New York Laws
Article 5 - Powers, Limitations and Liabilities
88*2 - Catv Franchises Prohibited.

(a) "Catv company". Any individual, partnership, association or
corporation owning, controlling, operating, managing or leasing a catv
system.
(b) "Catv system". Any facility which receives and amplifies the
signals broadcast by one or more television stations and redistributes
such signals by wire, cable or other means, or which distributes signals
it originates or which are originated by another for viewing by
subscribers, whether the wire, cable or other facilities are owned or
leased. A "catv system" shall not include:
i. the poles or other facilities of any telephone corporation used to
provide channel service as a common carrier,
ii. a system serving not more than two hundred fifty subscribers, or
iii. a master antenna system servicing subscribers situated on
property under common ownership.
(c) "Facility". Any real property, antennae, poles, wires, cables,
conduits, amplifiers, instruments, equipment, appliances, fixtures, and
other personal property used by a catv company in providing service to
its subscribers including that constructed in whole or in part in, on,
under or over any highway or other public place.
(d) "Franchise". Any authorization, permit, license or privilege
granted by a municipal corporation to construct, operate, maintain or
manage a catv system in the state.
2. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, until April first,
nineteen hundred seventy-three, no municipal corporation may give, grant
or award to any individual, partnership, association or corporation,
upon any terms or conditions whatever, any franchise for the purpose of
constructing, erecting, operating or maintaining any catv system in the
state.
3. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, for a period of one
year from the effective date of this section, no individual,
partnership, association or corporation shall construct, erect, operate
or maintain a nonfranchised catv system which is not in actual and
lawful operation on the effective date of this section, or enter into a
contract for the construction, erection, operation or maintenance of
such a nonfranchised catv system; nor shall any catv company engaged in
actual and lawful nonfranchised catv operations on the effective date of
this section expand the area of its operations during such period of
time.
4. Except as otherwise provided herein, the provisions of this section
shall not affect the authority of any catv company to operate pursuant
to any franchise heretofore awarded by any municipal corporation,
provided however, that all transfer, renewal or amendment of a franchise
(whenever awarded by a municipal corporation) taking effect for a period
of one year from the effective date of this section shall be subject to
review and confirmation by such department or agency of the state as may
hereafter be authorized to regulate the catv industry and the awarding
of catv franchises, in accordance with the provisions of the act so
authorizing such state department or agency to regulate.
5. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subsection or part of this
section shall be adjudged by any court of competent jurisdiction to be
invalid, such judgment shall not affect, impair or invalidate the
remainder thereof, but shall be confined in its operation to the clause,
sentence, paragraph, subsection or part thereof directly involved in the
controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered.
* NB There are 2 § 88's

Structure New York Laws