The competition between the Internet and cable TV has recently turned into a political debate in Washington. The option of imposing or not new regulations on the cable industry is in the hands of the Federal Communications Commission.

Sides are being taken in the matter. On one hand,  FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wants these regulations to be imposed. On the other hand, the other Republican senators believe that broadband is a powerful competitor to cable TV.

Sens stated that: “It is clear to us that it was Congress' intent that the marketplace, and not regulatory fiats, should govern wherever possible”, while  Jim DeMint of South Carolina, Kay Bailey Hutchison of Texas, Gordon Smith of Oregon, and John Sununu of New Hampshire believe that "If there is to be a fundamental shift or adoption of new regulatory policies, it is up to Congress, not the commission, to implement it."

House Democrats seem to share this opinion, considering that program diversity and transition to digital TV would be threatened by these excessive regulations.

However, it seems that Martin is just continuing one of his other campaigns. He wants the consumers to have the opportunity to choose their own individual channels and not have to purchase them with many other programs in the form of some packages. Martin believes children should be protected from inappropriate TV shows, and he claims that this regulations would help parents do this. However, Martin's methods and ideas have been contested as subjective, and particularly Martin's threatening the industries before the commission. It was also considered as  "personal animus against cable" by  The Wall Street Journal.

Martin wants a  70/70 rule to be voted, which would imply increased authority for the FCC, if 70 percent of Americans would subscribe to cable services. He would also like to impose a regulation for prices to be lowered for independent programmers.

John Boehner,  House Republican Leader, stated in a letter to Martin: "Wireline and wireless phone companies are now also offering video programming. The explosion in Internet video and Web sites such as YouTube not only provide Americans with an unlimited source of content, but also allow each American to distribute his or her own content to the world."

Cable companies are challenged by the Internet. ABC, NBC, and CBS no longer have the upper hand, since TV shows such as  Desperate Housewives, NCIS, and Prison Break are also offered by  Apple's iTunes, for example. A large variety of channels is also offered by Verizon's Fios fiber service and  Comcast is greatly challenged by Satellite TV companies . Not to mention video-sharing sites like YouTube, which are also powerful competitors.

Given the fact that these regulations for cable TV are considered a bad idea by  top Democrats and Republicans, what will be decided remains to be seen.