Michigan Cities Cry Foul

MICHIGAN CITIES CRY FOUL
[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Linda Haugsted]
Municipal officials from across Michigan are stepping up in a very public way to oppose state House and Senate versions of an AT&T-backed franchise-reform bill that city officials say will wrest power from the local communities. These representatives from municipalities stress that their towns are open for business to any competitive providers -- and argue that their local rules are not a barrier to entry. The local leaders are responding to proposed bills which state that current franchising rules and buildout requirements create a barrier to entry at a time when speed to market is critical. The bill declares there is “minimal competition in facilities-based video programming,” even though Michigan was one of the states that best fostered cable competition last decade, during the telephone industry's prior push into cable. Ameritech New Media earned several franchises in the Detroit suburbs before the regional Bell company gave up on the business and sold out to WideOpenWest LLC, which continues to operate in the state in head-to-head competition with cable operators, including Comcast. The AT&T-backed bill would allow for statewide certification of new providers, who would agree to pay a 5% fee to local governments, plus a 1% fee on gross revenues to support public-access activities. Both fees are passed through to consumers. Though new providers are required to pay these fees, they can also qualify for a credit equal to the amount they spend on rights-of-way maintenance in local communities.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6321213.html?display=Top+Stories