STATEMENT OF
CHAIRMAN JULIUS GENACHOWSKI
Re:  Cable Television Technical and Operational Requirements, MB Docket No. 12-217
The cable industry has been transitioning from analog to digital, and that transition has 
already brought significant benefits to consumers and to our economy. 
The investment in this transition has brought a dramatic increase in the ability of cable 
operators to carry more data on the same cable plant.  This has begun to translate to higher 
broadband speeds and capacity, as well as digital voice service, more TV channels, and high-
definition TV.
Because the cable plant reaches well over 90% of our country, this is helping achieve our 
goals of universal service and competition.
And over the past three years – thanks in large part to improvements in cable networks –
we've gone from 20 percent of our population living in areas with broadband infrastructure 
capable of delivering 100+ megabits to 80 percent.
We've made real progress, but ongoing increases in broadband speed and capacity are 
essential to realizing the full potential of broadband.  More robust networks will enable 
bandwidth-intensive applications like distance learning, remote healthcare, and the growth of 
multi-billion dollar industries like cloud computing, which in turn helps drive the growth of 
businesses large and small.
Bandwidth abundance drives innovation.  It enables the cutting-edge innovations of today 
and the undiscovered innovations of tomorrow. 
While we’ve seen real improvement in the speed and capacity of our broadband networks 
over the past three years, but we need to see more.  We need to be talking about gigabits, not 
megabits.  We need to ensure that the U.S. has a strategic bandwidth advantage to drive U.S.-
based innovation and our global competitiveness.
Among the ways the Commission can help enhance broadband speed and capacity are 
removing barriers to infrastructure buildout and making sure our rules are updated for the digital 
age.
This proceeding implements those principles. 
While we must ensure cable subscribers receive quality signals and protect critical 
aeronautical services, the current rules governing proof of performance and signal leakage are 
optimized for analog. They are wasteful and unnecessarily restrictive, often resulting in 
inefficient use of limited cable spectrum.
We propose to update our rules to recognize the importance of digital cable, to remove or 
modify requirements no longer needed, and to clear away unnecessary impediments to the full 
utilization of digital capacity.  
We propose to eliminate one rule, reduce burdens under others, and clarify additional 
rules to increase certainty and predictability, and to increase digital capacity.  This reflects the 
Commission’s ongoing commitment to regulatory reform.
Just as in the recent Viewability Order, we are taking action to increase cable system 
efficiency and capacity while continuing to protect consumers.  These proceedings modernize 
our rules, facilitate the digital transition, and allow systems to use even more of their available 
cable plant for advanced digital services, including broadband. 
The FCC is doing its part.  It is imperative that cable operators do theirs, and that we see 
ongoing expansion of broadband speed, capacity, and availability.  That will be a win for 
everyone.
I look forward to an open and inclusive proceeding.
Thank you to my colleagues and to the bureau engineers and staff for your work on this 
item.