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CABLE TELEVISION ADVISORY COMMITTEE
In 2002, the Cable Television Advisory Committee’s efforts focused the termination of its OVS cable license agreement with RCN, the transfer of AT&T Broadband's license to Comcast, and work on the state-mandated license renewal process anticipating the expiration of AT&T Broadband’s, now Comcast’s, current license on October 1, 2004.
RCN Activities
On June 1, 1999, RCN signed an agreement to provide cable and other services (i.e., local telephone and high speed internet access) to the Town. Included in the agreement were, among others, the following commitments:
106 Provide a technology grant of $100,000 split into two equal payments, with the first due on December 1, 1999 and the second due on December 1, 2000.
107 Make a series of PEG (Public, Educational, and Government) access support payments to the Town, which in the first few years work out to $50,000 due by August 1, 2000 and $25,000 due at six month intervals starting on January 1, 2001 and continuing through July 1, 2004.
108 By December 1, 1999, provide free Internet access to the public schools.
109 Complete construction and make service available to every residential dwelling and business no later than February 1, 2001.
Both the first $50,000 technology grant and $50,000 PEG access support payments were made in 2000. However, neither the second $50,000 technology grant payment nor subsequent PEG access support payment were made.
RCN also was paying for a T-1 communications line providing Internet access to the public schools.
The most serious RCN failure under this agreement was construction. By February 1, 2001, when construction was to be complete, no construction whatsoever had been initiated. With the change in the technology investment climate, it became increasingly clear that RCN had decided to abrogate its contractual agreement to construct and operate a cable service in Belmont.
In December of 2001, the Chair of the committee, the town administrator, and the manager of the Electric Light Department met with a representative of RCN to discuss the situation. The RCN representative indicated that his company would not construct a cable system in Belmont but would be willing to craft a proposal to mitigate the company’s failure to meet their commitments. The main feature of their proposal was to make the second installment of the technology grant, to continue to fund the T-1 communications line for an additional brief period of time, but to terminate additional PEG access support payments. In the spring of 2002, the Town negotiated the final details of this termination agreement. A check for $62,090 was received by the Town from RCN on July 12th. This amount included the second $50,000 technology grant
payment, with the remaining amount providing funding for the T-1 communications line through the end of the Town's 2003 fiscal year (June 30, 2003).
AT&T Broadband to Comcast Ownership Transfer
At the close of 2001, an ownership takeover of AT&T Broadband by Comcast was initiated, with the formal transfer of ownership taking place this year. This ownership change triggered a state-mandated ownership transfer hearing in Belmont, held on April 11th.
Of primary concern to the Town was Comcast's intentions regarding a construction upgrade of Belmont's network to the current technology generation, an upgrade that had been postponed repeatedly by AT&T Broadband in spite of promises made at the Cablevision to AT&T Broadband transfer hearing on August 11, 2000. Most all of the towns surrounding Belmont have long since been upgraded, and residents of the Town have been complaining vigorously and justifiably about the lack of an adequate number of channels, digital TV services, and high-speed internet access that are a consequence of the failure to upgrade.
As part of the transfer hearing negotiations, the Selectmen were able to negotiate a commitment by Comcast to upgrade the system in 2003. More specifically, Comcast executed a performance bond in the amount of $150,000 guaranteeing that 95% of the Town's subscribers will be upgraded by the end of October, with the remaining 5% to be upgraded by the end of November, 2003 at the latest. Construction is now being planned, and it now appears likely that the upgrade will be competed sometime during the summer rather than in the fall.
Relicensing Process
Comcast's present cable license terminates on October 1, 2004. As a result, October 1, 2001 marked the commencement of the state mandated, 3-year license renewal process, pursuant to the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, Section 626. The Town has opted to proceed using the Section 626 “formal process” with the option to switch over to the “informal process” at a later date if conditions so warrant.
In 2002, the committee began the work of carrying out a community needs assessment through the execution of a Town-wide survey. A two-page questionnaire was developed and then sent to all Town residents as an enclosure in their June electric bills. The Committee appreciates very much the cooperation of Belmont Electric Light in sending out and receiving back these questionnaires.
The response to the survey was very good, with a total of 2,923 questionnaires being sent back. This 30% return rate is unusually high for surveys of this type.
The returned questionnaires were key entered and analyzed over the summer, with the results published in two forms. A short article summarizing the results was submitted to and published in the November 22nd issue of the Belmont Citizen-Herald, and a report providing more details was posted on the Town website. A key finding of the survey was a show of strong interest in the services that will be available with the technology upgrade scheduled to be completed by the fall of next year. These include high-speed Internet access, digital TV, and more channels. Respondents also expressed high support for discounts for disadvantaged and, especially, senior citizens, and dissatisfaction with the low video and, especially, audio quality of Channel 8 broadcasts of public meetings.
I would like to express my thanks and appreciation for the fine work of the Committee members: Robert Blakelock, David Johanson, Richard Pew, Susan Timberlake, and Kent Bowen.
Respectfully submitted,
Richard C. Norris, Chair
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