Salvation For Cable? GOP Hates FCC Plan

It looked like the FCC was going to have cable companies for dinner. The commission was talking about forcing cable systems to open channels to small networks, and perhaps planning to halt future acquisitions by giants like Time Warner Cable (TWC) and Comcast (CMCSA).

But, GOP Congressmen think that the FCC is getting a bit heavy on the regulation side of things. In a quote picked up by The Wall Street Journal one representative voiced his concerns: "It is a concern that he may be moving away from the light-touch regulation to a much greater role for regulation," said Rep. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee.

The movement in Congress may be good news for the cable companies. They are losing HD customers to satellite TV companies. And, as Verizon (VZ) and AT&T (T) roll out fiber-to-the-home, the telecom companies are beginning to take cable customers who want packages of TV, voice, and broadband. Last month, the FCC said it would open up bidding for TV service in apartment buildings. That used to be a franchise cable could count on as its own.

Most cable stocks trade at 52-week lows. That has been fueled lately by concerns that the FCC would do more damage to the industry with its planned changes to how the companies could operate.

The GOP wants to keep the FCC out of it, Look for a rally in cable shares

Douglas A. McIntyre