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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
APRIL 2, 1996
PUBLIC INTEREST GROUPS COMMENT ON "OPEN VIDEO SYSTEMS;"
ALLIANCE FOR COMMUNITY MEDIA LAUNCHES GRASSROOTS CAMPAIGN TO PREVENT
"CABLE-LITE"
Washington, D.C. -- In a regulatory filing with the FCC, a coalition
of public interest and consumer-advocacy organizations yesterday
raised concerns that the new "open video systems" concept, created by
the 1996 Telecommunications Act, would become "cable-lite," providing
the Regional Bell Operating Companies ("RBOCs") with a way of getting
into the video programming business without having to comply with any
of the public interests protections remaining in the 1984 Cable Act.
The FCC's rulemaking on "Open Video Systems" ("OVS") will determine
the structure of the industry that will provide the primary regulatory
alternative to traditional cable television service. The major
difference between OVS and cable systems is that OVS may be required
to allot up to two-thirds of its capacity to programmers unaffiliated
with the OVS provider under certain circumstances. The provisions
relieve OVS providers from such consumer protections as rate
regulation, maximum rates for access, local government oversight for
quality of service, consumer complaint mechanisms, and legal remedies.
OVS is not a new technology, but an alternate regulatory regime
governing present technology. The provisions expressly contemplate
that OVS may be offered over existing telephone lines , coaxial cable,
