Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutFranchise Agreement Correspondence 1991 ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEYISION January 8, 1991 Mr. Thomas Terrizzi, Chairman Ithaca Cable Commission City Hall 108 E. Green Street ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Tom: Per our agreement, this letter is to clarify that American Community Cablevision (ACC) will abide by New York State Commission on Cable Television (NYSCCT) regulations as regards the allowance of political endorsements on Public/Educational/Government access. As you are aware, this is prohibited in the franchise contract signed by ACC and the City of Ithaca. Because future readers of this correspondence may not know the entire story here, the contract complied with NYSCCT's rules (in fact was written verbatim from them) when it was written, and the state Commission subsequently changed their position on this issue. ACC is operating in compliance with New York State Commission on Cable Television's Regulations. Sincerely, L/ Barbara L. Lukens General Manager cc: Charles Guttman, attorney, City of Ithaca Lauren Stefanelli, ACC Access Coordinator ACC legal files Paula Tarallo, ACC BLL/mkk 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 equal effort all the possible outcomes of this particular issue. 4_� - A vote on the resolution resulted as follows : Carried Unanimously *18 .7 Hydropower Legal Options By Alderperson Cummings : Seconded by Alderperson Hoffman WHEREAS, there is still some question in the community of the ability of the City to gain long-term protection of potential sites from hydropower development; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED that Common Council hereby directs the City Attorney to investigate thoroughly the legal options for long term protection of the Ithaca Falls and Sixty Foot Dam sites from hydropower development. Discussion followed on the floor. A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: Carried Unanimously RECESS Common Council recessed at 9 : 35 p.m. and reconvened in regular session at 9 : 45 p.m. CHARTER AND ORDINANCE COMMITTEE: \\ *15. 1 Delegation of Authority to Cable TV Commission WHEREAS , the City of Ithaca did establish by resolution of the Common Council an "Advisory Committee on Cable Television" consisting of five persons on February 24 , 1975 , which committee continues to meet and operate under the name of "The Cable Commission" , and WHEREAS , the City of Ithaca has recently entered into a new cable television franchise agreement with American Community Cablevision, which provides in Section 24 . 9 thereof that "the Mayor or the Cable Commission shall be responsible for the continuing administration of this Franchise, " and WHEREAS , the City of Ithaca has also recently adopted a "Cable Communications Ordinance, " which provides in Section 64 . 5 (5 . 1) thereof that the authority under said Ordinance "shall be vested in the Common Council or its designee to provide day-to- day administration and enforcement of the provisions of this Ordinance and any Franchise granted hereunder, and to carry out the City ' s responsibility with regard to cable communication, " and WHEREAS, Common Council desires to officially rename the "Advisory Committee on Cable Television" and designate it under said Ordinance; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That the "Advisory Committee on Cable Television "established by resolution of the Common Council on February . 24 , 1975 is officially renamed "The Cable Commission. " The Cable Commission shall continue to have five voting members, who shall serve five year terms. Present members of the "Advisory Committee on Cable Television" shall continue as 27 members of "The Cable Commission" through the balance of their terms. New members shall be appointed by the Mayor with the approval of Common Council . one member of Common Council, appointed in the same manner, shall also serve as a non voting member of The Cable Commission. At the first meeting of each year, The Cable Commission shall elect a Chair, a Vice-Chair and a Secretary and shall adopt a schedule of monthly meetings. Copies of the minutes of each meeting shall be transmitted to the Mayor and Common Council , and be it further RESOLVED, That The Cable Commission is hereby designated to provide day-to-day administration and enforcement of the provisions of the "Cable Communications Ordinance" and any Franchise granted thereunder, and to carry out the City' s responsibility with regard to cable communications pursuant to Cable Communications Ordinance Section 64 . 5 (5. 