Re: When will Verizon FIOS be coming to [YOUR TOWN NAME HERE]?

["Randy Cole" <user=55@nabble.blu.org>]

 Why can't I pay for the local channel separately?  Why can't I watch 
public meetings over the internet? 

Satellite is usually cheaper than cable, so that's eroding the 
subscriber base.  Unless the cable access channel adds internet 
delivery, it is doomed. 


I must admit I enjoy watching the cable access channel  for a small town 
in central Massachusetts.  They post happy birthday messages for all the 
people born that week.  Plus it supplements the lack of newspaper coverage. 



Mark J. Dulcey wrote: 
> Scott Ehrlich wrote: 
>> 
>> I'd heard, somewhere, that Verizon was putting a hold in repeating 
>> the individual community process until the state passes legislation 
>> to override community efforts, making it easier for Verizon to push 
>> into communities through a centralized state effort. 
>> 
>> This is also why tv ads have been seen, at least in the recent past, 
>> urging the community to keep tv decisions local.  Local, here, means 
>> the cable companies continue their locking in of communities, 
>> blocking Verizon's attempts.  If changes make it to state approval, 
>> things could potentially change more favorably for Verizon. 
> 
> Changing to state approval would also mean the end of local-access 
> channels. Towns would no longer have any leverage over cable companies 
> to get them to provide local access, and it's impossible to imagine 
> that the companies would give up a precious spot on their system and 
> fund studios in that scenario. 
> 
> The counter-counter-argument: local access amounts to a tax on cable 
> subscribers; if cities and towns want cable channels, they should pay 
> for them. And it's already unfair to cable companies to force them to 
> provide local access when their satellite competitors are not required 
> to do anything. 
> 
> I'm really not sure where I stand on this one. 
> 
>