Set-Top Box Market Needs To Be Forced Open, New York Times Opines

Set-top boxes should be an off-the-shelf item available from any manufacturer and compatible with cable lines or satellite dishes "as long as they meet basic technical standards," The New York Times said in an editorial Monday. The editorial referenced the possibility of new set-top box rules following the FCC Downloadable Security Technical Advisory Committee's submitting its final report Friday (see 1508280035). "The virtual monopoly that cable companies have over set-top boxes is reminiscent of the way AT&T used to require customers to rent phones from the company and prohibited them from using other devices," the Times said. "Consumers might be more inclined to pay for cable if the industry stopped trying to nickel-and-dime them." Pointing to the booming use of mobile apps that reduce reliance on set-top boxes, and such emerging technologies that will further the trend like whole-home connectivity and TVs being manufactured to access pay TV content without set-top boxes, an NCTA spokesman said Monday the cable industry disagrees "that there's a need for new federal regulations of the video device marketplace."