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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCable TV - 1999 - 07_09MINUTES CABLE TV AND TELECOMMUNICATIONS ADVISORY COMMITTEE REGULAR MEETING JULY 9, 1999 — 7:00 P.M. COMMITTEE MEMBERS PRESENT: Don Wing, Chair Doug Dreggors, Vice -Chair Carl Johnson Eric Willard, Secretary Bill Kapka Remy Tholen STAFF: Michael Stanger, Assistant City Manager Ann Maas, Administrative Secretary (absent) Connie Schofield, Management Assistant OTHERS PRESENT: Dennis Watson, Government Affairs Coordinator, TCI Mark Guest, Manager, CoSery Communications I. CALL TO ORDER With a quorum of the Committee present, the regular meeting of the Allen Cable TV and Telecommunications Advisory Committee was called to order by Chair Don Wing at 7:07 p.m. on Thursday, July 9, 1999, in the Library Conference Room, Allen Public Library, Two Allen Civic Plaza, Allen, Texas. The following items were discussed: H. APPROVE MINUTES OF THE JUNE 10, 1999, REGULAR MEETING MOTION: Eric Willard made a motion to approve the minutes as written for the June 10, 1999, meeting. Bill Kapka seconded. The Motion carried 6 for and 0 against. I CTTAC Minutes July 9, 1999 Page 2 f III. CITIZENS' COMMENTS Michael Stanger, Assistant City Manager, explained that the City had received calls from residents in the Twin Creeks II Subdivision stating that TCI told them that the waiting time for the TV cable installation was 12 to 18 months. Dennis Watson, Government Affairs Coordinator with TCI, informed the Committee that even with the heavy volume of construction within the City, most requests for installations would only be prolonged by 1 to 2 months. Mr. Watson explained to the Committee members that he would be handling questions regarding the Cable Franchise Agreement and Mr. Vince Thomae would be responsible for the customer service issues. However, at any time, he would address any questions or issues that the Committee or Staff might have. IV. TABLED ITEM: CONSIDER RECOMMENDATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL RELATING TO TRANSFER OF CABLE TV FRANCHISE FROM TCI TO AT&T The Committee stated that they wanted to talk to a representative from AT&T that was not previously associated with TCI. They had several issues that needed to be addressed: What advantages would the City and the citizens accrue from this takeover? What improvements should the City and the cable subscribers expect to see? The Committee reemphasized that for some time AT&T had promised to send a representative to the Cable TV meeting - but had not followed through. Mr. Watson assured the Committee that a representative would attend the next meeting. Mr. Watson explained that the actual name change of the two entities would take place in early August. MOTION: Eric Willard made a motion recommending the transfer of the Cable TV Franchise from TCI to AT&T. Carl Johnson seconded. The Motion carried 5 for and 1 opposed with RBmy Tholen casting the negative vote. The Committee asked that TCI furnish a monthly report including information regarding metrics, customer service statistics, complaints, etc. The Committee CTTAC Minutes July 9, 1999 Page 3 would like to review information regarding TCI's quality control procedure - what issues do they track, etc. By reviewing this information, the Committee will be able to better inform the citizens about the options/offers that are available. Mr Watson stated that these reports are sent out to various communities. He would provide a model report to the Committee to make sure it included all the information they were requesting. Once approved, the report would be furnished to Mr Stanger on a regular basis. This information would then be included in the Committee's agenda packets. The Committee stressed that information is vital for the citizens. A suggestion was trade about creating a web page in conjunction with the City's website which would contain current cable TV information. Mr. Stanger agreed to check into this. V. CONSIDER RECOMMENDATION TO THE CITY COUNCIL RELATING TO A NEW FRANCHISE AGREEMENT FOR COSERV CABLE Mark Guest, Manager with CoSery Communications, presented the Committee with a DRAFT copy of the proposed franchise agreement. This agreement is identical to the TCI Franchise Agreement - same terms; agreement for the same line extension policy; have a local office in Allen, etc. Mr. Guest explained that CoSery L.L.P can provide telephone service, television service, electrical service, internet access, security service, etc. This is also referred to as "bundled service," and cable TV is considered by the company to be a "loss leader" for their other services. Mr. Guest explained that CoSery would only agree to such a franchise if the line extension policy is construed liberally; that is, that CoSery does not have to offer service in areas that CoSery would lose a lot of money CoSery is owned by Denton