A U.S. government view of CATV and its future

This paper traces the development and regulation of cable television from the early 1950´s to the present. It illustrates the increasing impact on broadcasting of expanding cable capacity and the Federal Communications Commission´s regulatory response thereto, including the requirement of carriage and nonduplication of local signals, and regulation of the importation of distant signals. It considers the Commission´s pending regulatory proposals, as well as proposed Congressional revision of the copyright law. It outlines the Commission´s efforts to encourage the cable industry to provide true diversity of programming through local origination and leasing of channels to others, as well as the relationship between CATV and the telephone industry, and the Commission´s efforts to prevent the latter from abusing its control of the poles which are normally essential to cable operation. Finally, the paper looks briefly at the future of cable regulation.