"Litigation for Years to Come..."

Or at least so promises Comcast, in response to the new Federal Communications Commission Rule mentioned in this blog entry the other day. The new rule was adopted by the F.C.C. unanimously today.

Whether or not the rule does in fact reach the promised litigation levels, it does appear as though the rule will apply to condos, at least based upon the quotes from Verizon and Comcast, as reported by the Associated Press:

"The FCC decision will provide access to new competitive options for residents of these properties and encourages further deployment of broadband networks," Susanne Guyer, Verizon's senior vice president of federal regulatory affairs, said in a statement.

But Comcast said the change is a "blow" to consumers in apartment buildings and condos and could spur litigation for years to come.

"The net result is that many consumers are likely to wind up paying more for services if the FCC's interference in the competitive marketplace stands," Comcast spokeswoman Sena Fitzmaurice said in an e-mailed statement.

I'll look into the new rule, and provide some more information on this blog in the next day or two.

F.C.C. Planning to Act on Exclusive Cable Contracts, at Least in Apartments

The New York Times is reporting that the Federal Communications Commission is about to adopt a rule that would prohibit exclusive cable carrier contracts in apartment buildings. The article, which is available here, is silent as to whether the regulation will alter the enforceability of these contracts in the community association context. A quick search at the F.C.C. web site shed no further information, but I'll look into that and update this posting as soon as I can find out more information.