In a three-to-two vote, the FCC decided today to move ahead with a proposal that could drastically change the cable set-top box industry. The decision may have far-reaching consequences for how cable customers watch TV — ultimately allowing them to go through third parties for their set-top systems, rather than being tied to the same company they use for cable service.
FCC Takes First Big Step Toward Changing Cable Box Business
The decision may ultimately allow cable customers to go through third parties for their set-top systems.


The proposed rule changes will now move into a comment period — where businesses and customers will be able to weigh in — ahead of revisions and a final vote, still some months away. FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler first announced the proposed rule changes last month, and it’s been met by criticism from a cable industry that has long kept the keys to the castle. Cable companies have argued that the future may leave the cable box behind entirely — focused, instead, on apps — and that the FCC is driving innovation from the wrong direction.
Watch ESPN president John Skipper explain ESPN’s digital future at Code/Media 2016
This article originally appeared on Recode.net.











