DON'T EXPECT WINDFALLS FROM CABLE REGULATIONS

To apply William Shakespeare to a modern context, new federal regulations for cable television may be "much ado about nothing." The regulations were promoted to cut cable rates by 10 to 15 percent. For many of us, that means savings of $2 to $3 a month. Just when these savings will take effect is unclear as regulators and cable companies wade through the 400 pages of single-spaced regulations. More consumers may be excited by a slowdown in skyrocketing cable rates rather than the few dollars a month savings now.

In early April, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted 3-0 to cut cable rates from Sept. 30, 1992, levels and erase any increases imposed since then. The rollbacks apply to 57 million households in more than 11,000 cable systems. These cuts were authorized by a 1992 law (hotly debated in Congress) that put the industry under federal control for the first time.

For all that hoopla and debate, it really doesn't seem like a big windfall for consumers. We have to wonder if it was really worth all the arm twisting and hand wringing in Congress.

While we will pay less under the rollbacks, consumers may pay more for all the rules. The FCC has indicated it needs increased funding to regulate the cable industry and has proposed assessing operators a fee. That, in turn, could be passed on to consumers. All of a sudden, our "windfall" seems more like bluster. The prospect of a growing bureaucracy of regulators in the FCC doesn't thrill us either. Since when has the government done ~anything cost effectively? It sounds expensive and probably will be. Time and time again, government intervention in business has ended up costing consumers more through passed-on expenses.

The regulations also included a 120-day freeze on cable rates, which included a planned May 1 rate increase in Cape Girardeau. The fate of those rate increases will depend on the benchmark cable rates, which the FCC is expected to set by Aug. 1. It's then that individual cable systems will determine if a rollback will be necessary. The rollbacks don't apply to premium or the host of pay-per-view channels.

Ironically, this whole debate may be moot in just a few years as new technology pushes aside traditional cable delivery systems. Through fiber optics and wireless signals, more choices will become available to more consumers, and that could lower costs. Industry experts say a virtual revolution of programming and delivery of the signal is on the horizon. Competition not regulation may ultimately be a consumer's best friend in the cable industry.