Verizon beating the State Franchise Drum in Massachusetts again
A recent story in the Boston Herald says that Verizon is again saying that if they don’t get a state franchise bill passed soon that they won’t be able to wire FiOS into much of the state. Hell, many parts of Mass don’t have dsl or cable now, so how would this be different?
From the article:
Verizon can’t wire “every single mountaintop and every single farm” in Massachusetts, [Verizon CEO] Seidenberg said after yesterday’s Boston College event.
But it’s willing to negotiate with the state to deploy digital broadband in more hard-to-get-to-places if it can get just one statewide license, rather than holding protracted talks with individual communities about rolling out its so-called “FiOS” service.
“While we’ve had some success in Massachusetts (in wiring 67 towns), it’s been more expensive, it’s been more burdensome, and it falls way short of how successful we’ve been in other states” that have given Verizon statewide licenses, he said.
Most municipalities have fiercely resisted Verizon’s proposal, fearing they would lose clout to negotiate contracts with cable companies. A bill that would give Verizon a statewide license is now bottled up in the Legislature, with action not expected to be taken any time soon.
I’d like to know how different Verizon’s version of “successful in other states” differs from the version of the people in states that have been bulldozed into passing these bills. Usually it means Verizon (or AT&T or QWest) makes lots more money, doesn’t have buildout requirements and gets to cherry pick the wealthy areas, pays lots less in franchise fees, towns end up paying for service to schools and libraries and municipal buildings, there’s less protection of right of ways, the end of Public Access, no pesky consumer complaints to deal with since at the state level they tend to get lost . . . geez, there’s a lot here for Verizon to like.
What worries me more is that Boston Mayor Menino said the statewide franchise “makes some sense”. Usually when politicians start making those noises, it means the fix is in. We all know how Verizon greases the skids. I expect we’ll hear from some Minority Group Spokesperson next on how beneficial this will be for “consumers”. Yeah, right.
I think Mass Residents should ask folks in Texas, Wisconsin, Illinois, New Jersey, and other states that have passed these bills just how “successful” they’ve been at lowering cable and broadband rates. Usually the opposite happens, with an accompanying raise in taxes to cover what was given away with the end of local control. So much for Cable Choice and Competition, or whatever they’re calling it this year.
