Washington Post 2007 Annual Report Download - page 36

Apart from its authority under the 1992 Cable Act and the Telecommunications Act of 1996,theFCCregulatesvarious
other aspects of cable television operations. Long-standing FCC rules require cable systems to black out from certain
distant broadcast stations they carry syndicated programs for which local stations have purchased exclusive rights and
requested exclusivity, and to delete under certain circumstances duplicative network programs broadcast by distant
stations. The FCC also imposes certain technical standards on cable television operators, exercises the power to
license various microwave and other radio facilities frequently used in cable television operations and regulates the
assignment and transfer of control of such licenses.
Internet Access Services
In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the FCC’s 2002 classification of cable modem service as an “information
service.” As a result, cable modem service is not subject to the full panoply of regulations applied to “telecommu-
nications services” or to “cable services” under the Communications Act, nor is it subject to state or local government
regulation. In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision, the FCC ruled in August 2005 that a telephone company’s
offering of digital subscriber line (“DSL”) Internet access service is also an “information service.” At that time, the FCC
adopted a general policy statement that the providers of cable modem and DSL services should not interfere with the
use of the Internet by their customers, but it declined to adopt any specific rules in that regard. However, the FCC also
initiated a rulemaking on what consumer protection requirements should apply in the context of cable modem and DSL
services. That rulemaking is currently pending, and its outcome is uncertain.
The Company’s Cable ONE subsidiary currently offers Internet access on virtually all of its cable systems and is the sole
Internet service provider on those systems. However, it does notrestrictthesitesthatasubscribermayview.The2005
Supreme Court decision described above removes some uncertainty surrounding the Company’s ability to deliver
Internet access without facing substantially increased regulatory burdens, although legislation or regulations could still
be enacted or adopted that might restrict the Company’s future ability to modify the way it provides cable modem
service. In particular, Congress has been considering whether to impose various “net neutrality” requirements that
would limit the ability of Internet access providers to prioritize the delivery of particular types of content, applications or
services over their networks. As a result of recent allegations that cable operators may be interfering with transmission
and receipt of data on so-called “peer-to-peer” networks, several entities have asked the FCC to ban such practices
and to rule that reasonable network management practices do not include conduct that would block, degrade or
unreasonably discriminate against lawful Internet applications, content or technologies. The FCC is currently reviewing
a complaint against another cable operator for, among other things, allegedly managing user bandwidth consumption
by identifying and restricting the applications being run, not the actual bandwidth consumed. We cannot predict the
outcome of this proceeding or any impact it may have on the FCC’s net neutrality requirements as they apply to Internet
access providers.
Broadband Internet access services, like the Company’s cable and VoIP services, are subject to other federal and state
privacy laws applicable to electronic communications. Providers of broadband Internet access services must comply
with the FCC’s regulations implementing the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (“CALEA”), which
requires providers to make their services and facilities accessible for law enforcement intercept requests. Various other
federal and state laws apply to providers of services that are accessible through the Company’s Internet access service,
including copyright laws, prohibitions on obscenity and a ban on unsolicited commercial e-mail. Online content
provided by the Company is also subject to these laws.
Voice Services
Voice Over Internet Protocol. Cable companies (including the Company’s Cable ONE subsidiary) and others offer
telephone service using a technology known as voice over Internet protocol (“VoIP”), which permits users to make
telephone calls over broadband communications networks, including the Internet. Depending on their equipment and
service provider, VoIP subscribers can use a regular telephone (connected to an adaptor) to make and receive calls to
or from anyone on the public network. The Telecommunications Act of 1996 preempts state and local regulatory
barriers to the offering of telephone service by cable companies and others, and the FCC has used that federal
provision to preempt specific state laws that seek to regulate VoIP. Other provisions of the 1996 Act enable a
competitor such as a cable company to exchange voice and data traffic with the incumbent telephone company and to
purchase certain features at reduced costs, and these provisions have enabled some cable companies to offer a
competing telephone service.
During 2004, some states sought to regulate VoIP service pursuant to their public utility jurisdiction, but VoIP providers
challenged these actions before the FCC and in federal courts. Later in 2004, the FCC ruled that VoIP services are
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