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Looking to expand the reach of high-speed Internet, federal regulators look to the television.

Looking to pare the shrinking but substantial number of Americans without high-speed Internet, federal officials are considering taking advantage of a technology that practically everyone has at home: the TV.

The Federal Communications Commission wants to revamp the market for set-top boxes — the channel-switching devices that cable and satellite subscribers typically lease for $5 or $10 a month — and equip the machines with Internet-surfing capability.

The thinking is simple: 99 percent of households have a television, and 76 percent have a personal computer. So why not piggyback on the TV to extend the reach of high-speed broadband, which lawmakers and regulators see as a necessity for anyone to function in the 21st century economy?

By Mike Zapler

[email protected]

Full Story: http://www.mercurynews.com/business-headlines/ci_14066683?nclick_check=1

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