Franchise Agreement Terms Review Presented at MTA BoardMAAC Meetings

1
Franchise Agreement Terms Review Presented at MTA
Board/MAAC Meetings
Tom Robinson Executive Vice-President

• CBG Communications, Inc.
• 73 Chestnut Road, Suite 301
• Paoli, PA 19301
• Phone [phone]
• Fax [phone]
• 
  robinson_at_cbgcommunications.com

• Marin County, California November 2005

2
PEG Access

• Issue
• Analog Channel Capacity

• Status
• Separate LO
• 1P 1E and 1G
• Up to two additional PEG Channels (5 total),
  based on triggers.

3
PEG Access

• Issue
• Digital Channel Capacity

• Status
• Comcast Up to 3 additional channels (8 total
  digital channels).
• MTA 75 of analog capacity, or 8 channels plus
  delivery in any digital format used by the DAP
  and Comcast.

4
PEG Access

• Issue
• Advanced Forms of Service Delivery
• HDTV

• Status
• Comcast Discuss the type of programming at the
  time the DAP (Designated Access Provider) wishes
  to provide it in HDTV as to whether it can be
  provided by Comcast.
• MTA Provide in same digital format (including
  HDTV) to subscribers that is used by the DAP, as
  long as Comcast utilizes that format.

5
PEG Access

• Issue
• Advanced Forms of Service Delivery
• VOD

• Status
• Comcast will provide as long as the on-demand
  programs are housed on the DAPs server.

6
PEG Access

• Issue
• FM Services

• Status
• Under discussion concerning Franchise provision
  language

7
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Facility

• Status
• Comcast will provide funding of up to 500,000,
  based on renovation/construction estimates to
  construct, remodel and/or reconfigure an existing
  facility for the central Media facility location.

8
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Access Equipment
• Initial Central Facility Equipment and
  Improvements

• Status
• Comcast will provide 1,000,000 for equipment
  procurement and facility implementation at the
  beginning of the new Franchise after a PEG Media
  Center operating plan is forwarded by the MTA.

9
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Access Equipment
• Central Facility Replacement Equipment

• Status
• Comcast will provide 500,000 after receipt of
  the PEG Media Facility operating plan to be
  utilized over the life of the Franchise for
  replacement equipment.

10
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Access Equipment
• PEG Distributed Equipment

• Status
• Comcast will provide 500,000 for equipment to be
  placed at distributed facilities throughout the
  MTA area, after the MTA forwards a PEG
  Distributed Services plan.

11
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Operations
• Transition Grant

• Status
• Comcast will provide 500,000 in transition grant
  money that could be used for PEG start-up.

12
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Operations
• Continued Use of Comcast Facility

• Status
• Comcast will continue to operate the existing
  community access facility at existing levels of
  support for 24 months or 12 months after the
  signing of the lease for a new Media Center
  facility (which could occur at the end of the 24
  months, extending the continued operation of the
  current community access facility up to 36
  months).

13
PEG Access

• Issue
• PEG Operations
• Naming Rights/ Marin.org Sponsorship Proposal

• Status
• Comcast is considering the MTAs proposal to
  provide sponsorship and naming rights funding
  related to Marin.org and the future Media
  Facility. At this point, Comcast wants this to be
  part of the transition grant.
• MTA Needs to be separate from the transition
  grant.

14
PEG Access

• Issue
• Opt-in/Opt-out Funding Solicitation on Comcast
  Bills

• Status
• Comcast Not feasible for a variety of reasons.
• MTA Willing to look at other mechanisms such
  as, Comcast participation in a membership drive,
  provision of promotional spots on other channels,
  provision of transitional and other funding that
  could be used for operations.

15
Institutional Network

• Issue
• Network Development

• Status
• Comcast will provide a dark fiber I-Net to at
  least all the 31 core and concentrator
  facilities, up to 1,000,000 in a drawdown
  account.

16
Institutional Network

• Issue
• Equipment Provision

• Status
• Equipment could be procured, or additional
  facilities to those beyond the initial 31 core
  and concentrator sites could be constructed, as
  long as it falls within the 1,000,000 cap.

17
Institutional Network

• Issue
• Maintenance and Service Response
• Preventive and Demand Maintenance

• Status
• Comcast will absorb the cost of basic preventive
  and demand maintenance on the fiber plant.

18
Institutional Network

• Issue
• Maintenance and Service Response
• Service Response

• Status
• Comcast - provide a basic level of service
  response, with higher levels paid for by the
  I-Net Users.
• MTA Levels proposed, which are at high levels
  of response (providing a 99.999 network
  availability), should be met by Comcast at its
  cost.

