State Regulators Asked To Stay Recent Decision

On AT&T Video Plan

HARTFORD (AP) — Several cable television companies and the state attorney general asked Connecticut regulators Tuesday to stay a recent decision to allow AT&T to offer video over phone lines without requiring the company to seek a cable franchise.

The cable companies said the 3-2 decision by the Department of Public Utility Control (DPUC) on June 7 was a boon to AT&T, freeing it from regulations intended to protect consumers. Cable companies and an industry group plan to challenge the ruling.

In a written request to the DPUC, the companies and Attorney General Richard Blumenthal cited the close vote, pending federal legislation, proposals involving AT&T being considered by the Federal Communications Commission, and the likely success of a court challenge.

A day after the DPUC”s ruling, the US House of Representatives approved a bill that, in part, would require video service providers such as AT&T that use Internet protocol technology to obtain cable franchises from the FCC. Similar proposals are pending in the Senate.

The cable companies and Blumenthal said the DPUC should stay the decision to allow commissioners to review recent developments.

“The narrowly adopted decision ... would likely grant AT&T far more rights and provide the citizens of the state of Connecticut with far fewer protections than would any legislation now pending before the US Congress, or would any determination by the FCC,” the companies and Blumenthal wrote.

The companies requesting the stay include Cablevision, Charter Communications, and CoxCom. An industry group, the New England Cable and Telecommunications Association, also asked for the stay.

Beryl Lyons, a spokeswoman for the DPUC, said the agency had no immediate comment on the request. She said the DPUC is reviewing the matter.