Comcast faces tough regulation from FCC

Apparently, Comcast's bid to take over NBC Universal could face more stringent conditions from the Federal Communications Commission after the company's victory in the US appeals court.

Though a court ruling this week represented a nominal victory for Comcast over the regulator, it has made the leading US cable provider more vulnerable to having rules imposed upon it over how to manage its broadband network. With its hands tied given the court ruling, people who are closely following the deal say that the FCC will be looking at the Comcast deal as an opportunity to impose conditions on the largest industry presence. They say that the biggest question now is whether the FCC would impose general network neutrality principles that Comcast could easily agree, or whether it would impose more onerous network management conditions that it would be likely to resist. The FCC under the administration of George W. Bush imposed such conditions on a temporary basis on AT&T in its takeover of BellSouth.