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 STATEMENT  OF  COMMISSIONER  MICHAEL  J.  COPPS 
 Re:  Annual  Assessment  of  the  Status  of  Competition  in  the  Market  for  the  Delivery  of  Video  Programming 


 This  NOI  launches  a  report  that  serves  as  the  factual  foundation  for  numerous  Commission  decisions  and  also  provides  Congress  with  information  it  requires  to  inform  the  national  policy  debate. 
 That’s  why  it  is  incumbent  upon  the  Commission  to  put  our  best  foot  forward  here,  to  gather  complete  and  accurate  data,  and  then  to  commit  the  resources  needed  to  analyze  the  data. 


 I  am  pleased  that  this  year’s  Notice  builds  on  the  discussions  from  previous  Reports.  With  the  information  sought  by  this  Notice,  we  have  the  potential  to  increase  our  understanding  of  the  market  and 
 the  consequences  for  consumers  at  a  time  when  we  are  seeing  not  only  new  services,  technological  advances  and  expanding  competition,  but  also  continuing  rate  increases.  I  also  hope  this  year’s  Report 
 will  expand  the  discussion  begun  last  year  of,  among  other  things,  issues  specific  to  video  program  distribution  in  rural  America  and  an  examination  of  foreign  markets.  With  video  programming,  just  as 
 with  broadband,  we  may  gain  insights  and  learn  a  lesson  or  two  from  what  other  countries  are  doing. 
 As  in  past  years,  the  Commission  states  that  it  intends  to  rely  on  publicly  available  data,  filings  in  various  Commission  proceedings,  and  information  submitted  by  commenters  in  response  to  this  Notice  of 
 Inquiry.  However,  if  these  sources  do  not  provide  sufficient  information  for  us  to  meet  our  statutory  obligations,  the  Commission  may  need  to  undertake  a  more  proactive  effort  to  obtain  independent, 
 verified  data.  Such  an  effort  may  be  necessary  to  satisfy  Congress’  directive  and  fulfill  our  mission  as  the  government’s  expert  agency  on  these  issues.  Nevertheless,  my  hope  is  that  this  Notice  will  elicit  informed 
 and  comprehensive  responses  that  will  allow  us  to  complete  our  job.  I  thank  the  Bureau  for  its  work  and  for  the  improvements  to  this  item  and  I  look  forward  to  working  with  my  colleagues  to  fashion  the  next 
 Report. 
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