[opendtv] News: Court Supports Cable In Brand X

Court Supports Cable In Brand X

By Bill McConnell & John Eggerton
Broadcasting & Cable, 6/27/2005 10:09:00 AM

The cable industry won a major victory in the Supreme Court Monday 
when the justices decided 6-3 to uphold FCC rules allowing operators 
to block rival Internet providers such as Earthlink from offering 
service over cable broadband networks.

The decision overturns an October 2003 ruling by the federal appeals 
court in San Francisco that cable Internet service is bound by 
telephone-style access rules requiring operators to lease access to 
their network to rival ISPs.

Although Monday's Supreme Court decision provides cable operators the 
strongest measure of protection from access rules so far, access 
rules in the future remain a possibility.

The FCC, when it set rules for cable broadband service in 2002, 
reserved the right to impose access rules if cable companies are 
found to use their control of their network to restrict consumers' 
access to Internet content, particularly Web sites that compete with 
cable TV programming or sites that are affiliated with cable 
companies.

National Cable & Telecommunications Association President Kyle 
McSlarrow was was obviously pleased: "Today's Supreme Court's 
decision is a victory for consumers and maintains the momentum to 
advance broadband in the U.S.  Classifying cable modem service as an 
interstate information service, as the FCC did, keeps this innovative 
service on the right deregulatory path."

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin was also happy the court had upheld its 
decision on the rules: "I am pleased that the U.S. Supreme Court has 
affirmed the FCC's ruling.  This decision provides much-needed 
regulatory clarity and a framework for broadband that can be applied 
to all providers.  We can now move forward quickly to finalize 
regulations that will spur the deployment of broadband services for 
all Americans."


The other FCC commissioners' reactions were mixed:

Republican Kathleen Abernaty was "gratified" the court paved the way 
for the commission to craft a "minimal regulatory environment"; 
Democratic Commissioner Michael Copps saw it differently, saying the 
decision made it a "steeper climb" toward the goal of "protecting 
consumers, maintaining universal service and ensuring public safety"; 
while Democrat Jonathan Adelstein trod a middle ground, saying: "the 
Supreme Court provided long-awaited guidance on the legal 
classification of cable broadband modem services," but adding that 
"the Court's decision should not mean that policymakers turn their 
backs on American consumers or neglect public safety.
A disappointed Media Access Project President Andrew Schwartzman, who 
has fought for access mandates on cable since 1998, said he would 
"hope for the best" but predicted cable companies would begin abusing 
their control over the network. "Sometimes you want to be proven 
wrong," he said. ""Our predictions will be tested."

At issue was whether the FCC was right to declare cable modem service 
an unregulated "interstate information service" exempt from open 
access requirements, or whether it is bound by a lower court ruling 
that it is a "telecommunications service" subject to telephone-style 
access regulations that could ultimately require operators let 
third-party ISPS sell their service over cable wires.

The FCC argued that exempting cable will continue speeding the 
broadband rollout, which the government has said it has a substantial 
interest in advancing.
 
 
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