Overbuilder scores in South Dakota.

Multichannel News, February, 2005 by Haugsted, Linda

A tussle over a cable overbuild franchise for Sioux Falls, S.D., has spilled into the aisles of the Legislature--and might end up allowing the competitor to avoid full-buildout requirements. That competitor is PrairieWave Communications, an incumbent local-exchange carrier in Minnesota, South Dakota and Iowa that has overbuilt cable systems in 36 communities.

For its part, incumbent MSO Midcontinent Communications says a bill favoring PrairieWave passed the state Senate on Feb. 21 and was returned to the House (which overwhelmingly approved a prior version) to discuss changes. The bill, HB1160, is only a few paragraphs long and states the legislature's support for multiple franchisee holders while defining franchise terms. Importantly, one...

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