And it sounds as though it's a Democrat that is at the center of the problem. With friends like this...
The five-member commission is set to vote on Tuesday on a report, proposed by Kevin J. Martin, the agency’s chairman, that would give the commission expanded powers over the cable industry after making a formal finding that it had grown too big.Uh huh, the cable industry is a delicate little flower that will wilt without unfair favoritism by government officials such as Adelstein.
After news reports this month that Mr. Martin supported the finding — along with the commission’s two Democrats — the cable industry heavily lobbied the commission and allies in Congress to kill the proposal. Those efforts may be paying off.
One of the Democrats, Jonathan S. Adelstein, recently joined with one of the Republican opponents of the measure to try, unsuccessfully, to postpone the vote, commission officials said. Mr. Adelstein complained that Mr. Martin has been unfairly rushing other commissioners to complete the finding. Mr. Adelstein has told people involved in the proceeding that he was unsure whether there was an adequate basis for concluding that the cable companies had become too dominant. Without Mr. Adelstein’s support, Mr. Martin’s proposal could fail.
The cable TV industry only acts this way because they know that once competition is opened up, they're finished. Here in France, cable has become "has-been" since they opened up the market to competition. The industry used to be just as bad until the ISP's started delivering TV content through the phone lines, at much cheaper rates. Today, the local cable industry only clings on to life by questionable business practices such as ignoring certified cancellation letters and sending threatening letters to departing customers. Who needs businesses like this?
