New Poll Shows New Jersey Residents Strongly Reject Verizon's Cable Tax

New Poll Shows New Jersey Residents Strongly Reject Verizon's Cable Tax

Nine out of ten also say Verizon should be required to serve all residents and should not be allowed to cherry-pick wealthier towns for service

Seventy-five percent prefer local franchising over statewide franchising

TRENTON, N.J., Dec. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- In a recent poll conducted by Penn, Schoen, & Berland for the New Jersey Cable Telecommunications Association, New Jersey residents overwhelmingly rejected Verizon's effort to raise taxes on cable consumers through the franchise fee increase included in their push for a statewide cable franchise.

Specifically, the poll found that 68 percent of New Jersey residents are not interested in cable television competition if it means having to pay Verizon's cable tax in the form of higher franchise fees.

New Jersey residents also declared their support for local cable franchises over statewide cable television franchises by a margin of 3:1. Seventy-five percent of respondents said that they prefer the current system of municipal franchising, which gives local officials input in the process; over statewide franchising, which excludes local officials.

In addition, nine in ten residents said that Verizon should be required to serve ALL residents in their service territory and should not be allowed to cherry-pick residents in higher income areas.

"This poll demonstrates clearly what we've been hearing all along from New Jersey's mayors and local officials," said New Jersey Cable Telecommunications Association President Karen Alexander. "When New Jersey residents take a close look at what Verizon is trying to do, they emphatically reject it. New Jerseyans believe that local control works and they don't want Verizon to take it away. Furthermore, they don't believe they should have to pay Verizon's new tax in order for Verizon to offer cable service."

The poll is based on 463 interviews conducted in the state of New Jersey November 11-16, 2005. It has a margin of error of +/- 4.6%.

The New Jersey Cable Telecommunications Association (NJCTA) is a voluntary trade association for companies providing cable television service in New Jersey. NJCTA members include: Comcast Cable Communications, Cablevision Systems Corp., Time Warner Cable, Service Electric Cable of NJ, and US Cable of Paramus-Hillsdale. Combined, these companies provide cable television service to approximately 96% of New Jersey's more than 2.4 million subscribers.

Source: New Jersey Cable Telecommunications Association

CONTACT: Mark Nevins, New Jersey Cable Telecommunications Association,
+1-609-392-3223, Cell: +1-267-847-7189

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