dslreports logo
 
    All Forums Hot Topics Gallery
spc
Search similar:


uniqs
183

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

2 edits

FFH5

Premium Member

Martin - another take on his reign at the FCC

One - given his presumed political ambitions in NC, he probably won't be taking some job with AT&T when his time as FCC Commissioner ends. He will be running for some political office - either a statewide office or as a member of Congress in some NC district. And as a Republican with a national reputation he will get all the contributions he needs from business. He won't need telco or cable to get money to run.

Two - he IS giving cable a tougher time at the FCC than the telcos. As to his motivations - who knows. But there are more easily enforced laws on the books about cable regulation than telco regulation that the FCC can act on. It may merely mean it is easier to regulate cable and that is why they bear the brunt. And by sticking it to cable it may help his reputation as a friend of the middle class when he runs for office. People at BBR hate the telcos as much as the cable companies, but out in the rest of the country cable is hated more than telco because TV used to be free - telephones never were.

Three - he has stuck it to telcos in a way too. He has done nothing to prevent cable companies from seriously poaching telephone users from the telcos. And except for enforcing E911 laws that were passed, cable has had a regulation free crack at getting those telephone users.

Four - if you want to see who Martin is really helping out, it is the content providers; TV networks; internet content providers, etc. If the FCC and Martin really wanted to see cable rates come down they would be going after all the consolidation in the content industry and preventing them from bundling TV networks like Disney, ESPN, etc are doing. Both the cable industry and the telcos TV prices are at the mercy of Hollywood content providers. To get ESPN, the access providers have to take a half dozen crap channels to get the ones they want.

Five - both cable and telco will continue to do just fine no matter what the FCC rules. And if he tries to stick it to cable, those decisions will get overturned in court like they were in the past. And if the court doesn't help, cable will just get the law changed in Congress.

In Summary: I don't think he is really giving cable or telco any real breaks. It is the TV networks and the conglomerates that control entertainment businesses that are really getting the breaks. And when he runs for political office, it is those companies that control the news organizations that will make sure to not make him look bad or dig too deeply in to his past policy decisions that could embarrass him during a run for office.