1) , subject to review by Common Council as it deems appropriate at any time. ' Alderperson Lytel stated for the record that day-to-day administration and enforcement of the provisions of the franchise does not include the findings and determinations of breach of the contract which under the franchise and ordinance is reserved to the Common Council . City Attorney Nash agreed that the ultimate determination of breach is reserved to Council . A vote on the resolution resulted as follows: U Ayes (9) - Booth, Schlather, Cummings, Lytel , Johnson, Hoffman, Peterson, Nichols, Killeen .Abstention (1) - Romanowski (Conflict of Interest) Carried It was noted for the record that the above resolution on Cable Television should be included in the section entitled "Resolutions" in the City of Ithaca Municipal Code. *15. 2 Amendment to Section 7 . 10 of the City Charter Respecting Liability of the City for a Defect on City Property Where the City Has Not Received Written Notice of That Defect - Local Law By Alderperson Booth: Seconded by Alderperson Killeen LOCAL LAW NO. OF THE YEAR 1989 CITY OF ITHACA A LOCAL LAW AMENDING ARTICLE 7 , SECTION 7 . 10 EN`T'ITLED 'LIABILITY FOR SIDEWALK INJURIES ' OF THE CITY OF ITHACA CHARTER BE IT ENACTED by the Common Council of the City of Ithaca, . New York as follows: SECTION 1 . AMENDING SECTION 7 . 10 OF THE CITY OF ITHACA CHARTER. Article 7 , Section 7 . 10 of the City of Ithaca Charter is hereby amended to read as folloxs : persons, especially those with disabilities, have this information before an emergency arises . (Chapter 85, Laws of 1990) Solid Fuel Burning Devices Assembly bill 7971 (Tonko) - would clarify the intended purpose of prior legislation by directing that standards for inspections of solid fuel burning heating appliances, chimneys and flues are to be included within the Uniform Fire and Building Code. (Passed Assembly; died in Senate Housing and Community Development Committee) CABLE TELEVISION Cable Consumer Bill of Rights, A. 9288 (Brodsky) The quasi-monopoly position of the cable industry, created by de-regulation through the federal Cable Communications Act of 1984 , produced a consistent and rapid increase in the prices charged by cable companies. Cable customer contracts frequently provided that programming changes directly affecting their subscribers could be made without any notice to those subscribers . Moreover, cable companies often failed to keep their subscribers informed with respect to their current rate and programming options . For instance, one cable company made one of its premium channels available to all of its subscribers for one year for the price of its basic cable subscription. Because existing subscribers were not notified about this change and many new subscribers were misinformed, thousands of subscribers paid substantially more than necessary for the cable service. Another example of this problem was the recent dispute between the Madison Square Garden Network (MSG) and many local cable franchises . Cable operators wanted to switch the Yankee baseball games to a more expensive tier in their cable package; MSG wanted 'the program to remain part of the basic service. Many subscribers were justifiably upset . A. 9288 (Brodsky) - provides cable subscribers in New York State with a number of protections . Unannounced switches from a basic to a more expensive tier of service, or the unannounced removal of a program, can no longer occur under the new law. Cable operators must provide subscribers with at least 30 days ' notice before a significant programming change. In some circumstances, subscribers can discontinue service and receive a refund on certain charges if programming is changed. 24 The law provides cable customers with the opportunity, at least on a semi-annual basis , to re-evaluate their subscription contracts in light of other rate and programming options that may have developed. Cable customers are now in a position to make purchasing decisions more carefully tailored to their interests and budgets . If an advertised channel or program is cut or increased in price without warning, the customer can terminate service and receive a refund of the installation and sign-up charges . If the customer keeps the service, he or she can receive credit for up to one-third of the basic monthly service charge for up to six months . If cable companies do not respond to a customer ' s complaint, the customer can now take legal action. Companies violating the provisions of the measure can be fined up to $3, 000 per violation, or for every person affected. (Chapter 9 , Laws of 1990 ) INDIAN AFFAIRS Crisis at Akwesasne The Committee has jurisdiction over the State Indian Law and Indian affairs generally. An issue which received a great deal of attention by the Committee was the strife at Akwesasne, also referred to as the St . Regis Mohawk Reservation, which straddles the United States-Canadian border. Escalating tensions over the presence of illegal gambling establishments at