IMCC Meets with FCC Commissioners to Discuss Major Telecom Mergers

Washington DC — The Independent Multi-Family Communications Council recently attended meetings in Washington D.C. with FCC Commissioners to represent the interests of independent broadband providers in light of large mergers and acquisitions on the horizon. Several Board members from the Independent Multi-Family Communications Council (IMCC), an organization which supports independent broadband service providers and vendors that serve the multi-family marketplace, attended meetings with each of the FCC Commissioner’s offices during the week of November 23, 2014 in Washington D.C.

“The organization has a history of making sure that Washington and its regulators understand and appreciate the issues faced by IMCC members in our business,” announced Valerie Sargent, Managing Director of the Association. “Several key members of our Board headed to Washington with an agenda to discuss the merger of AT&T and DIRECTV and how it could affect our members’ businesses moving forward.”

IMCC Voices Need for DIRECTTV Support After AT&T Merger
Specifically, IMCC spoke about how DIRECTV has been a long-standing supporter and trusted partner for independent broadband operators (also known as private cable operators, or PCOs) over the years, by offering a digital video platform that operators can use to be competitive with large cable and telephone companies in the multi-family sector and beyond. Sargent stated, “As DIRECTV moves forward with its potential merger with AT&T, we want to be sure that our members continue to receive the same level of products, programming and support from DIRECTV, even after it becomes part of AT&T, as it remains a key part of our market.”

Board members who attended the meetings were very impressed with the receptivity of the FCC regarding IMCC’s message, with one saying, “They recognize that IMCC members are a pro-consumer part of the market, and provide competition in the multi-family space with large cable and phone companies. It seems that they want us to continue to provide choice for apartment communities.”

With the merger expected to be approved in early 2015, IMCC sees these types of issues as important developments for the Board to monitor and act quickly with respect to FCC or other regulatory agency decisions. Bryan Rader, CEO of Bandwidth Consulting, was in attendance at the meetings and stated, “The competitive landscape is changing so fast. PCOs have a great opportunity to continue using DIRECTV as a part of their business model, even as broadband becomes more important over time.”

Sargent summarized these meetings by saying, “This is the type of commitment and support we provide to our members. As the leading organization for independent providers in this market, they need someone to watch their back and help them with macro issues such as this merger. IMCC does a fantastic job of supporting our members with lobbying efforts such as this trip.”