Wedge, fwiw, I believe the advantage of the cablecos is becoming clearer and clearer. The cable companies will be able to combine TV, data and voice down one pipe. The ILEC's have shown little agility in moving to get data, let alone TV, moving down their lines. So, the cablecos have the potential for three revenue streams over their infrastructure, while the ilecs will be relying only on the slowest-growth, thinnest margin, most regulated portion of the communications spectrum. Meanwhile, the ilecs are distracted by the lure of wireless, and enmeshed in their own merger and acquisition strategies.
(If you believe the gmst story, you will probably agree with this conclusion, too, I suppose.)
Granted, the cablecos have some hurdles to overcome, such as quality of service issues, and lack of capital. But, Mr. Allen certainly solves part of that last problem.
Best,
JS |
