Suppliers of Voice-over-IP services are likely to reap benefits from the Federal Communications Commission’s order to streamline the process of setting up new cable franchises.

 

On Monday, the FCC (News - Alert) called for local and state municipalities to remove the barriers for telephony companies to offer video services to customers, as telephony providers are likely to face fewer delays in implementing new services. This is likely to accelerate the trend toward triple-play Internet, video, and phone service bundles.

 

The FCC’s order is good news to VoIP companies and other suppliers of broadband services, such as IPTV, all of which have in the past seen their franchising attempts stifled by state regulations.

 

In a statement, FCC chairman Kevin Martin said, “The widespread deployment of broadband remains my top priority as Chairman and a major Commission objective. “During my tenure as Chairman, the Commission has worked hard to create a regulatory environment that promotes broadband deployment. We have removed legacy regulations, like tariffs and price controls, that discourage carries from investing in their broadband networks, and we have worked to create a regulatory level playing field among broadband platforms.”

 

Praise for the FCC’s decision from broadband service companies continues to pour in a day after the order.

 

Qwest (News - Alert) Communications International Inc. applauded the FCC in an online Denver Business Journal report.

 

"A streamlined franchising process would encourage companies like Qwest to quickly deploy video services and promote the end of the cable monopoly," Gary Lytle, senior vice president of federal relations for Qwest, was quoted as saying.

 

In a report on Red Herring’s website, Forrester Research analyst Lisa Pierce was quoted as saying that startup IPTV (News - Alert) companies would benefit from the FCC order, as phone companies have engaged them in implementing video services.

 

Content providers serving underserved segments of the U.S. population would also benefit from the FCC’s decision, according to the Video Access Alliance, a non-profit group.

 

“Although minority groups of all kinds are ardent consumers of all varieties of video communications, they are drastically underrepresented in the programming they buy,” said the organization in a statement. “The FCC’s decision to simplify cable franchising would advance this cause by encouraging faster and wider deployment of new and innovative distribution platforms.”