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from: The Albany Project

The Brodsky Bill: Completely Clueless in Rochester

by: lipris
Fri May 11, 2007

I'm working on a long piece about Assemblyman Brodsky's Tellecommunications Reform Act that I hope to have up later today, but I just ran across this utterly clueless op-ed in the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle that I just can't let slide. Though I will give the D&C credit for writing about the issue at all given the serious dearth of coverage statewide, the piece they published Wednesday is a train wreck. They start strong with a perfect title, Hold telecom hearings, Public knows too little about major reform legislation, it ends as a muddled, clueless mess.

A key feature of the bill is the abolition of municipal cable franchises, money from which supports local public-access channels, to be replaced by statewide franchises awarded by the PSC. This would benefit latecomers to the cable game, particularly Verizon, which, to compete with Time-Warner and others, now have to go head to head in localities.

Local franchises should stay. The PSC has enough on its plate with energy deregulation. It doesn't need a cable-franchising job as well. Cable competition is needed. But Verizon should wade in on the local level rather than trying to change the rules mid-game. Other bill features - ensuring the entire state has online services and "neutral" Web access - are sound. But they can be dealt with apart from franchising.

First, the statewide video franchise is the is the juicy carrot dangled in front of the telecoms to entice them to fulfill the other parts of the bill, namely to build out their high speed infrastructure to 85% percent of the state. This is actually very important to many communities upstate, including, I wuld assume, many of the D&C's readers.

Second, local municipalities won't be losing franchise funds. The bill sends them the maximum allowed under federal law, 5%. In fact, many municipalities will see their franchise revenues actually increase.

Finally, I want to see this bill kept whole. All of these ingredients work together to motivate different stakeholders. The telecoms get their statewide video franchise. Underserved communities get broadband. Municipalities get moolah. Netizens get net neutrality. Breaking this bill apart will kill it.