The Internet and Cable Company Monopoly

If you’ve been feeling like certain cable and telecom companies have the monopoly over what your (very limited) options are for service providers, you aren’t the only one. The worst part? As we know and have learned even more about lately, these cable and Internet companies that have a strong hold on the market aren’t even that great and customer service is beyond subpar. Unfortunately, we have bad news: those days won’t be over anytime soon as smaller local municipalities that have been trying to launch their own broadband networks are being ruled out by the US Court of Appeals. That’s a major bummer!

The bottom line is that the big firms win. Last Wednesday, the Federal Communications Commission fought for these smaller municipalities to be able to function and provide broadband service for customers – which would have been cheaper with better service. However, their efforts were shut down. The court’s reasoning? We’re guessing politics.

Tennessee had launched its own local broadband network in 2009 which caused some of the bigger broadband companies to stop raising their fees and increase the quality of their own services and Internet speeds since they had some competition! The local municipality also attracted new business to the area and allowed the city’s credit rating to rise. Sounds great, right? Well, unfortunately the courts don’t agree.

With the senate investigating some of these bigger companies’ actions, billing protocols and customer service issues, maybe smaller broadband networks will eventually be able to operate freely. While we can only hope for now, the bigger Cable and Internet companies are certainly making the rest of us in favor of more local broadband firms!