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RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The cable and telecom lobbies couldn't compromise on opposing bills addressing the phone companies' efforts to tap into Virginia's television market. So lawmakers did it for them.
Under a compromise measure drawn up Tuesday by lawmakers, Verizon Communications Inc. and other telecoms would get faster access into a business now dominated by cable firms. But unlike the Verizon bill, the compromise would force new television entrants to expand their networks to certain levels in local franchise areas, responding to concerns that telcos might cherry-pick markets based on their affluence.
Cable companies had lobbied against the Verizon bill, introduced by Del. Terry Kilgore. The cable industry worried it would lower the bar for Verizon's entry into television while leaving them locked in old franchise agreements granted by localities. Several communities complained about their weakened authority.
Kilgore and House Majority Leader H. Morgan Griffith worked with both industries and help hammer out the compromise late Tuesday.
"I think we have peace in the valley right now," said Kilgore, R-Scott.
With similar debates taking place in other statehouses, "an agreement here may very well serve as a model for other states dealing with this issue," said Griffith, R-Salem, who had introduced the cable-backed bill.
The compromise language was being drafted Wednesday and was not yet available. Among some of its key features, according to the legislators' offices:
- It would force new entrants like Verizon to offer TV services to 65 percent of eligible residents in their franchise areas within seven years. After that, localities could force new entrants to hit 80 percent in 10 years.
- New entrants could get into markets within 75 days under the proposed state framework. Verizon and others had complained about the time it took to go from locality to locality, negotiating separate deals.
- New TV rivals could negotiate better deals with localities, but localities would be compelled to offer cable companies the same terms as the newcomers.
Neither side got all of what it wanted. The cable industry, for example, had asked that all new entrants be forced to offer services under old cable-franchise rules if they couldn't complete negotiations with local governments within 120 days. That won't happen.
Verizon had hoped for one giant shortcut around local franchise rules. The compromise does not eliminate local authority to determine how extensively TV entrants build their networks. But it does provide them with a state framework for the new expansions, and it does force local governments to speed up the approval process.
The Verizon bill did not eliminate franchise fees, local control over rights of way or regulatory authority over quality of service; and the compromise bill won't either.
"I think there are good points and bad points," Ray LaMura, president of the Virginia Cable Telecommunications Association, said of the compromise.
Robert Woltz, president of Verizon Virginia, said the new bill still promises faster entry into markets for the new TV competitors, and will results in lower prices. Cable prices have steadily risen, prompting customer complaints.
New York-based Verizon and other telcos have argued that local franchise rules have proven to be barriers to competition, allowing cable companies to dominate. They've also noted that cable companies entered the phone business without being hampered by local regulations.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - The cable and telecom lobbies couldn't compromise on opposing bills addressing the phone companies' efforts to tap into Virginia's television market. So lawmakers did it for them.
Under a compromise measure drawn up Tuesday by lawmakers, Verizon Communications Inc. and other telecoms would get faster access into a business now dominated by cable firms. But unlike the Verizon bill, the compromise would force new television entrants to expand their networks to certain levels in local franchise areas, responding to concerns that telcos might cherry-pick markets based on their affluence.
Cable companies had lobbied against the Verizon bill, introduced by Del. Terry Kilgore. The cable industry worried it would lower the bar for Verizon's entry into television while leaving them locked in old franchise agreements granted by localities. Several communities complained about their weakened authority.
Kilgore and House Majority Leader H. Morgan Griffith worked with both industries and help hammer out the compromise late Tuesday.
"I think we have peace in the valley right now," said Kilgore, R-Scott.
With similar debates taking place in other statehouses, "an agreement here may very well serve as a model for other states dealing with this issue," said Griffith, R-Salem, who had introduced the cable-backed bill.
The compromise language was being drafted Wednesday and was not yet available. Among some of its key features, according to the legislators' offices:
- It would force new entrants like Verizon to offer TV services to 65 percent of eligible residents in their franchise areas within seven years. After that, localities could force new entrants to hit 80 percent in 10 years.
- New entrants could get into markets within 75 days under the proposed state framework. Verizon and others had complained about the time it took to go from locality to locality, negotiating separate deals.
- New TV rivals could negotiate better deals with localities, but localities would be compelled to offer cable companies the same terms as the newcomers.
Neither side got all of what it wanted. The cable industry, for example, had asked that all new entrants be forced to offer services under old cable-franchise rules if they couldn't complete negotiations with local governments within 120 days. That won't happen.
Verizon had hoped for one giant shortcut around local franchise rules. The compromise does not eliminate local authority to determine how extensively TV entrants build their networks. But it does provide them with a state framework for the new expansions, and it does force local governments to speed up the approval process.
The Verizon bill did not eliminate franchise fees, local control over rights of way or regulatory authority over quality of service; and the compromise bill won't either.
"I think there are good points and bad points," Ray LaMura, president of the Virginia Cable Telecommunications Association, said of the compromise.
Robert Woltz, president of Verizon Virginia, said the new bill still promises faster entry into markets for the new TV competitors, and will results in lower prices. Cable prices have steadily risen, prompting customer complaints.
New York-based Verizon and other telcos have argued that local franchise rules have proven to be barriers to competition, allowing cable companies to dominate. They've also noted that cable companies entered the phone business without being hampered by local regulations.
