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from: Broadcasting and Cable

Small Cable Ops Ask FCC for Blanket Exemption on Dual Carriage
American Cable Association Files with Federal Communications Commission
By Glen Dickson -- Broadcasting & Cable, 3/3/2008 11:37:00 AM

After months of public lobbying for less onerous digital-must-carry requirements, the American Cable Association filed with the Federal Communications Commission asking the agency to formally exempt the smallest and most bandwidth-starved cable systems from carrying both analog and digital versions of broadcasters’ signals.

from The Business Journal

Tuesday, March 4, 2008 - 2:55 PM CST
Cable providers in Wisconsin seek statewide franchises
The Business Journal of Milwaukee

Five Wisconsin cable and video service providers - Charter Communications Inc., Time Warner Cable, AT&T Inc., CenturyTel and Comcast Cable - have applied for statewide video franchises under legislation passed last year.

from: Commnity Media in Transition

Why Net Neutrality Matters for PEG Access TV

March 2nd, 2008 by Colin Rhinesmith

At last week’s FCC hearing at Harvard Law School, the issue of network neutrality once again took center stage. As the Internet giant Google describes the issue

“Network neutrality is the principle that Internet users should be in control of what content they view and what applications they use on the Internet.”

from: News and Observer

Durham to pay for public access TV
A city-county pact with Time Warner Cable sets a price of $120,000 for 10 months' programs

Samiha Khanna, Staff Writer
DURHAM - City and county leaders agreed Monday to pay Time Warner Cable $120,000 over the next 10 months to air public access programs -- shows that used to be aired for free.

from: Broadband Reports

When 'Civil Rights Groups' Become Paid ISP Lobbyists
And the technology press doesn't notice...
09:42AM Monday Mar 03 2008 by Karl

One of the most effective ways the phone companies have gotten what they want politically over the years is to fake the fact that they have consumer support. This is done via PR, farmed think tank science, hired bloggers (who don't allow comments), fake consumer groups and astroturf (fake grass roots) campaigns. Such efforts can make it appear that anti-consumer positions -- such as cherry picking broadband deployment or elimination of consumer protection laws -- have broad consumer support.

Note: It's hard to imagine a worse corporate citizen than AT&T. They offer the same same service in every state, but resort to every means available to wriggle out of public interest obligations. In Connecticut they tried to pass U-verse off as a data service to avoid local video franchise obligations. In 19 other states, AT&T has written legislation that all but eliminates the existing public interest obligations of local video franchises. Now in Alabama, they cite a 1900 telegraph agreement and claim their agreements to be "public benefits video agreements" (sans benefits).

from: Times Herald

Lawsuit holds back digital cable switch
Public access channel still widely available
By NICHOLAS DESHAIS
Times Herald

Comcast announced a slate of programming changes Friday, including the removal of some channels from standard cable in order to move them to a high-definition format.

Note: AT&T cries "competition=lower prices" in the cable TV market so they can get public interest set-asides removed for their entry into that market. Meanwhile in other markets where they have monopoly control over network infrastructure - they raise prices at will.

from: Broadband Reports

Note: Unlike AT&T, Verizon doesn't demand public interest concessions via state video franchises before upgrading their network, in fact Verizon seems to have had no problem negotiating hundreds of local franchises in MA, PA and NY. Perhaps AT&T should attend a communications seminar at Verizon?

from: Boston.com

from: Chattanoogan

Tennessee AT&T President Sees Need For Video Franchise Reform
by Dana Wilbourn
posted February 28, 2008

Click to Enlarge
Photo by Dana Wilbourn
Gregg Morton, president of AT&T in Tennessee
Gregg Morton, president of AT&T in Tennessee, told the Chattanooga Rotary Club on Thursday that there is a need for video franchise reform in Tennessee. “It’s time for competition, choice, and better pricing for Tennesseans,” he said.