split three ways between his company, the Bermuda Broadcasting Company and the cable operator to cover administration and other costs.

Such a deal would bring an estimated $17,000 per month to each of the local TV firms.

Bermuda CableVision general manager Jeremy Elmas said his company was conducting a survey to see what its customers think and how much extra they would be willing to pay.

The Government proposals to alter the cable TV regulations would take effect in the new year if passed by Parliament.