Akwesasne led to increasing lawlessness and, ultimately, to the shooting deaths of two Mohawk residents in May of 1990 . These killings were the impetus for the New York State Police and their Canadian counterparts to move onto the reservation to restore order. In response to this crisis , the Committee convened hearings, in conjunction with the Assembly Committee on Environmental Conservation and the NYS Black and Puerto Rican Legislative Caucus, to examine the deep-seated problems at the reservation more fully. The Committee held two hearings : the first near Akwesasne at the Salmon River Central School on July 24 , and a subsequent hearing in Albany on August 2 . Among the topics addressed during the hearings were two 1990 Governor ' s program bills--one dealing with the establishment of an indigenous police force on the reservation ( #322 ) , and the other addressing the establishment of a gaming compact between the State and the St. Regis Mohawk Nation ( 11325 ) . The Committee heard over 27 hours of testimony and received a large number of written statements from a wide range of 25 ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION January 23, 1991 Mr. Tom Terizzi City Hall 108 E. Green Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Mr. Terizzi: American Community Cablevision (ACC) has received a number of inquiries regarding the decision to eliminate duplication of The Weather Channel. ACC has carried The Weather Channel (TWC) in two locations, channel 7 and channel 42 for nearly two years. On channel 7, it provided background for our local news program, Newscenter 7, which airs 6 times nightly during the week, interrupting The Weather Channel to do so. On February 8th, ACC will be replacing TWC on channel 7 with The Marketplace, a photoadvertising service which will contain weather information and other features in addition to photoadvertising. We informed customers of this change via a billing message, which may not have provided as much information as we (and perhaps they) would have preferred. TWC will continue to be available to customers - in fact, we are moving it from channel 42 to channel 23 because we are part way through a rebuild, and not all of our subscribers have access to channel 42. I have received correspondence from fewer than one half a percent of our customers, and while all customers are important, the fact that we are in a rate regulated market and are sensitive to pricing, puts us in a position of having to find other means of covering our programming costs. As a further note, ACC is one of the very few cable companies who have a low priced service which contains any programming other than broadcast and PEG access (see enclosed channel line-up) . In addition to that, we provide additional outlets and FM service at no charge. The Weather Channel is not being eliminated, and we are making extra efforts in providing other means by which residents can obtain weather information, although it has always been available on network television and in the daily newspaper. It is the 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 investment by companies like The Weather Channel in developing its own product to enhance cable programming that came as a result of the deregulation of the cable television industry and which also has caused the significant rise in the cost of programming. Unfortunately, we can't have one without the other. The attached letter, which is being sent to customers who have written to express their concern over our decision, may provide some additional clarification. Please feel free to call me if I can be of further help. Sincerely, Barbara L. ukens General manager BLL/mkk enc. (2) ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION January 23 , 1991 Mr. & Mrs. Kenneth W. White 314 Meadow Wood Terrace Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Mr. & Mrs. White: While ACC would like to respond to all customer complaints by doing exactly what the customer wants, it is not always possible. It is also not practical to obtain a vote from all customers every time a decision is made. Your letter mentioned that we periodically mail surveys and do not respond by doing what the customers want, but I'd like to point out that ACC is adding the two channels customers asked for the most in our most recent survey (The Nostalgia Channel on February 8th, and The Sci-Fi Channel as soon as it becomes available to us) . I have attached some additional information regarding ACC's decision regarding The Weather Channel. it is an unfortunate reality that we cannot please all of our customers all of the time. Sincerely, j Barbara L. Lukens General Manager cc: Mayor Ben Nichols, City of Ithaca City Cable Commission, City of Ithaca Ric Dietrich, Town Supervisor, Town of Danby Assemblyman Martin Luster Frank Proto, County Representative for Danby and Caroline US Senator Daniel P. Moynihan US Senator Alphonse D'Amato US Congressman Matt McHugh Steve Stein, Planning Board, Town of Danby BLL/mkk enc. 