Save Access - NORTH CAROLINA

NC: Local governments withhold public access TV funds

Thu, 15 May 2008 06:50:42 -0400

Local governments withhold public access TV funds
by Ruby Sinreich on Mon, 05/12/2008 - 11:50am.

It seems like Chapel Hill and Orange County are giving our local public access provider quite the run around, when they should be giving them money! The programming on The Peoples Channel includes a wide variety of creative output and civic endeavors by local residents, plus they also carry the essential Democracy Now! If you don't find what you want on channel 8, you can march right in to the station, get low-cost training, and fill that gap. This nonprofit TV station is a tremendous asset to our community, and it deserves to be fully funded by our local governments.

NC: New public-access TV law comes with a price

Sun, 09 Mar 2008 09:03:32 -0400

from: The Durham News

New public-access TV law comes with a price
Samiha Khanna, Staff Writer

East Durham resident Mattie Rouse doesn't have a car, and can't get around that easily on foot. So she doesn't get to Greater Joy Baptist Church much anymore to see the bishop.

But she's hopeful she'll continue to be able to see him on cable Channel 8. Greater Joy's Bishop James Daniel is one of several ministers in Durham who have been broadcasting their sermons on Durham's public-access channel for nearly 20 years for free. Many of the shows are broadcast on Sundays and repeated during the week.

NC: Durham to pay for public access TV

Tue, 04 Mar 2008 08:44:21 -0500

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.

NC: Franchise Law Helping … Cable Incumbents

Mon, 18 Feb 2008 15:03:12 -0500

from: MultiChannel News

N.C. Franchise Law Helping … Cable Incumbents
AT&T, Other Competitors Have Yet To Apply For Statewide Application
By Linda Haugsted -- Multichannel News, 2/16/2008 9:29:00 AM

A bill designed to aid competitive video providers in North Carolina has actually deregulated many incumbent operators, while no new competitors have applied to serve the state, according to data compiled by a municipal consultant.

NC: Cable TV PEG channels deserve lawmakers’ aid

Tue, 14 Aug 2007 07:11:31 -0400

from: Citizen Times

Cable TV PEG channels deserve lawmakers’ aid
published August 14, 2007 12:15 am

Competition usually results in lower prices and better service and products. Who can argue with that? The question is, better service and lower prices for whom?

In the case of cable television franchises, a 2006 North Carolina law passed in an effort to encourage competition could eventually mean better service and lower prices for densely populated affluent areas. It could mean poor or no service for poor or rural areas.

NC: AT$T plans to offer state TV services

Wed, 01 Aug 2007 07:54:33 -0400

from: News Record

AT&T plans to offer state TV services
By Michelle Jarboe
Article published Aug 1, 2007

Television isn't calling. Yet.

AT&T announced plans Tuesday to invest $350 million to upgrade its North Carolina network, with hopes of launching Internet television services in the state in several years .

NC: Help Protect NC Community Media Centers

Tue, 31 Jul 2007 06:32:12 -0400

from: BlueNC

Help Protect NC Community Media Centers

Submitted by BrianR on Mon, 07/30/2007 - 7:31pm.

As many of you know, last session the State Legislature passed a law which allows cable and phone companies to avoid many of the public service requirements that have existed for over 30 years. Those requirements mainly have to do with channel space and support for Community Media Centers, like The Peoples Channel, and Public, Educational, and Government (PEG) Access channels. The bill has turned out to be a very serious blow to local governments and nonprofits like us. Many of us concerned with the legislation worked together to produce a new piece of legislation that would remedy two major problems with the bill: funding for Community Media Center and PEG channels, and deployment of broadband to rural and economically distressed communities.

NC: Join NC Public Broadband List

Thu, 26 Jul 2007 22:01:29 -0400

from: Yesh.com

Join NC Public Broadband List

From Yesh.com, July 26, 2007

Not long after I learned about HB1587, the bad NC House bill, I started a Google Group called NC Public Broadband. Its a email list with the goal of keeping people in the loop about what’s going on in the fight to protect community broadband. Its mainly an announce list but you can respond to emails. We can also upload files to share. Like a PDF of legislation or an Excel Spreadsheet of Legislative contact info.

NC: Municipal Broadband Attacked in North Carolina

Tue, 24 Jul 2007 06:50:30 -0400

from: Andrew Jackson Democrats

Municipal Broadband Attacked in North Carolina
Posted by CarolinaDem at 7/19/2007 12:40 PM and is filed under North Carolina Politics

With the US lagging behind most of the developed world with less Internet access and slower speed connections, it's somewhat outrageous that any state government would block communities from extending broadband access to their citizens-- but North Carolina is now debating HB 1587, which is being promoted by the North Carolina Cable Telecommunications Association to stop local communities from owning and subsidizing access to community-run telecommunications systems.

The Fiscal Problems Of Franchise Laws

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 07:52:59 -0400

from: Broadband Reports

The Fiscal Problems Of Franchise Laws
There's a problem when telecom companies write legislation

The Video Service Competition Act, passed into law last year by the General Assembly in North Carolina, is your basic cable franchise agreement. It was supposed to increase competition, reducing pricing and give consumers more cable service choices.

NC: What happens when telecom companies write state legislation?

Wed, 11 Jul 2007 20:14:40 -0400

from: Independent Weekly

Touch that dial
What happens when telecom companies write state legislation? Check your wallet.

BY FIONA MORGAN
JULY 11, 2007

Beware of legislation promising "competition." A bill passed by the General Assembly last year that was intended to jump-start competition in the cable TV industry has had the unforeseen consequence of costing the state and local governments across North Carolina millions of dollars in lost revenue. And six months after the law went into effect, that promised competition is nowhere in sight.

NC: Cities fight bill to limit broadband

Thu, 07 Jun 2007 12:27:21 -0400

from: The Independent Weekly

JUNE 6, 2007
Cities fight bill to limit broadband
Legislature considers move some call "No Competition Act"

BY FIONA MORGAN

The state legislature is considering a bill that would severely restrict the ability of local governments to provide broadband Internet access. It would affect everything from Chapel Hill's evolving plan for downtown wi-fi access to city partnerships with private industry to some rural communities' efforts to provide access to citizens stuck with nothing but dial-up.

NC: Bill would protect monopolies

Wed, 30 May 2007 17:50:07 -0400

from: Wilson Times

Bill would protect monopolies
Tuesday, May 29, 2007

The short title of the bill is "The Local Government Fair Competition Act," but the honest title should be "The Monopolies Protection Act."

The bill, which is in committee in the N.C. House, would establish a series of hurdles for local governments seeking to provide communications services, including telephone, cable television and Internet connections. While some of the provisions can be justified, others are transparently intended to discourage cities or counties from creating competing networks, such as the fiber-optic network the city of Wilson is already installing.

NC: Fiberoptics causes upset

Sat, 20 Jan 2007 17:04:08 -0500

Note: Telcos and Cable Companies are also fighting municipal efforts at offering local residents additional competition for data/phone/cable services.

from: Wilson Daily News

Fiberoptics causes upset

By Matthew Shaw Daily Times Staff Writer

Wilson officials clashed Thursday night with a Time Warner Cable representative over the city's plans for a fiberoptic network.

NC Faces State Franchise Vote

Tue, 30 May 2006 15:46:44 -0400

Another state in the sights of Telco state franchising efforts. If you have contacts in North Carolina, alert them to this news ASAP. See www.ncccmc.org for more info/

Friends,

A bill in the N.C. House of Representatives, HB 2047, "The Video Service Competition Act", would eliminate local government authority over cable TV franchising, consolidating the power to grant local video franchises in Raleigh.