The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit has ruled that the Cable Television Consumer Protection Act of 1992 (Cable Act) does not invalidate existing exclusive franchises for local cable television service. The case involved a Tennessee municipality that sought to establish its own cable system, claiming that the Cable Act abrogated the exclusive franchise it had previously granted to a private company. The court ruled that although the Cable Act does prohibit exclusive franchises as well as the unreasonable denial of additional competitive franchises, the language does not support retroactive application of the law. The court did note, however, that its finding was at odds with an earlier ruling by the 11th Circuit on the same issue (see Cox Cable Communications, Inc. v. U.S., 992 F.2d 1178). Re James Cable Partners, L.P. et al. v. City of Jamestown, Nos 93-5741 and 93-5742, Jan. 5, 1995 (6th Cir.).
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