The National Cable & Telecommunications Association Thursday blasted the reported agreement among U.S. House of Representatives Energy and Commerce Committee members to issue national video franchise legislation for telcos. Meanwhile, competitive service provider RCN issued its own statement saying it would be happy that cable TV giants are being kept on a short leash, but unhappy with legislation that would allow major telcos to roam free of local video franchising authorities.

The reaction comes to a House committee agreement that reportedly gives the telephone companies a national video franchise but holds cable companies to their current local franchise rules until the telcos have captured at least 15% of the video market.

NCTA Kyle McSlarrow called the committee agreement a “sweetheart deal” that gives a competitive advantage to companies that don’t deserve it. In addition, he said at a press conference, the House measure is “a huge step backwards in the wrong direction” because it imposes net neutrality requirements on all incumbents, siding with Google, Yahoo! and other Internet companies who have objected to plans to offer tiered Internet access services.

In a prepared statement, RCN’s reaction was mixed.

"We are pleased to see the House recognize the predatory tactics that incumbent cable operators have long practiced against new entrants like us," said Richard Ramlall, senior vice president, strategic and external affairs at RCN, in a statement. "RCN has long advocated the need for protection against deep discounts targeted only toward consumers who live in an area served by a competitor. We look forward to seeing the text of the proposed bill and how they intend to address this competitive problem."

But, he added, "On the other hand, we are very disappointed in the proposed legislation because it gives the incumbent telephone companies a free pass on local franchising," said Ramlall. "Nor does it address the real barriers to entry in the cable market -- the critical need for "must have" programming such as regional sports, children's and film libraries that are controlled directly or indirectly by incumbent cable operators."