ACA To FCC: Collect Only Current 70/70 Data

The American Cable Association, which represents smaller and mid-sized cable operators, officially asked the Federal Communications Commission to collect only current data in its proposed new 70/70 reporting form, and not to require cable operators to report telephone, digital or cable -modem information for the form. That came in comments Friday to the FCC on its proposal to make changes to the data-collection form it uses to determine whether cable has reached a threshhold for possible new regulation. The FCC last month concluded the 70/70 test -- 70% penetration, 70% subscribership -- had not been met, but that it was in the long-delayed report based on 2006 data. The commission then decided last month to play catch-up by combining the 2007, 2008 and 2009 "annual" reports into a single document. The Commission is considering a raft of new reporting requirements to help it better determine cable's penetration of the multichannel video market.