A win for the little guy!

Cable TV battles to heat up

Lawmakers OK bill that will widen franchise options
By JIM SAUNDERS
Tallahassee Bureau Chief

TALLAHASSEE -- With supporters saying more competition will drive down prices for consumers, Florida lawmakers passed a plan Monday that will help telephone companies get into the cable-television business.

The measure, which set off a lobbying war in the Capitol, will allow companies to get statewide cable franchises and avoid having to negotiate agreements with individual cities and counties.

Phone companies hope that will clear the way for them to compete with cable companies, which have entered local franchise agreements in the past and dominated markets.

The phone and cable industries fought about the issue for more than a year. But the bill passed Monday reflects a compromise that allows cable companies --- along with phone companies --- to get statewide franchises.

Officials of both industries said the bill is part of a major shift in which phone and cable companies will compete to sell "bundled" packages that include home-phone, cable, high-speed Internet and cell-phone services.

"We're entering an era of the battle of the bundles," said Steve Wilkerson, president of the Florida Cable Telecommunications Association, a cable-industry group.

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