2003-03-12 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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III Cable modem service redesignated \. :. . In 2002 the FCC decided that high speed cable modem service was NOT a cable service,. but an interstate information service. This basically removed regulation of cable modem service from the locallevet The company stopped collecting and paying franchise fees on the serviCe. This did not have a huge budgetary effect on us, as we had not yet been upgraded for the provision of high speed data services. The Implications for future income is, however, huge. So far no rules have been made regarding how high speed data services are to be regulated. Many interested parties have filed comments encouraging the courts and the FCC to reconsider the new desigriation. II Arbitration issue It was determined that the provision in AT&T Broadband's Customer Notice Regarding Policies, Complaint Procedures & Dispute ResOlution eliminating subscnoers. right to. a jury trial to resolve cable re1ateddisputes was not in the best interest of the subscn'ber. The Notice basically forced subscn'bers to resolve their concerns through arbitration. In addition, the subscriber could only go through an arbitrator selected by the company. The company, however, could still take a subscn'ber to court. After many meetings, discusSions, and. letters both on the local and cotporate level the language of the Notice was changed. Both parties now must resolve conflicts through arbitration, but the choice of arbitrators is no longer as limited. II Customer service issues There has long been a concern regarding the customer service practices of AT&T Broadband. Staff and legal counsel began work: with the company to insure more meaningful reporting of \~i;.' telephone statistics and better customer service performance. . . II New Media Center discussioDS The longjoumey toward building Ii new Media Center began in earnest. A report was written outlining the need for the facility and presented to City Councils, research into possible. construction sites was initiated, and a resolution amending the Joint Powers Agreement that would allow the Con:nnission to own property was written and sent on to City Councils for their ~~ .' . Franchise renewal . After a little over five years of on-again off-again negotiations, the frustrated move to the formal negotiation process, and the simultaneous re-initiation of informal discussions, a franchise document acceptable to the Commission and Company was.bom. Among the highlights for the Commission, it provides for the continued support of cormmudty progra.rnrning, the upgrading of the Institutional Network, and the extension of cable service to certain areas that don't and probably won't reach the' density requirement any time soon. The document is considered to be valid through November 22,2017. . 16