May 17 (The Star-Ledger/KRTBN)--The cable wars continue to heat up in New
Jersey.
Cablevision System Corp. has filed notice that it wants to go head-to-head with
a rival cable operator, RCN Corp. of Princeton, in nine towns in Morris and
Somerset counties.
The two companies have battled before in the Boston area, although Cablevision
last month agreed to sell its systems there to AT&T. RCN is targeting
Cablevision and Comcast cable franchises in dozens of towns in Hudson, Essex,
Union and Bergen counties.
Not long ago, it was unheard of for cable companies to encroach on each other's
monopolies. But the rise of companies such as RCN, whose strategy is to move in
on other cable companies' plum markets, and a general trend toward consolidation
in the industry have changed the rules of the game.
"We see strong demand for highspeed Internet and digital video services," said
Joseph Azznara, president of Cablevision's systems in the New York metropolitan
area. "We expect to offer those services as quickly as possible to customers in
both existing Cablevision territories across New Jersey and adjacent areas
underserved by other providers."
The clash could be a boon for consumers. Cablevision, the second-largest cable
operator in the state, has told officials in the nine towns that it plans to
offer digital television, high-speed Internet access and local telephone service
on its network.
"Conceptually, competition is good," said John Middleton, the township
administrator of Hillsborough.
Middleton said Cablevision officials first approached the Somerset County
township about six weeks ago. The company filed documents expressing its
interest in providing service there on May 3.
The other towns contacted by Cablevision are: Chatham Township, Chester Borough
and Township, Mendham Borough and Township and Long Hill, all in Morris County;
Franklin Township and Montgomery, both in Somerset County.
Those nine towns have more than 40,000 RCN customers. Cablevision hopes to take
some of those customers, as well as residents who haven't yet signed up for
cable.
RCN, which had its annual shareholders meeting yesterday, did not return calls
seeking comment.
Cablevision -- which has 2.9 million subscribers in New York, New Jersey and
Connecticut -- already serves communities surrounding all nine towns.
New Jersey has non-exclusive cable franchises, so a community can sign off on
more than one cable operator. Officials would have to hold hearings and adopt a
municipal ordinance accepting Cablevision's overtures, which would also require
approval by the state.
Cablevision would then have to negotiate pole rights with local utilities to
extend its cable wires into the new territory.
RCN's Central Jersey system is an anomaly for the company, which prefers to
build state-of-the-art networks in more populous areas. Most of its 80,000
customers in the state are served by an analog network that can't handle phone
service or the speediest Internet access.
That makes it prey to the kind of company it usually dines on. Comcast, the
largest cable operator in the state, is considering a run at RCN in both
Princeton Borough and Township. |
