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DJ AT&T, Portland -2: Portland Ruling Likely to Be Appealed
Symbol: AOL ATHM GTE T USW
Industry: BRD CAB CBL CSV ENT HOU IAS LDS MED PUB RTL TEL TLS
Government: FCC
Subject: DJN DJWI NET UTI WEI
Market Sector: CYC NCY UTI
Geographic Region: CO CT NME NY OR US USE USS USW VA
Product/Service: DCP DIT DLE DME DTE
By Mark Wigfield
WASHINGTON (Dow Jones)--AT&T Corp. (T) has no right to exclude competing
Internet Service Providers from its cable systems, a federal judge in Oregon
has ruled in a case that could help shape the rules for competition in the
lucrative market for high-speed Internet service.
In a blow to the telecommunications giant, Judge Owen Panner upheld the
to condition their approval of the merger between AT&T and the former
Tele-Communications Inc. on an open access requirement.
"The mandatory access condition does not substantially impair the
plaintiff's contractual rights under the franchise agreements," the judge
wrote. AT&T had successfully fought off efforts to impose such conditions on a
national level during review of its merger by the Federal Communications
Commission.
"This probably signals a turning of the tide in this debate," said Scott
Cleland, a telecommunications analyst with the Legg Mason Precursor Group.
"It's a very significant legal decision. Now, the FCC has to decide if it
wants to have open access imposed city by city, set national rules, or rescue
AT&T from the cities."
Cleland said federal pre-emption, however, would be unlikely. A number of
other cities also want open cable access, including Seattle, Los Angeles, San
Francisco, Oakland, Washington, D.C., and Miami.
However, the judge's decision is likely to be appealed.
Siding with the city of Portland were GTE Internetworking Inc., a unit of
GTE Corp. (GTE); U.S. West Enterprise America; OGC Telecom Ltd.; and the
Oregon Internet Service Provider Association.
(MORE) DOW JONES NEWS 06-04-99 |
