Phone funds for city.The new state law that allows telephone companies to send video signals down the wire into homes may shake up the satellite and cable TV market but won't have much financial effect on the City of Los Angeles
prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a report from the City Attorney's Office. Currently the city has 14 local television franchise agreements that generate $24 million per year for public coffers, thanks to a 5 percent fee on cable revenues. All 14 contracts are expired, as both the city and the city's two cable companies--Time Warner Cable and Charter Communications--awaited the fate of the new law. However, regular service will continue to cable subscribers at least for now, the report states, based on the same logic that as long as tenants pay rent they continue to live under their expired rental agreement A rental agreement is a contract, usually written, between the owner of a property and a renter who desires to have temporary possession of the property. As a minimum, the agreement identifies the parties, the property, the term of the rental, and the amount of rent for the term. . Under the new law, companies that distribute video via telephone would get a license from the state, not municipalities. Each phone company can designate des·ig·nate tr.v. des·ig·nat·ed, des·ig·nat·ing, des·ig·nates 1. To indicate or specify; point out. 2. To give a name or title to; characterize. 3. its service area without regard to city or county boundaries. But the law stipulates that the companies must pay a 5 percent fee of the revenues earned from video distribution to the local city where subscribers live. With bundled services (regular telephone, Internet and video), the TV fee only applies to the video portion. In addition, the city can impose a 1 percent fee on telephone video to support public, educational and governmental channels, or PEGs. Under current franchise agreements, cable companies distribute four PEG peg 1. To fix the price of a new security issue during the issuance period through buying and selling it in the open market in order to ensure that the price in the secondary market will not fall below the offering price. channels in Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. . The companies also manage 13 studios that produce public access programming and supply cable TV for free to government buildings, schools and libraries. State license holders wouldn't have to provide these services under the new law; hence the 1 percent fee evens the playing field between old and new competitors and ensures continued services. Because the new law gives the city the ability to unilaterally u·ni·lat·er·al adj. 1. Of, on, relating to, involving, or affecting only one side: "a unilateral advantage in defense" New Republic. 2. extend existing franchises until Jan. 2, 2008, it "provides an initial safeguard that no areas of the city will be without cable service," the report states. Beyond next year, however, the shape of the TV market gets fuzzy fuzz·y adj. fuzz·i·er, fuzz·i·est 1. Covered with fuzz. 2. Of or resembling fuzz. 3. Not clear; indistinct: a fuzzy recollection of past events. 4. . The new landscape "will present the city with a number of challenges as it manages the transition from city video franchise authority to state franchise authority," the report concludes. The law, called the Digital Infrastructure and Video Competition Act, goes into effect on Jan. 1. |
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