Optimum Choice, a cable Internet service provider (ISP) operated by New York-based Cablevision, confirmed Thursday that a federal judge has ordered the company to turn over information about its customers to federal authorities without alerting the customers that their information is . . .
Optimum Choice, a cable Internet service provider (ISP) operated by New York-based Cablevision, confirmed Thursday that a federal judge has ordered the company to turn over information about its customers to federal authorities without alerting the customers that their information is being sought. Although Cablevision sources confirmed the decision, they declined to comment on the case until Monday, when the judge in the case is expected to publish his verdict.

The case is the latest example of the "continuing issues that come up because of convergence," Bob Corn-Revere, an attorney at Washington law firm Hogan & Hartson who follows ISP litigation, said today.

At issue is whether the privacy practices of cable ISPs are governed by the Cable Act of 1984 or the Electronic Communications Privacy Act (ECPA) of 1986.

The Cable Act, which governs all U.S. cable companies, says that a company cannot disclose information about its customers -- even if that information subpoenaed by law enforcers -- without notifying the customers first.

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