Internetworkers: http://www.ibiblio.org/internetworkers/

[Edward Wesolowski <edwes AT idisplay.com>]

At 09:51 AM 10/21/2004 -0400, you wrote:
> Tony Spencer wrote:
> > I may be wrong but I don't think it applies to cable.  I don't think its
> > considered public airwaves.
>
> The RF spectrum is public property and is licensed to broadcasters to 
> serve a public purpose as well as for economic development.  Cable 
> networks are hard assets and are considered private property, with some 
> limitations.  For example, the "must carry" rule requires cable service 
> providers to carry local broadcast stations on their networks.  That is 
> believed to be in the public interest, for economic as well as 
> informational reasons.
>
> TaB
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> The RF spectrum is public property and is licensed to broadcasters to 
> serve a public purpose as well as for economic development.
Tom: This has always struck me as tricky and peculiar. Traditionally the 
U.S. government has been adverse to control of such things as the "public" 
airways. They get into it, but the point of departure has traditionally 
been the govment  shouldn't run stuff like television, like the BBC does. 
But instead of government control of the public RF spectrum, television 
and  radio channels have been controlled by private, licensee companies.

I wonder if Michael Powell, head of the FCC, might be right and that 
there's so many channels, as well as the Internet, for getting information 
out that rules limiting ownership of media outlets by a single company are 
just outdated? I, too, would like to think this, and that somehow the rules 
are moot. Truthfully, tho, the Internet appears to have a ways to go (in 
terms of carrying video, in particular...) to be able to compete w/the 
"public" airways.
OK, probably this is a digression, but the issue of the "public" airways 
makes me feel all warm and fuzzy and makes me think of some higher 
authority overseeing broadcast signals (& maybe even mass distributed cable 
signals too) and managing these in the "public" interest. (whatever that is!)
Ed W.