Cable Offers ASAP Proposal to Speed Pole Attachments, Balanced With Safety, Reliability
Cable executives presented an "Accelerated and Safe Access to Poles" plan to FCC staffers last week. "ASAP is a comprehensive, balanced proposal to accelerate new broadband deployment while protecting the safety and reliability of existing network facilities," said a filing…
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Monday in docket 17-84 on meetings representatives of NCTA, Comcast, Charter Communications and Cox Communications had with Wireline Bureau staffers and an aide to Chairman Ajit Pai. The key elements are "speed and certainty," "expedited make-ready," "pre-selected contractors" and "indemnification," NCTA said, and all industry parties would have to compromise to make the plan work. "The proposal requires pole owners to process applications much more quickly than they have advocated; it limits existing attachers, including NCTA’s members, to a much narrower opportunity to perform their own make-ready work than exists today; and it requires new attachers, which also include NCTA members, to use only contractors approved by existing attachers when moving facilities on the pole," the association said. "Because the ASAP Proposal is predicated on this balancing of interests, the Commission can, and should, adopt it in its entirety." Google Fiber discussed the record in the wireline infrastructure proceeding and provided an update on the Broadband Deployment Advisory Committee's report "recommending one-touch, make ready," said a filing on meetings with aides to Commissioners Brendan Carr, Mignon Clyburn and Mike O'Rielly. There were no details.