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predecessor was selected for the original Orange County <br />franchise, over other competing applicants including Alert <br />Cable, was its willingness to build a two-way system. <br />Two-way plant is essential if the cable company is going <br />to provide on-the-spot coverage of local events. Without <br />two-way plant, for example, it would not be possible to <br />cover public meetings or other events in the county, <br />unless the events take place at the cable studios. <br />Two-way transmission facilities also make possible a <br />wide range of communications services, particularly data <br />transmission services, that may be widely used in the <br />future, but only in those areas that have the necessary <br />transmission facilities. The Research Triangle Area has <br />an extraordinarily large number of persons with advanced <br />educational degrees, as well as other individuals engaged <br />in high-tech research activities. Home computers are now <br />commonplace in this area, although that was unthinkable <br />only a few years ago, and new software and new uses of <br />such computers are developed almost daily. At present, <br />most out-of-the-home communications through a home computer <br />are made by using telephone lines. However, the time and <br />expense involved in using telephone lines for this purpose <br />has made it generally undesirable. Use of the coaxial <br />cable facilities of the cable television company dramatic- <br />ally improves the speed and lowers the cost of such <br />service. The cable company is the only potential competitor <br />with the telephone company in providing these services, <br />IMPM <br />