Internet Provider Loses Cable Access Case Agency Says At&T Will Not Be Forced To Open Lines To Internet On-Ramp

A federal agency has ruled that a Spokane Internet provider can’t force a cable television company to lease it a portion of its broadband system.

In a recent 5-to-0 ruling, the Federal Communications Commission said AT&T Cable Spokane is not required to lease a portion of its Spokane system for Internet use by a private company.

Internet Ventures - which operates Net service providers in five Western states, including Internet On-Ramp in Spokane and Coeur d’Alene - had asked the cable company to provide it a channel under a leased-access arrangement.

Last year, Spokane city officials referred the issue to the FCC, which reviewed arguments by both sides.

Internet On-Ramp said it intended to use cable access to give customers a host of streaming-video services. In effect, it said its Internet service would approximate television programing.

But the FCC sided with AT&T, saying what Internet On-Ramp had in mind is not covered by lease-access regulations.

“We were pleased with the FCC decision. They had a clear grasp of the key issues,” said Alison Ruckhaber of Spokane’s AT&T Cable Services.

Internet On-Ramp’s approach was slightly different than a Portland Internet company made in seeking cable access in that city.

The Portland Internet provider asked the AT&T system there to give it part of the cable pipeline on an “open access” rather than lease-access basis.

The open-access claim asserted that cable companies can be required by local governments to offer access to their system to Internet providers.

Last summer a federal judge in Portland ruled AT&T’s cable service must grant access to ISPs.

AT&T appealed that decision to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. A decision is expected in a few months.

Spokane Internet On-Ramp claimed that what it was asking for isn’t any different than what cable viewers already get.

“We used that approach because administratively, there was already a lease-access structure in place here,” said the company’s Reed Olson.

He said Internet On-Ramp has three options. It can appeal the FCC decision, wait for the 9th Circuit decision, or ask the City Council and County Commission to require AT&T to make access available.

Olson cited a recent vote by the Spokane Citizens Cable Advisory Board that asks the city to compel AT&T to make access available to “competing” consumer choices,” including Internet service.

Ruckhaber said the cable company is complying with all of its licensing conditions for operating in this area.

The cable company also has an exclusive agreement with At Home, its provider of cable Internet services, to not allow competing companies access to its network, she added.

Once that exclusive agreement with At Home ends in early 2002, AT&T officials will reconsider whether local ISPs can lease part of the network, she said.