North Carolina Municipal Broadband Bill Draws Fire

A new North Carolina law passed by the legislature two weeks ago restricting local governments' ability to compete with private cable and telecom companies is being targeted by a self-described government corruption-fighting web site.

The law has passed the legislature, but has yet to be signed by the governor according to bill opponents trying a last-ditch move to stop it. "[T]he North Carolina legislature has passed a bill that bans competition from community broadband networks. Under this legislation, local communities would be held hostage to the corporate broadband networks that have given America second-rate networks everywhere," said Lawrence Lessig of rootstrikers.org. "We need you to contact your North Carolina friends and ask them to contact Governor Bev Perdue (D-NC), and ask her to veto this ridiculous bill," he adds. Among other things, the cable-backed bill limits city-owned communications service to the corporate limits of the city--unless it is to serve an "unserved" area, prevents a city from delaying the provision of monopoly service, prevents cross-subsidization of municipal service and prevents any ads for city service on PEG channels.