My Back Pages: Issues to Face…

Cable World, Feb 21, 2005

By Paul S. Maxwell

The National Cable & Telecommunications Association has a new guy to lead us (the cable industry) through the rest of this decade. He's going to be facing a few issues that will make or break us (more on McSlarrow another time, haven't yet had the pleasure--and I'm afraid to use even the word "bipartisan" in this new alternate universe of being politically correct).

The other day in Keller, Texas, Verizon got a franchise...sort of. Not one like Charter has, though.

This "franchise" by the "city" of Keller doesn't require Verizon to build out the whole franchise area.

That's right. Verizon can cream skim.

Does that sound like a regulatory level playing field?

Not to me, it doesn't.

Advice #1: So here's the first bit of advice to our newcomer: Study everything possible about redlining. That's the issue to combat those telephone company "public servants" over...discrimination in pursuit of easy high dollar subscribers. With the Keller precedent, it is going to be difficult to argue against it as other RBOCs fan out across the country with fiber-delivered video services in competition with cable. (Nothing wrong with that; just as there's nothing wrong with competing via VoIP--the issue is about full access and cream skimming.) Might be fun to develop a "universal service" solution as a way to combat this, too.

Meanwhile, Congress is back in session with new members and new majorities...that's always an occasion for trepidation. While I doubt it will displace other issues like the peace in Iraq, the attempt to remake Social Security, the shame of tort lawyers and the high cost of insurance because of all those gazillions in stupid damage awards, the War on Terror, making the tax cut packages permanent and stopping the nuclear threats in Iran and North Korea, it is possible that an attempt will be made to rewrite the '96 Telecom Act.

Advice #2: Bone up now before you have to hit the road inside and outside the Beltway. It is a complicated mess, but for cable, there's good and bad (the Sacred and the Profane) in the details. Gotta know when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em. I presume our new guy knows Alaska Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK), but he might make a wonderful new best friend.

And then there's the natural tension between (among?) operators and programmers.

Advice #3: Learn to dance with a new breed of elephants.

See you in San Francisco, if not before.

Addendum:

"X" Marks the Spot? That's ESPN's Sean Bratches and Steve Raymond with me at Aspen Highlands during the X-Games. Sean is shown here fresh from rescuing a Vogel kid (we won't print which one) from missing a turn and dropping 10 feet out of the ski area boundary over a small cliff after successfully navigating a steep slope (2 inches of new snow over two weeks of crust).

My colleague, John Ourand, was at Buttermilk; he didn't go into the Highland Bowl this year (better part of valor). Just a week later found me in the hospital for knee surgery (no relation to the X-Games; old tennis torn stuff with fluids and tears and wear and arthritis and all that old man stuff). Meanwhile, in a wonderful marriage of corporate responsibility and nonprofits and publicity and doing good, the X-Games staged a special Monday morning during the events with 12 men and four women "mono-skiers"--you know, the disabled folks. Awe-inspiring. And a wonderful run-up to this year's Ski-TAM (immediately following the NCTA...great antidote to the hype in San Francisco). Not too late to participate either...log on to www.skitam.com and click on the "Silent Auction" button...and donate something that can help raise money for the U.S. Disabled Ski Team.

[Copyright 2005 Access Intelligence, LLC. All rights reserved.]