Give the telcos a video hook-up

GIVE THE TELCOS A VIDEO HOOK-UP
[SOURCE: Los Angeles Times, AUTHOR: Editorial Staff]
[Commentry] Like Lucy urging Charlie Brown to take another run at the football, telephone companies are saying that they really mean it this time. They promise to hold the ball steady -- that is, to play nice with the public -- if only lawmakers will agree to let them in the game. The game here, broadly speaking, is TV service. The prospect of providing more competition to the local cable TV operator is so enticing, it's tempting to forget all those times the Bells yanked the ball away. They're certainly right about the need to streamline the franchising process, which can stretch on for years as cities demand a profusion of public-access channels, TV studios and other perks. A better approach would be to create a package of public benefits that telecoms and cable operators would have to provide, tied to the size of the community served. And as long as they don't discriminate within neighborhoods, the telecoms should be free to pick the communities where they compete for customers for these new services, just as cable operators choose where they offer telephone and data services. Widespread demand -- more than 80% of U.S. households pay for cable or satellite TV today -- should draw the telecoms' new service to lower-income markets. So too should the competitive threat posed by the cable operators' expanding phone services. Still, given the Bells' track record, lawmakers should be careful not to give telecoms and cable operators carte blanche. With the issue bogging down in Congress, chances are that Sacramento will move on a bill, coauthored by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez (D-Los Angeles), that would allow them into the market for TV services before Washington acts. Here's hoping that Californians actually get to kick the football.
http://www.latimes.com/news/printedition/opinion/la-ed-video26may26,1,1263896.story?coll=la-news-comment
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