• by Wayne Friedman , Staff Writer, June 7, 2007

Soon cable companies and satellite distributors will need to give their consumers more control -- and as usual, they are having a difficult time giving up that power position.

But the government sees it differently. At issue is the set-top box, which for years has been rented by cable users, paid for with a monthly fee that is always apparent to most subscribers.

Now, the government says cable and satellite users should have a choice --rent or own. Buy the set-top box you like, with the features you like.

Few are expecting a rush of consumers looking to get the next and greatest set-top box. But as with mobile phone services, the government is looking to be consistent: Consumers choose their own phone for certain features when buying monthly service.

Some new television sets and DVRs already come equipped with cablecard technology built in. But electronics makers and consumer groups complain cable companies have been reluctant to hand out the cards.

Gee, what a surprise.

Chief beneficiaries in all of this: Individual set-top and DVR makers, like TiVo, could see a boom. Right now most TiVo users need a separate set-top box as a cable subscriber. TiVo makes a box that takes a cablecard, but it is expensive.

Critics have said the navigation software on TiVo, for example, is still vastly superior to that of other DVR boxes. All this opens up the marketplace to more competition.

Cable operators and satellite distributors have set-top boxes come with their own DVR technology. All that makes it easier for consumers to handle. But it also gives operators and distributors a monopoly on the type of features they want to give consumers.

It's part of cable's heritage business operations that industry members are reluctant to give up.