19
Customer Service Standards

• Issue
• Monthly Reporting

• Status
• Comcast will provide monthly reporting on system
  outages, reasons, resolutions and outage credits
  that have been issued.

20
Customer Service Standards

• Issue
• Call Answering Statistics

• Status
• Comcast will provide quarterly reports on call
  answering statistics, that could be evaluated for
  compliance with MTA standards.

21
Customer Service Standards

• Issue
• Annual Reporting

• Status
• Comcast will provide a full annual report on a
  variety of customer service requirements and
  other Franchise matters.

22
Low Income Discounts

• Issue
• Service Discount

• Status
• Comcast - Continue providing current low income
  service discount to those that currently receive
  it.
• MTA The low income discount should be extended
  to all those who are eligible throughout the
  Franchise term.

23
Low Income Discounts

• Issue
• Provision of Cable Service and Cable Modem
  Service to Community Centers

• Status
• Comcast will provide cable service, reception
  equipment, cable modem service and multimedia
  labs to a number of Community Centers throughout
  the MTA area.

24
Gross Revenues Definition

• Issue
• Broad Definition of Gross Revenues with Minimal
  Exclusions

• Status
• General agreement on the language still working
  on specific wording. Agreement contingent on
  other terms and conditions being satisfactory.

25
System Interconnect

• Issue
• PEG Interconnects for Novato, City Halls and the
  County Government Center

• Status
• General agreement on the language still working
  on delineation of Comcast vs. MTA funding.

26
System Interconnect

• Issue
• PEG and I-Net Interconnects between the Marin
  System and other Comcast Systems in the Bay area.

• Status
• Comcast Interconnects only within the Countys
  borders.
• MTA Interconnects to adjacent Comcast and other
  Systems in the Bay Area.

27
Most Favored Nations/System Upgrade

• Issue
• Most Favored Nations

• Status
• General Agreement on the comparison cities to use
  and the parameters for comparison.

28
Most Favored Nations/System Upgrade

• Issue
• System Upgrade

• Status
• Comcast Wants company to determine how to meet
  expanded or upgraded service levels if it is
  required to under most favored nations
  requirements, without negotiation with or
  specification by the MTA.
• MTA Wants to implement a due process
  requirement that ultimately will enable the MTA
  to specify a technical upgrade if needed to meet
  required service levels.

29
Level Playing Field/Competitive Equity

• Issue
• Level Playing Field

• Status
• General agreement on the requirement that others
  providing competitive services meet equivalent
  Franchise obligations.

30
Level Playing Field/Competitive Equity

• Issue
• Competitive Equity

• Status
• Comcast Wants a re-opener and sunset clause
  that would take effect at any time that any
  entity would provide video programming services
  in competition with Comcast without a Franchise.
  
• MTA Willing to meet and discuss the impact of a
  competitive entity on Franchise obligations if
  such a competitive entity is a wireline-based
  provider providing mutli-channel video service
  without a Franchise because of State or Federal
  enablements.

31
Term Length

• Issue
• Term Length

• Status
• Ten year Franchise Term.

32
Living Wage Requirement

• Issue
• Living Wage Requirement

• Status
• MTA will pass an ordinance requiring all entities
  entering into contracts with the MTA (including
  any type of service provider that would be
  considered a competitor of Comcast) would be
  required to meet living wage standards.

33
System Transfer

• Issue
• System Transfer

• Status
• General Agreement on transfer approval needed in
  the case of changes in ownership or working
  control currently working on specific language.

34
Performance Bonds/Security

• Issue
• Performance Bonds

• Status
• Comcast Wants no letter of credit, but will
  provide a 200,000 performance bond as well as an
  I-Net construction Bond.
• MTA Willing to look only at performance bonds
  if the primary Bond is 300,000 or greater, and
  there is an I-Net/PEG Bond starting at 2,500,000
  and reducible over several years as requirements
  are fulfilled.

35
Franchise Enforcement

• Issue
• Liquidated Damage Types

• Status
• General Agreement on the types of non-performance
  issues that would be subject to liquidated
  damages.

36
Franchise Enforcement

• Issue
• Liquidated Damage Amounts

• Status
• Comcast Amounts range from 50 to 500 per day
  and a cap of 120 days maximum for liquidated
  damages to accrue.
• MTA Amounts should range from 250 to 1,000
  with no 120 day cap however, Comcast could
  pursue binding arbitration to lesson its
  liquidated damage liability.