Federal Communications Commission FCC 08-17
Before the
Federal Communications Commission
Washington, D.C. 20554
In the Matter of
American Cablesystems of California, Inc. and 
American Cablesystems of South Central Los 
Angeles, Inc.
Application for Review
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MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
Adopted:  January 15, 2008 Released:  January 17, 2008
By the Commission:
I. INTRODUCTION
1.  American Cablesystems of California, Inc. and American Cablesystems of South 
Central Los Angeles, Inc. (collectively, “American”) filed the instant Application for Review of an order 
issued by the former Cable Services Bureau, now the Media Bureau (the “Bureau”).1 For the reasons set 
forth below, we affirm the Bureau’s Order on Reconsideration.
II. DISCUSSION   
2. At issue in this proceeding is whether the Bureau correctly excluded data filed by 
American as part of its effective competition demonstration that included both vacant housing units and 
commercial establishments.  American argues that both types of information should be included for 
purposes of determining low penetration effective competition in a franchise area.2 American argues that 
the definitions of the terms “subscriber” and “households” adopted by the Commission in implementing 
the statutory tests for effective competition are overly restrictive.3  
3. We disagree.  With regard to American’s inclusion of vacant housing units in its 
calculation of low penetration effective competition in its franchise area, we affirm the Bureau’s 
determination.  The Bureau’s analysis on this issue is fully consistent with the Commission’s 
determination that “[a]s used in the [1992] Cable Act, we presume that Congress did not intend 
‘households’ to have a different meaning than in the 1990 Census that would include vacant units or even 
  
1 American Cablesystems of California, Inc. and American Cablesystems of South Central Los Angeles, Inc., 10 
FCC Rcd 1692 (CSB 1995) (“Order on Reconsideration”).
2 American Application for Review at 7-13.  Section 623(l)(1)(A) of the Communications Act provides that a cable 
operator is subject to effective competition, and therefore exempt from cable rate regulation, if “fewer than 30 
percent of the households in the franchise area subscribe to the cable service of the cable system.” 47 U.S.C § 
543(l)(l)(A).
3 American Application for Review at 7-13.
Federal Communications Commission FCC 08-17 
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partial-year vacant units.”4 American’s inclusion of vacant housing units in its effective competition 
calculation was in error and the Bureau was correct to exclude such units.  With regard to the issue of 
whether commercial entities should be included in the number of subscribers and households for purposes 
of determining low penetration effective competition, we agree with the Bureau’s analysis that:
[American] should not have counted commercial entities, including 
hotels and motels, when it calculated its penetration level.  The 1990 
Census defined the term “household” as “all of the persons who occupy a 
housing unit.”  Thus, commercial establishments, including hotels and 
motels, are not “households” for purposes of determining effective 
competition, and [American] should not include them in its subscriber 
and household totals.5
We agree with the Bureau that interpreting the term “households” to include commercial establishments 
would be inconsistent with the Commission’s implementation of the effective competition tests. The 
Bureau’s Order on Reconsideration is therefore affirmed in all respects.   
III. ORDERING CLAUSES
4. Accordingly, IT IS ORDERED that the Application for Review filed in the captioned 
proceeding by American Cablesystems of California, Inc. and American Cablesystems of South Central 
Los Angeles, Inc. IS DENIED.
FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
Marlene H. Dortch
Secretary
  
4 See Implementation of Sections of the Cable Television Consumer Protection Act of 1992: Rate Regulation – Buy-
Through Prohibition, 9 FCC Rcd 4316, 4324 (1994) (Third Order on Reconsideration”).
5 Order on Reconsideration, 10 FCC Rcd at 1694-95, quoting Third Order on Reconsideration, 9 FCC Rcd at 4324.