Category: Newsletter

www.bennetlaw.com Greenfield Developments and SMATV City of Austin v. Southwestern Bell Video Services, 193 F.3d 309 (5th Cir. 1999), cert. den. 529 U.S. 1082 (2000). l Purchase of Video Supertrunking Service From Affiliated Common Carrier Pursuant To Tariff Does Not Subject Purchaser to Franchise Requirement l No Common Officer or Directors l Tariffed Service l Arms Length Headend Lease l Headend…

www.bennetlaw.com Greenfield Developments and SMATV In re Entertainment Connections, Inc., 13 FCC Rcd 14277 (1998), aff’d sub nom., City of Chicago v. FCC, 199 F.3d 424 (7th Cir. 1999), cert. den. 2000 U.S. LEXIS 5171 (2000). l  Purchase of Video Transport From Unaffiliated Common Carrier Pursuant To Tariff Does Not Use ROW l Absolute Separation of Ownership…

www.bennetlaw.com VOD  Services Telcos Offering VOD Services: l Are Not Cable Systems (CA 602(7)(C)) l Are Not Subject To Federal Franchise Requirements lLocal Franchise Authority Unclear l  Very Narrow Exception: lMust be Exclusively VOD lMust be Offered Over Switched Network lMust Be Point-To-Point lMay Not Include Pre-Scheduled Programming l

www.bennetlaw.com Greenfield Developments and SMATV Facilities Not Using Any Public Rights-Of-Way (ROW) l Are Not Cable Systems (CA 602(7)(B)) l Are Not Subject To Federal Franchise Requirements l Are Not Subject To Local Franchise Requirements  Wireless Interconnection Does Not Use ROW  Be Aware of Cross Ownership (CA 613(a)) •

www.bennetlaw.com 5. Stealth Operators A.Video On Demand (VOD) B. B. Private Developments (Greenfield) and SMATV C. C.Internet Video Streaming Services •

www.bennetlaw.com OVS Operators FCC Originally Determined No Local Franchise Required •  Federal Fifth Circuit Held That CA Did Not Preempt Local Franchising Authority. (City of Dallas v. FCC, 165 F.3d 341 (5th Cir. 1999)). • Subsequent FCC Decisions Subtly Change Atmospherics •

www.bennetlaw.com Local Franchises v Emergency Alert v I-Net v Franchise Fees v EEO v Privacy v Reports, Reports, Reports v Insurance and Indemnification v Performance Guarantees

www.bennetlaw.com 4. OVS Operators No Federal Franchise Requirement – No 214 Limited Title VI Obligations lPEG Access lMust Carry & Retransmission Consent lOwnership Restrictions lRegulation of Carriage Agreements lNegative Option Billing lProgram Access lSubscriber Privacy lEEO lPayments “In Lieu Of” Franchise Fees l

www.bennetlaw.com Local Franchises v Construction and Maintenance v Universal Service and Line Extensions v Transfers and Assignments v  Facilities and Equipment v  Services v  Rebuild and State-of-the-Art v  Leased Access v  PEG Access v  Home Wiring v  Basic Service Rates v  Technical Standards Enforcement v  Customer Service