promises, promises

the beleaguered cable consumer--particularly those who suffer a $1 increase every coupla months--received some welcome news recently.

last fall, the fcc changed course in its take on a la carte cable, formalizing 'support' earlier this year.

while some viewing habits could bring relief to some viewers, the best solution is more robust competition. analysis by a UCal Berkely professor finds ~15%-20% savings given competition.

If telephone companies compete on a wider scale throughout California, Braunstein anticipates average prices falling about $56.40 per month to between $43.99 and $47.94 per month. With more than 60 percent of California's 11.5 million households signed up for cable service, that's a savings of between $690 million and $1 billion, he said.

while subscribers hope, cable companies resist