FCC takes on cable, satellite on television set-top boxes

The box on top of your television may be holding back broadband. That's according to the small army of people at the Federal Communications Commission charged with figuring out how to roll out high-speed Internet to every home, make it affordable and get people to subscribe. Here's why they think the television set-top box is hindering broadband use: there aren't enough of them to choose from. The majority of users rent their boxes from their cable or satellite provider. And there isn't enough innovation on the limited number of devices they get from their provider, nor are the providers adequately dealing with access to online video, the FCC's national broadband planning task force said in an agency meeting Wednesday. "The marketplace is searching for better ways to connect the Internet more fully to television sets," said Bill Lake, the FCC's media bureau chief. The role of the set-top box was discussed as part of a larger presentation on hurdles to the agency's national broadband goals. Other challenges include broadcasters and the wireless sector, which are already fighting over the use of spectrum that could aid in any rollout. Rural phone carriers, meanwhile, are decrying reforms to a much-criticized federal fund that could take away money they use to deliver phone service.