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 ITHACA CHANNEL LINE-UP JAN-FEB 191 O1 VIEWER'S CHOICE (PAY PER VIEW) B 02 ABC-9/WIXT B 03 NBC-3/WSTM B 04 PBS-24/WCNY B 05 CNN B 06 FOX-68/WSYT B* 07 THE MARKETPLACE/L.O. (AS OF 2/8/91) B 07 NEWSCENTER 7, M-F 6-11PM ON THE HOUR B 08 PBS-46/WSKG B 09 IND-9/WWOR B 10 ESPN B 11 IND-11/WPIX B 12 CBS-12/WBNG B 13 THE LEARNING CHANNEL B 13 CABLE 13 , PUBLIC ACCESS + 14 HBO + 15 CINEMAX + 16 THE DISNEY CHANNEL B 17 CBS-5/WTVH B 18 NBC-40/WICZ B 19 C-SPAN B 20 ABC-36/WENY 21 MTV 22 USA NETWORK * 23 THE WEATHER CHANNEL (AS OF 2/8/91) 24 TNT 25 NICKELODEON/NICK-AT-NITE 26 ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT 27 CNBC 28 MSG/THE TRAVEL CHANNEL 29 BRAVO/C-SPAN II 30 DISCOVERY 31 AMERICAN MOVIE CLASSICS 32 CNN HEADLINE NEWS 33 THE FAMILY CHANNEL 34 NASHVILLE NETWORK 35 JC PENNEY SHOPPING 36 VIDEO HITS 1 37 LIFETIME 38 BLACK ENTERTAINMENT TELEVISION * 39 E! ENTERTAINMENT (AS OF 1/1/91) 40 THE LEARNING CHANNEL 41 QVC * 42 FINANCIAL NEWS NETWORK (AS OF 2/8/91) 43 THE COMEDY CHANNEL * 44 NOSTALGIA TELEVISION (AS OF 2/8/91) * 45 THE SCI-FI CHANNEL (91 - WHEN AVAILABLE) B 53 GOVERNMENT/EDUCATIONAL ACCESS B BASIC CABLE SERVICE + PREMIUM CHANNELS * CHANGES Paae 2 January 23 , 1991 We want our customers to know, ACC plans to provide local weather information on the Marketplace and we are investigating our options for providing it in a timely manner. We are also looking at a way to provide emergency weather information. In addition, CNN provides weather information periodically throughout the day, including business traveler's advisories. The Weather Channel will be found on channel 23, on our standard service, which is available for less than an additional 26 cents a day, less than the cost of a daily newspaper. one of the beauties of Ithaca is that we live in an area where there is great diversity of opinion. While we understand that not everyone will agree with this decision, we believe it is the best under the circumstances. Sincerely, Barbara L. Lukens General Manager BLL/mkk ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION January 23 , 1991 Dear Customer: A number of ACC's customers have asked for more information as to why ACC is eliminating duplication of The Weather Channel by replacing it with The Marketplace, effective February 8th, on the basic service. While the explanation below is fairly lengthy, it is intended to provide customers with a more complete picture of the situation. Many cable companies offer at least two levels of service for their customers: a service designed to provide a minimum of television signals and respond to a need for those on limited incomes, and a standard service for those who desire a wide variety of television choices. The lower priced level of service almost always includes only broadcast television (network and PBS stations which can be received by a rooftop antenna) and public access channels, where they exist. The standard level includes all of the above, lus a broad selection of programming which was developed aproduced primarily for viewing by cable television customers. In Ithaca, the lowest "basic" service is unusual in that much more is provided than a "lifeline" service as it also includes CNN, ESPN, and two independent stations, WWOR and WPIX, which are received via satellite antennas and part time carriage of The Learning Channel and The Weather Channel. ACC's basic service is rate regulated by the City of Ithaca, and therefore as cable programmers increase their rates to ACC, ACC is unable to recoup its expenses. Over the last two years, while ACC's costs to purchase programming have increased by 80%, subscriber prices have increased, on average, 10-11.75% annually. ACC must develop new revenue streams to recoup this shortfall, and The Marketplace, a photoadvertising service, is one such idea that also provides a valuable service to our community and our customers. In order to carry The Marketplace on the lowest level of service something had to be replaced. In this particular situation, The Weather Channel was the lesser of all evils since it is available on the standard service and our carriage on basic was simply duplication. Newscenter 7 will continue to be found on Channel 7 . 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 IT 4'0,9••...........