FCC Chairman Kevin Martin seems to not be in the business of making friends lately. Despite talking tough on "a la carte" stations and cable conglomerates, he's failed to make much headway with fellow members of the commission or members of Congress. His goal? To treat cable operators like phone companies by giving them "common carrier" status. It doesn't seem to far-fetched given how they do a lot more than pipe in HBO and Food Network these days.
There is, however, a bit of cynicism floating around. Some have openly wondered if Martin is playing to the telco's advantage. Given that they've been rescinding open access for competitors and removing the caps on fees they can be charged, those accusations seem to stick. Sounds like the balance of power is indeed swinging. Not from huge telco giants to consumers, but from cablecos to telcos.
