Big telecoms still want more restrictions on NC cities seeking to offer broadband services

Big telecoms in North Carolina keep fretting about towns like Wilson and Salisbury getting into the broadband business.

Ever since a 2005 appeals court ruling upheld the right of towns and cities to offer high-speed Internet to their residents, large cable and phone companies have been urging the General Assembly to throw obstacles in the way. Local governments, they argue, don't have to pay taxes and can subsidize their rates to undercut the corporate competition. "We just want the playing field level between the two of us," said Jack Stanley, a regional lobbyist for Time Warner Cable. Those efforts, however, have failed as mayors and local governments argue the big companies won't offer the kind of super-fast Internet at reasonable prices they say attracts high-tech industries. "We're trying very hard by providing broadband to bring new local businesses to our community, to bring jobs," said Salisbury Mayor Susan Kluttz, whose city has borrowed to build a $30 million fiber-optic network it will begin testing in a few months.