••�0 m,°�RATED CITY OF ITHACA I oE3 Fns r c "F s rFa F=1 ITHACA, NEW YORK 14850 OFFICE OF TELEPHONE: 272-1713 MAYOR CODE 607 January 25, 1991 Lauren Stefanelli Cable 13 American Community Cablevision 519 West State Street Ithaca NY 14850 Dear Lauren: I am replying to your letter dated January 21, 1991 concerning complaints about the January 17 Round About Ithaca program on the public access channel. As a matter of fact I personally received a number of calls on the same subject and my office has never refused to take any call on any subject. None of the callers to my knowledge objected to the presence of a public access channel in principle. The complaints were about this specific program. As Community Access Coordinator you should share with me the delight in the news that so many subscribers are watching Channel 13. It is true that callers were referred to your number (272-7272) to register their complaints. It was my understanding that it is your responsibility to keep a log of all complaints about access programs and that this log serves as the basis of consideration by the Access Advisory Board whose membership is jointly determined. I am surprised that your letter makes no reference to that board. It is their specific responsibility to advise on access policies, procedures, and rules. Callers were also urged to put their complaints to you in writing with a copy to the Cable Commission. As Community Access Coordinator you should be more knowledgeable about the requirements for ACC to provide public access. Yes,the City wants channels devoted to public, governmental,and educational access. But to say that "Public access exists at the specific demand of the City of Ithaca" leaves out the fact that the Regulations of the New York State Commission on Cable Television, Section 595.4(b)(1) specifically require that there should be at least one full time public channel and at least one full-time governmental-educational channel. That was understood when the franchise was negotiated. If in fact ACC is stating that public access is available only because of the city's demand, you are not only passing out wrong information but also demonstrating your lack of commitment to access. A,,F-iu:n nrT... ..d+,F...i ... .,,All It was completely irresponsible for your staff to refer complaints to the home phones of the Cable Commission. You administer Channel 13 and you should explain that the complaints will be logged and transmitted to the appropriate bodies for their action. There should also be a written statement of the principles and standards for public access that can be sent to people on demand or perhaps distributed in an ACC mailing. People should also be made aware of how they can gain access for their own views. I would suggest that the drafting of that statement should be a charge for the Access Advisory Board and that it be reviewed by the Cable Commission and ACC. As you may note I was less than enthused by your letter. If public access did not generate community controversy it would not be doing its job. You personally deserve credit for its growth in quantity and quality. Keep up the good work. Sincerely, 1�1 Benjamin Nichols Mayor cc: Barbara Lukens, General Manager Tom Terrizzi, City Cable Commission Mary Jo Dudley, Access Advisory Board P.S. Please see my column in the Grapevine on January 30, 1991. BN/ta Weekly Bulletin January 25, 1991 STATE OF NEW YORK COMMISSION ON CABLE TELEVISION EMPIRE STATE PLAZA TOWER BUILDING ALBANY, NEW YORK 12223 This Bulletin contains two categories of information: Requests for Commission Action Notes of General Interest For a complete description and listing of all requests and actions, or for further information regarding items in the bulletin, please contact our Albany office at 518-474-4992 . For the period covered: January 18, 1991 through January 24 , 1991 . REQUESTS FOR COMMISSION ACTION Docket Date Number Received 31005 Application by Niagara Frontier Cable 1/23/91 Television Inc. for approval of a renewal of its franchise with the Town of Lewiston (Niagara County) (Initial Franchise Docket No. 10073) NOTE OF GENERAL INTEREST The Commission's 17th Annual Northeast Cable Television Technical Seminar has been scheduled for May 20, 21, and 22 , 1991 at the Roaring Brook Ranch, Lake George, New York. A complete schedule of events will be available next month. For further information on the Seminar please contact the Commission' s Division of Telecommunication' s Office at (518) 474-1324 . www■ AW i i lll� American Television & Communications Corporation January 25, 1991 A Time Inc. Company National Division 160 Inverness Drive West, Suite 300 P.O. Box 6929 City of Ithaca Englewood, Colorado 80155-6929 Ithaca, New York (303) 799-9599 Dear Sir: Below is a report showing Gross Revenues for January, 1990 through December, 1990, The report is in compliance with Section 18.5 (B) . of the franchise agreement, approved by the City Council June 8, 1988, with American Community Cablevision. Computation is as follows: Month Gross Revenues --------------- --------------- January, 1990 $182,716.99 February 185,340.77 March 195,679.64 April 199,229.69 May 176,386.50 June 165,602.65 July 175,384.62 August 157,636.42 September 215,706. 