TV bill passes Illinois state House

TV BILL PASSES ILLINOIS STATE HOUSE
[SOURCE: Crain's Chicago Business, AUTHOR: Paul Merrion]
It's amazing what can happen in one day in a legislature. Legislation to bring TV over phones lines to Illinois, ending cable TV’s near-monopoly, is on the move in Springfield. Ending lengthy negotiations, AT&T agreed early Thursday morning to a number of consumer protection provisions crafted for the legislation by Attorney General Lisa Madigan (D). Consumer groups and municipalities had fought an earlier version of the bill that would have allowed the phone company to win a statewide television franchise with few restrictions. Comcast Corp. and other cable television operators are still opposed, so passage is not certain. The bill contains “nothing the cable industry asked for and a bone or two for public-access people,” says a spokesman for the Cable TV and Communications Association. The measure was passed Thursday morning by the House Telecommunications Committee. By Thursday evening, the bill passed the Illinois House by a vote of 113-0.
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