FCC Eyeing Local Franchises?

[SOURCE: Multichannel News, AUTHOR: Ted Hearn]
Cable’s political war with local phone giants, so far played out at the state and local levels, could be moving to higher ground: the Federal Communications Commission. According to two high-ranking FCC officials, Chairman Kevin Martin is ready to examine the scope of the agency’s authority to elbow aside local governments if they are hindering efforts by SBC and Verizon to obtain permission to offer video service. Chairman Martin is hoping to launch the effort formally at the agency’s Nov. 3 public meeting. The officials did not say whether the FCC would begin with a notice of inquiry, which is designed to collect information, or with a notice of proposed rulemaking, which usually signals that it intends to adopt rules. At Chairman Martin’s request, FCC staff has been studying a provision in the 1992 Cable Act that states that a city “may not unreasonably refuse to award an additional competitive franchise.” The provision was added in conjunction with other language that ended the practice of awarding exclusive franchises. Martin’s interest in a federal solution could relieve SBC and Verizon from having to go up against cable lobbyists when trying to persuade friendly state governments to adopt the Texas model.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6276037.html?display=Breaking+News
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