Cable-TV provider
Continental Cablevision Inc., the largest cable-TV provider in Los Angeles and the third-largest in the United States, plans to spend $700 million upgrading its cable network in California to carry an array of services, including telephone, high-speed data and video-on-demand. William Schleyer, Continental`s president, said that if a petition filed with California`s Public Utilities Commission is successful, Continental may be rolling out telephone services in 1996. To do so, the company must first enhance its existing 14,300 miles of fiber-optic and coaxial cable with call-switching systems and new home wiring. The task is challenging because the major competition in California is Pacific Bell, considered by industry analysts to be among the most technologically advanced of the regional Bell operating companies.