County Electric Co-op. Their goal is to be competitive while still providing good service. Mr. Guest gave an estimate of the charges for the cable services that CoSery would provide: 10/month basic service - 16 channels 34/month expanded basic - 48 channels The Committee stated that these charges are similar to the monthly TCI service charges. Mr. Guest explained that the cable is very expensive to put into the ground. He asked the Committee to consider how much the City wanted competition. The Committee asked both representatives that in the many new areas that are being developed in Allen, would both entities supply service to the residents? Both Mr. Watson and Mr. Guest said they would investigate this inquiry and supply further information to Mr. Stanger The Committee wanted to know if any plans were being developed for CoSery to supply service to the east side of Allen. Mr. Guest stated that there were no plans at this time. For now, they were concentrating on providing service to the west side of Allen. There was no action taken on this item. This item was tabled and would be i brought back at the next meeting. CTTAC Minutes July 9, 1999 Page 4 The Committee requested that Mr. Guest provide a 'channel line-up." He Ililll agreed to provide one to the Committee. Discussion was held regarding the possible controversy involved with a company providing service to certain parts of the City and not others. The Committee wants to avoid an east vs. west type of atmosphere throughout the City Also, since this is a fairly new company, some risks might be involved. Positive aspects of another cable service within the City would include: This company would provide competition for TCI TCI would need to upgrade their system by improving their channel selections, price comparison, etc. Mr. Stanger informed the Committee that in order to grant a franchise agreement to CoSery Cable, the request would need to have a recommendation from the Committee and then approved at three readings before the City Council. He stated that he would meet with Mr. Guest at a later date to get more details regarding the actual distribution areas for CoSery and the proposed projects and plans offered to the City The Committee reiterated their concerns for "selective marketing" within the City and the consequences that could develop due to this strategy Members discussed the issue as a question of "competing values", that is, lower rates and better service through competition versus social equity (benefits to some neighborhoods but not others). The Committee requested that Mr. Guest furnish more information regarding CoServ's five-year plan for the cable program - how and where do they plan on competing - what is the proposed quality of service? Mr. Guest explained that the cable is very expensive to put into the ground. He asked the Committee to consider how much the City wanted competition. The Committee asked both representatives that in the many new areas that are being developed in Allen, would both entities supply service to the residents? Both Mr. Watson and Mr. Guest said they would investigate this inquiry and supply further information to Mr. Stanger The Committee wanted to know if any plans were being developed for CoSery to supply service to the east side of Allen. Mr. Guest stated that there were no plans at this time. For now, they were concentrating on providing service to the west side of Allen. There was no action taken on this item. This item was tabled and would be i brought back at the next meeting. CTTAC Minutes July 9, 1999 Page 5 VI. CONSIDER A CITIZEN CABLE USE SURVEY Discussion was held regarding a citizen cable use survey. Issues discussed included: Telephone vs. written/mailout Demographics Service (call in) and product (channels offered) Overall satisfaction with the product If a resident does not subscribe to cable, what product - if any - are they using? Why? Cable service - basic only; expanded Age bracket Quality of Service Don't make the survey too long. ..and let the community know that "we" care about what is going on. The Committee will discuss suggestions/questions for the survey at the next meeting. No action was taken on this item. VII. TABLED ITEM: CONSIDER FINAL REPORT TO CITY COUNCIL CONCERNING ENDS POLICIES RELATED TO TELECOMMUNI- CATIONS No action was taken on this item. VIII. OTHER BUSINESS A. TCI Compliance with Franchise Agreement. No discussion was held concerning this information. B. Items of Interest to the Committee: Next regular meeting will be held on Thursday, August 12, 1999, in the Municipal Annex Conference Room at 7:00 p.m. 14 I CTTAC Minutes July 9, 1999 Page 6 IX. ADJOURN MOTION: Carl Johnson moved to adjourn the meeting. Eric Willard seconded. The motion carried 6 for and 0 against. The meeting was adjourned at 9:18 p.m. These minutes read and approved this 12th day of August, 1999 Don Wing, Chair JI& Eric rd, Secretary