What They're Saying

Boston Herald: Verizon out of line
By Joe Curtatone/ Letters | June 5, 2007

Verizon's special-interest bill to kill local licensing of cable TV will help Verizon line its pockets, but it won't promote competition or lower cable rates for most Massachusetts communities ("Tune out the static and pass this bill," June 4). Here in Somerville, where we already have cable competition, we've repeatedly asked Verizon to apply for a license and we've promised them quick action. But Verizon doesn't want to come to Somerville, or Boston or hundreds of other communities. Instead, it wants to cherry-pick the neighborhoods where it can get the highest return for the least investment - which won't do a thing to promote competition statewide. If you think cable companies are unresponsive and impersonal now, just wait until they can get largely unregulated state licenses instead of negotiating locally with the communities they serve.

Mayor Joe Curtatone,
Somerville