Letters: FIOS: Why is the city regulating it at all?

RE THE DEBATE about FiOS coming to Philly:

I don't understand why Verizon needs the city's permission in the first place to run a fiber-optic cable into my house and provide a service.

I could see if the product or service had a safety issue, like alcohol or cigarettes, but why does a business need the city's permission to run their business the way they want to?

If Acme comes to town, do they need the city's permission because the city wants to protect Genuardi's or because we already have Genuardi's here? Does the city tell Wawa that since they are not in EVERY neighborhood they can't be in ANY neighborhood?

This seems like blackmail. The city is trying to stipulate how Verizon runs its business and wants to squeeze extra money from Verizon - above and beyond the normal business taxes.

Let Verizon be Verizon. If they don't do it well, they'll fail, just like any other business.

Brad Zacharia

Philadelphia