Washington, DC, December 20, 2006:  The Telecommunications Research and Action Center (TRAC), a consumer group that has been educating consumers on their telecommunication choices for 23 years, applauded the decision today by the Federal Communications Commission to enact rules to increase competition in the video market place.  “Consumers benefit whenever there is a second cable or wire into the home for cable or video service,” said Samuel A. Simon, Chairman and founder of TRAC.  “The expansion of Federal authority over what historically has been a local decision should be done with great care.  For example, local consumer protection offices should be able to continue to resolve consumer complaints on service related issues.  TRAC believes consumer affairs offices do not impede competition by assuring consumers have a means to get effective recourse for service problems. It is clear that the incumbent cable operators have every incentive to delay competitive entry, and that they are using their influence at every level to achieve this goal.  With these new rules, we believe consumers will now see a more rapid roll out of Verizon and AT&T video services,” he said. 

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MEDIA CONTACT:

John Breyault, TRAC, johnb@trac.org, 202-263-2943

ABOUT TRAC:

The Telecommunications Research and Action Center (TRAC), founded in 1983, is a non-profit membership organization based in Washington, DC that promotes the interests of residential telecommunications customers. TRAC staff researches telecommunications issues and publishes rate comparisons to help consumers make informed decisions regarding their long distance and local phone service options. TRAC can be found on the web at http://www.trac.org.