12 October 204,210.23 November 206,455.34 December 194,628.68 --------------- Total $2,258,977.65 --------------- --------------- I , Ivy W. Parish, Controller of American Television and Communications Corporation, National Division, certify that the above schedule summarizes the Gross Revenues, as defined in the franchising agreement, for the period indicated for the CATV operations in the City of Ithaca. Signed: Iv W. Parish, Controller IWP/jdh Enclosure Providing entertainment and information choices. .w ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION February 1, 1991 Ms. Callista Paolangeli,City Clerk City Hall 108 E. Green Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Cookie: 1990 was, as usual, a busy year at ACC and we made some changes to accommodate our customers and provide better service. Here are some of the changes made to effect improved service. o We added an Audio Response Unit (ARU) , which we dubbed Nadine, and which has it telephone lines incoming. As soon as a call is transferred out to a Customer Service Representative, the incoming line is freed up for another caller. This has increased our telephone answering potential. Another plus is that custom- ers having touch tone phone service and who wish to check their account balance or order a PPV event are able to do so directly through the ARU, leaving the customer service representatives available for those callers who require their assistance. o Installers received extra training so they would be able to deal with service problems. As a result of this program, all technicians are able to handle most service calls. This has helped us improve our customer response time by allowing us to call on the technician who is nearest to a problem at the time of occurrence, rather than always having to radio to the most exper- ienced staff member who may not be in the immediate area. o Changes were made in the way we contact students and work through the problems associated with their return (primarily in the fall) . Unless a student requested a specific date beyond 7 days, our installation crews were able to schedule all installa- tion appointments within 7 working days during this incredibly busy period. We review and revise these procedures annually, ever searching for the perfect way to handle the rush. o ACC worked with educators and cable programmers in putting together a "Cable in the Classroom" program to create an aware- ness of cable programming which can be used as a valuable teach- ing tool. A number of the cable programmers have developed specific programs for teachers and students which are available for taping and can be reused as often as needed. To make this program as effective as possible, ACC provided free standard service to all schools, an annual commitment of approximately $11, 000. 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 Page 2 Ms. Callista Paolangeli February 1, 1991 o At the request of our customers, ACC removed the Prevue Guide from channel 6, replacing it with the Syracuse Fox affi- liate, WSYT-68. o During 1990, ACC expanded its basic cable service from 12 channels to 17 channels. In order to accommodate those customers who do not own cable ready television sets, ACC purchased and distributed channel selectors to basic cable subscribers who needed them - at no charge to our customers. Customers who subscribe only to basic cable service received more for their money. As you probably know, ACC conducted a survey in August in order to obtain input from all customers regarding additions to our programming. There were over 2700 respondents, or more than 10% of our customer base. The top two choices were Nostalgia Televi- sion and The Sci-Fi Channel. A copy of the official results can be made available if you would like to see them. We are responding to the wishes of our customers by adding Nostalgia Television on cable channel 44 in February of 1991. The Sci-Fi Channel does not yet have a confirmed launch date, but is expected to be available by mid year 1991. ACC will add Sci- Fi on cable channel 45 as soon as it is available. In addition, we added a bonus channel on January first when we launched E! Entertainment on cable channel 39. We recently sent all customers in Ithaca our 1991 annual newsletter detailing such things as office hours, rates and services, review of past year's activity and plans for 1991. We hope this newsletter serves to better inform our customers. Channel 53, the new government/educational channel was operation- al on December 15th, 1990. It will begin somewhat slowly but is expected to build gradually. In order to be most effective, we need to evaluate and purchase a switching mechanism. This switcher