Dismissal of Suit Against Cable Providers Upheld
Dismissal of Suit Against Cable Providers Upheld
A federal appeals court ruled last week that cable providers do not breach antitrust laws by their standard sales practice of clubbing low demand and high demand channels rather than allowing customers choose their individual channels.
The arrangement makes people pay for channels they do not want. The court noted that the effects are fully consistent with a competitive and free market. The hearing was being carried out at the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. It upheld a federal judge’s order to dismiss an antitrust suit filed in 2007 by a group of satellite and cable TV customers in Los Angeles. They had accused Entertainment companies like Fox Entertainment Group and NBC Universal of using their clout with distributors like EchoStar Satellite and Time Warner Cable to sell channels as a package instead of allowing customers to choose them individually.
Maxwell Blecher, the lawyer for the group had pleaded that a basic entertainment package offered by most companies contains at least 50 channels whereas an average person watches between 5 and 15 channels only. People must be able to choose smaller packages or individual packages but these options are not made available due to absence of competitive conditions, Blecher said.
But the court observed that sales practice that harm consumers do not necessarily damage competition which is a prerequisite for an antitrust violation. A similar conclusion was derived by the panel in June who withdrew the verdict in November and issued a fresh decision last week.
Judge Sandra Ikuta had noted that packaged sales had not affected competition amongst cable TV channels or quality of distribution. It neither affected programmers from offering one channel sales.
Glen Pomerantz, the lawyer for Fox Entertainment said that the court had correctly noted that agreements between cable and satellite operators and television programmers do not harm competition in any way.
Categories: Cable Internet, Internet News, Internet Providers, Uncategorized Tags: Cable, providers
DSL Internet Providers In My Area
DSL In My Area
If you’re trying to find DSL Internet Service in your area, then it doesn’t do any good to compare providers and plans that aren’t available in your area.
DSL is limited by the distance from the CO or telephone company’s central office. The copper limits are around 15,000 feet. and this would be the actual length of the cable not the point to point distance. If your neighborhood has newer fiber optic telephone cabling this distance can be extended.
For higher DSL speeds these distances get shorter, the faster the speed the shorter the distance. A 3Mbps DSL connection would be about a maximum of 6000 feet from the CO. If you exceed these limits quality and speed will suffer.
DSL providers are reluctant to install expensive ADSL equipment and cabling in remote or rural areas where there’s not a big enough prospective DSL subscriber base to realize a profit.
A lot will depend on what Broadband Internet providers are available in your specific area, and what levels of service they offer in that location.
For instance ADSL Internet might be better in one city, and cable Internet options better in another.
If you want high speed (Broadband) Internet then your cheapest option is DSL, The lower speed DSL plans start at about $20 per month. DSL or cable Internet doesn’t require or tie up a telephone line, and has faster speeds and much greater bandwidth limits than mobile broadband or satellite Internet. Cable Internet is generally faster than DSL but pricier. High speed cable Internet options are available in some areas with speeds in excess of 100Mbps. Newer ADSL2+ services top out at about 40Mbps and the service areas are very limited. Both DSL and cable Internet availability depends on your exact location, in some remote areas it is not even an option and Satellite Internet or perhaps cellular Mobile Broadband, both more expensive and slower, would have to be the choice if you want high speed Internet.
As with any broadband Internet option DSL Plans and pricing are totally dependent on your exact location.
Go to a Broadband ISP Comparison site where you can input your street address such as: http://isp1.us/find/ All of the broadband offers in your area will show up. You’ll want to pick the fastest plan that fits your budget. In some areas this can be 100Mbps+. But these high end broadband plans are expensive. You may find that something in the 3 to 20Mbps range might satisfy your needs at a much lower cost.
DSL Providers by Zip Code
Is DSL available in my area?
This is a question we are often asked at ISP 1. The answer is it depends, it depends entirely on the exact area that you live in.
Broadband DSL availability and pricing is determined by the address where you need service. You will have to enter your Zip Code and address to determine what DSL services are offered to your home.
DSL is limited by the distance from the CO or telephone companies central office. The copper limits are around 15,000 feet. and this would be the actual length of the cable not the point to point distance. If your neighborhood has fiber optic this distance can be extended,
For higher DSL speeds these distances get shorter, the faster the speed the shorter the distance. A 3Mbps DSL connection would be about a maximum of 6000 feet from the CO. If you exceed these limits quality and speed will suffer.
What all of this technical jargon means is that you may be eligible for one DSL package that is not available to your next door neighbor, due to how the telephone cabling is run.
The best way to determine the exact DSL services that are offered is to search for DSL Providers by Zip Code and address.
All of the broadband DSL offers in your area will show up along with high speed cable Internet and other options. You’ll want to pick the fastest plan that fits your budget. In select areas this can be 100Mbps+. However, high end broadband plans are very expensive. You might find that a broadband Internet deal in the 5Mbps to 20Mbps range might satisfy your Internet service needs at a much lower cost.
