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11/01/2007

FCC Votes Down Deals Between Cable Operators, Multiple-Dwelling Units

Federal Communications Commission: Contracts Favored Incumbent Cable Operators, Impeded Competition

By John Eggerton -- Broadcasting & Cable, 10/31/2007 12:33:00 PM

The Federal Communications Commission members unanimously voted Wednesday to nullify exclusive deals between cable companies and apartments and other multiple-dwelling units and to ban any such clauses going forward, calling them unfair competition.

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NCTA Statement of Dan Brenner, Senior Vice President for Law and Regulatory Policy, About the FCC's Action Regarding Contracts for Multiple Dwelling Units

Date: 10/31/2007

"We continue to support a regulatory structure that treats all providers equally so that companies can compete in the marketplace, and not in the halls of government. But today's FCC action to ban future exclusive contracts eliminates these contracts for some but not all video providers. If eliminating exclusive contracts for some video providers is good for consumers, then it should have been applied to all providers. And the FCC's action to terminate existing contracts is an unprecedented, legally suspect step that could harm consumers and jeopardize the delivery of advanced services to low-income neighborhoods where other video providers have chosen not to offer service."

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