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OpenNET Coalition Calls for Immediate Open Access to Cable Lines

Strategic Insights

— 1 min read

The openNET Coalition has reiterated its call to AT&T, Comcast Corporation, and Cox Communications to open their high-speed cable lines to competition ahead of the June 2002 deadline outlined in their contracts. The coalition, representing over 900 Internet service providers, emphasizes that the recent reorganization among the owners of Excite@Home provides an opportunity for the companies to move up the timetable and allow consumers to have choice in broadband Internet access sooner.

Key Takeaways:

  • The openNET Coalition has called on AT&T, Comcast, and Cox to open their high-speed cable lines to competition before the June 2002 deadline.
  • The reorganization among the owners of Excite@Home has given AT&T the ability to name a majority of members to the company's board of directors and to consolidate Excite@Home's earnings into its own.
  • Cox and Comcast will have the ability to end the exclusivity relationship with Excite@Home beginning in June 2001.
  • The coalition represents over 900 Internet service providers and other Internet-related companies around the United States.
  • AT&T, Time Warner, Comcast, and Cox have all announced their intention to open their cable lines to multiple Internet service providers under pressure from government policy makers and consumers.
  • The openNET Coalition will continue to press policy makers to ensure that cable open access becomes a reality sooner rather than later.

Statistics:

  • June 2002: The scheduled deadline for opening high-speed cable lines to competition outlined in the contracts between AT&T, Comcast, and Cox.
  • 2001: The year in which Cox and Comcast will have the ability to end the exclusivity relationship with Excite@Home.
  • 74 percent: The controlling interest in Excite@Home that AT&T will gain through the purchase of stock.
  • 900: The number of Internet service providers and other Internet-related companies around the United States represented by the openNET Coalition.
  • June 29, 2000: The date on which the reorganization among the owners of Excite@Home was announced.

Sources:

  • "openNET Coalition Calls for Open Access to Cable Lines," openNET Coalition press release, March 29, 2000.
  • "AT&T, Comcast, Cox to Open High-Speed Cable Lines to Competition," Business Wire, March 29, 2000.

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