Martin pleased with open access in wireless

LAS VEGAS — Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin talked about his commitment to deregulation, removing barriers and increasing competition in a chat with Consumer Electronics Association President and CEO Gary Shapiro that ranged from wireless services to the nonstop increase in cable prices.
Martin said he’s particularly pleased with the change in discussion among the nation’s wireless operators. “You’ve got a whole mantra of openness,” he told a standing-room-only crowd at the Consumer Electronics Show here.
“Even the fact that everyone wants to talk about openness is in fact a change,” he said. “There’s a common goal that everyone seems to agree on.”
The FCC added open-access conditions to a chunk of the 700 MHz spectrum up for auction later this month, a move that sparked a rash of open-access announcements from the nation’s carriers.
Sticking to his somewhat refined laissez-faire approach, Martin said he opposes the notion of legislated network neutrality. He believes the FCC already has the tools to keep operators from blocking content. When providers have blocked content in the past, the FCC has stepped in to remediate the issue, he said.
One issue of continued concern is the incessant price increases that cable providers pass along to customers year after year, Martin said.
Prices are down in every area but cable, he said, adding that cable prices are up at least 100% since the 1996 Telecommunications Act.
He wants consumers to be able to adjust prices themselves in an al a carte-like model where customers could specify what content they want to receive.
“I think that’s what a free market is all about,” he said.
Finally, Martin addressed the white-space issue, where tech companies are hoping to make use of the space between licensed bands. He admitted that testing done by the FCC last summer didn’t return positive results, and said the commission is doing a new round of testing that it hopes will turn out better.
“I’ll continue to be cautiously optimistic that technology is going to find a way,” he said.