Cable industry urges caution as FCC looks to put TV online

The cable industry wants the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to take its time with any new rules that would allow for new types of television online.

A day after FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler announced a plan to extend its cable rules to services operating over the Internet, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association sounded a note of caution.

{mosads}“Redefining what it means to be [a cable company] raises profound questions about how government will extend regulation to Internet video services and how any would-be virtual [cable companies] will meet their ‘social compact’ obligations,” the trade group said.

A social contract between the government and the industry requires that TV services fulfill a public service by providing a number of local and diverse voices.

Wheeler said on Tuesday that the new proposal seeks to ensure that online companies have the same access to channels as cable and satellite services, but it leaves open whether online companies will be held to the same obligations, such as carrying broadcast channels on their lowest tier of service.

“With so many unknowns, the FCC should take great care in any such examination so as to avoid creating new problems that would result in unintended consequences and would fail to honor principles of competitive neutrality among rival providers,” the cable industry group said.

The FCC action could revolutionize the way people watch television.

Already, companies such as CBS, Verizon and Dish Network are exploring ways to bring television to the Internet, and the market is only likely to grow in the future.

The new proposal would set the stage for online video companies beyond services such as Netflix or Hulu. New rules would only apply to services offering multiple live streaming channels.