Fios in Philly

About two weeks ago, the Philadelphia city council approved allowing Verizon to establish a FiOS network in the City of Brotherly Love, bringing a direct competitor to the cable service provided by Comcast.

In a lot of ways, Philly is a company town. Comcast is one of the largest area employers; the largest building in the city bares the name "Comcast Center"; the city draws millions of dollars in tax money from the comapny every year. And yet here we are, Comcast is now having to compete against Verizon on its home turf.

During discussion many of the counsel members expressed concerns over how the $1 billion cable network will be distributed as to not leave out minority communities, and concerns over public access programming. And yet, the bill passed unanimously. Money talks, I suppose.

It's interesting how deregulation has affected television and radio so differently. Radio seems to be solidifying into a monopoly held by Clear Channel, whereas television is now diversifying (albeit very slowly). I think it's reflective of how radio is dying as television thrives.