Is Verizon FiOS TV exactly what the consumer asked for? Verizon has been saying all along that consumers want choice but, who doesn't?

The cable companies clearly don't. They've been throwing money into lobbyists and roadblocks for months trying to slow the progression of the Bell's IPTV rollout initiatives.

The cable companies have a monopoly and with that advantage, they have ran prices up and kept innovation at the pace of a snail. Who needs to innovate with little to no competition?

The cable companies contend that providing a statewide franchise to the telephone companies would provide an unfair advantage unless cable received the same privilege because telephone companies could target niche markets and, "...if telephone companies were allowed to serve only the most lucrative areas of communities that cable operators were required to serve in their entirety, competition would not be enhanced but would suffer." How can competition suffer when there is none to begin with? But regardless, who would be against leveling out the playing field?

The interesting aspect is that the moment FiOS TV went live in Keller, Time Warner announced in Texas that they would now feature VoIP Caller ID on the television. How long would we have waited for that to reach the consumer without Verizon's competition? We'll never know...

According to Bill Peacock of the Texas Public Policy Foundation, "And while the cable industry might not have liked the new legislation, it wasted no time in responding to it. Time Warner Cable has announced new services allowing people to track their eBay bids via their cable TV and display Caller ID on the television screen. New technology will allow cable companies to increase their bandwidth and offer more channels to subscribers. All this means that prices for video are likely to drop, just as they have in the past with voice and broadband. Additionally, the high tech economy will expand as the competition attracts new capital, spurs product innovation and creates new jobs."

The cable companies may be throwing a tantrum, but consumers are rejoicing.

Click over to Townhall.com to read a great article, "Communications Revolution Awaits Regulatory Reform."