Save Access

from: Ann Arbor News

Comcast got what it bargained for
Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Comcast, having benefited richly over decades from its cable television monopoly in Michigan communities, should feel compelled to give something of value back.

Not much has been asked, although one small concession historically from Comcast to this community and others has been a public access channel for locally produced programming, which are generally broadcast on channels on the low end of the spectrum.

from: Free Press

Live Blogging during PEG Congressional Hearing

Submitted by IraFP on January 25, 2008 - 9:07am.

On Tuesday, Jan. 29, the Free Press Action Network will hold a live-blogging session during the congressional hearing on Public, Educational, and Governmental (PEG) services in the digital TV age. Activists and community leaders will be discussing the hearing as it unfolds.

from: Ojai Valley News

Thursday, January 24, 2008
Ojai's Public Access May Be Closed

If Time Warner inks deal with state, it will likely be curtains for local television shows

By Nao Braverman
Public access television stations, known to feature quirky television shows with all the amateur charm of low-budget production and editing, may be heading for demise in California, and even sooner in Ojai.

from: The Third Eye

Thursday, January 24, 2008
Comcast got caught (temporarily), trying to be slick

To be able to win a cable franchise, the company must provide public, educational and governmental (PEG) access. Such access bring us programs, ranging from exotic cooking, to school board meetings, to one-man and one-woman shows.

from: Information Week

With Comcast Under Fire, Vuze Enjoys Growth Surge

From InformationWeek, January 18, 2008
By Richard Martin

While controversy swirls around the struggle between traditional big-pipe entertainment providers to the home — specifically the cable carriers and namely Comcast, the nation’s largest cable TV service — and providers of online peer-to-peer content services, particularly BitTorrent, the market for online movies and other forms of content continues to grow apace.

from: MultiChannel News

Operators Opt For Calif. Oversight
Cable Companies Take Advantage Of State Law Replacing Local Franchise Terms
By Linda Haugsted -- Multichannel News, 1/21/2008 5:30:00 AM

Operators big and small have taken advantage of California law allowing operators to replace local franchise terms with state oversight.

from: Free Expression Policy Project

A Federal Court Stops Comcast's Plan to Exile Public
Access Channels to Cable Siberia - At Least for Now

(January 16, 2008) - The large cable companies that sell the public its
"basic tier" and premium TV services have never liked "PEG"
(public, educational, and governmental) channels. But this week in Michigan,
a federal judge stopped the biggest of the cable giants, Comcast, from
reassigning PEG channels from the basic tier to high-numbered, difficult-to-find
spaces in the digital spectrum, and requiring customers to buy new digital
converters in order to view them.

from: Milan News

Comcast making changes to local cable channel

By Sue G. Collins, Staff Writer

PUBLISHED: January 24, 2008

Residents tuning in to Channel 18 on their television to watch the latest city council meeting, public forum or local commission meeting will soon find the cable access channel has moved to 902 on the digital TV dial.

from: Broadband Reports

Wasn't Competition Supposed To Bring Lower TV Prices?
Everybody raising prices in Northeast...
09:56AM Tuesday Jan 22 2008 by Karl

Remember all of the talk about how when the phone company got into the TV business, you'd see lower prices? Apparently they were just kidding. The Boston Globe notes that RCN, Comcast and Verizon are all raising prices in the region. Comcast will raise rates by an average of four percent next month. RCN is raising their standard TV rates by five percent. Verizon will be raising rates for FiOS TV customers by as much as twelve percent. Comcast explains the rate hikes to the paper: