Telcos ask high court to dump must-carry
In legal briefs filed by six of the seven regional Bell operating companies, GTE and telco lobbying organization U.S. Telephone Assn., the telcos expressed fear that if "must-carry" protection for broadcasters is upheld, it could damage the prospects of telcos' overturning a law restricting their entry into the cable TV arena.
Broadcasters regard must-carry protection as vital to their chances for survival in a 500-channel universe, and lobbied fiercely for inclusion of the provision in last year's cable reregulation bill. A federal court upheld must-carry in a 2-1 vote earlier this year; the Supreme Court is expected to decide the case sometime in 1994.
National Assn. of Broadcasters president Eddie Fritts said he is "deeply disturbed" by the telcos' decision to oppose must-carry. "The extreme positions taken by the telcos indicate they want to expand their monopoly control to include all video programming and do so in the absence of any regulation," he said.
Broadcast lobbyists claimed the legal brief represented a flip-flop by the telcos. The telcos had previously given assurances that they will carry TV stations if allowed into the cable business, according to broadcast industry representatives.
