Right Step on Cable Access

As use of the Internet grows, those who still rely on their regular snail’s-pace telephone lines for a connection want better. What options will consumers have for truly high-speed, broad-band connections that satisfy key electronic and communications needs while offering a variety of other services at reasonable cost?

The answers have been part of a wide-ranging debate and a costly struggle pitting the likes of AT&T; and its cable television merger partners against competitors such as America Online, some Baby Bell companies and other Internet service providers.

Now, AT&T; has announced a major reversal of its position, one that figures to affect every local government, including Los Angeles, that has considered local regulations of high-speed Internet access.

AT&T; says that it will eventually open up access to high-speed, two-way cable lines to other service providers. Where once AT&T; argued that it would be patently unfair, technologically unfeasible and financially suicidal to allow competitors access to its cable lines, the media giant now says it can and will open access. Though there are caveats, it’s the right move.

AT&T; has moved to become the biggest player in cable services, with actual and pending acquisitions of major cable companies. Even though companies like AOL were investing heavily in other high-speed Internet technologies, most feared that AT&T;’s earlier moves would give it an insurmountable lead. Competitors demanded “open access,” meaning that AT&T; would allow them to buy digital space on its cable lines.

Giving AT&T; exclusivity, the open access proponents argued, would repeat the bad old days of exclusive cable TV contracts that offered awful service at exorbitant prices. But some local governments had already mandated open access on cable lines. The Federal Communications Commission disapproved of local regulation but said it would not intervene.

In the meantime, AT&T;’s hoped-for acquisition of cable giant Media One, which requires federal approval, still faced significant hurdles. Skeptics suggested that AT&T;’s change of heart reflected a desire to show itself as reasonable. Whatever the motivation, AT&T; is moving in the right direction, although questions remain about costs and implementation--including whether all service providers would truly have access.

In Los Angeles, where the City Council was considering whether to allow AT&T; exclusive access or mandate that lines be shared with AOL and other competitors, the AT&T; decision might slow a frenzy of City Hall lobbying on both sides, and that can only be to the public’s benefit. In the most desirable outcome, local Internet users will continue to see falling prices for high-speed Internet services--probably the best form of access there is.