The FCC Wants to Ban Apartments from Forcing People to Pay for Cable TV Internet
A new proposal by the Federal Communications Commission aims to prohibit apartment complexes and possibly HOAs from bundling internet service into fees or rent, thereby supporting consumers' right to choose their own providers. Current bundling contracts tend to favor cable TV providers, and when an HOA breaks such a contract, the provider can sue.
These partnerships often include not just internet but also TV and phone services. According to iProperty Management, there are 355,000 HOAs in the United States, representing about 40 million housing units. If even a quarter of these HOAs partner with a cable TV company, that equates to 10 million cable TV internet customers. Considering there are only about 50 million cable TV subscribers left, the impact of these 15 million HOA and apartment complex customers is significant for the struggling cable TV business model.