should have adequate capability to handle access switch- ing for the next few years, so determining what changes may take place in access and getting approval from the Cable Access Ad- visory Board will the determining factors in when this can be purchased and installed. Until that time, the primary users are expected to be the City of Ithaca and the Tompkins County Board of Representatives. (We are already talking about the possibil- ity of adding channel 54 for educational access and utilizing channel 53 solely for government access. ) Page 3 Ms. Callista Paolangeli February 1, 1991 ACC continues to provide community support in a number of ways. We are a primary supporter of the Cayuga Chamber Orchestra's annual Youth Concert. Our available advertising time is frequently used for Public Service Announcements. In fact, in 1990 ACC's commitment for PSA's was in the $50-75, 000 range. Another nearly $6,000 was made in direct contributions to benefit 12 local organizations. Our NewsCenter 7 staff are often called upon to speak to local groups, and are happy to do so, and several other of our staff members are active in community activ- ities such as Sertoma and the Chamber of Commerce. ACC's commitment to community access exceeded $200, 000 in 1990. This commitment is in addition to the franchise fees paid to each municipality which totaled $200,486. 00 for the year. In 1990, ACC added .75 miles to its system in the City of Ithaca, passing an additional 8 homes. These extensions are on Hackberry Lane and in Stewart Park. The range of cable services offered to customers in Ithaca represents the very best variety of channels including twenty- four hour news, information and entertainment. The viewing choices available to today's cable TV customer represents an even greater value than years past - just about a penny and a half per channel per day! Overall, 1990 was a good year for ACC customers. Our goals for 1991 include continued focus on improving our customer response time, both in the field and in the office. Our target is to meet the customer service standards adopted by the National Cable Television Association. Each month we are moving closer to that goal. We are also working with the Cable Access Advisory Board and the City of Ithaca's Cable Commission on some issues revolv- ing around PEG access, which we hope to have resolved in the near future. ACC has more value for the price than other providers of informa- tion and entertainment. We offer free service calls and free additional outlets and consistently improved product. S' cerely, ):'a ,J �'�_ Barbara L: Lukens General Manager BLL/mkk cc: Tom Terrizzi, Chair, Ithaca Cable Commission Mr. Ben Nichols, Mayor 4 i s 4 AMERICAN COMMUNITY CA6LiV;SION February 14 , 1991 D • Ms. Callista Paolangeli FEB 2 O City Clerk City Hall 108 E. Green Street _ Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Paolangeli: Here are some reports which are required by our franchise agreement. The ownership report and list of officers and board members of ATC will be sent with our annual financial report, which usually comes to you in September. There have been no changes in these since they were last sent. Included herewith are the following: FCC annual performance test- ing results, summary of service requests and complaints, summary of outages and summary of reports required by NYSCCT or FCC related to city. Included in mfr annual letter to the City were the summary of last year's activities and the report of physical miles of plant construction. The certified income statement was sent under separate cover. ACC currently has 60.2 miles of of plant in operation in the City of Ithaca. Please feel free to contact me at 272-7875 if you have any ques- tions. Sincerely, Barbara L. Lukens General Manager cc: Ithaca Cable Commission, w/o attachments enc. BLL/mkk w 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 Co 6-e2 rp Ar Crit r ie i} CSG! /i p►� ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION . April 12, 1991 Ms. Callista Paolangeli City Clerk of Ithaca City Hall 108 E. Green St. Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms.Paolangeli: This is to inform you that the CNBC purchase of the Financial News Network has been approved by bankruptcy court and is _currently being reviewed by the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC review process is likely to conclude on or about April 19, 1991. A short time thereafter, FNN and CNBC will be integrated. ACC will notify you of the definitive date of integration as soon as we have a firm date. At present, we anticipate CNBC/FNN to appear on cable channel 27, and we are investigating options for a possible replacement cable service for cable channel 42 on the Ithaca lineup. It is CNBC's intention to combine the best of CNBC and FNN --the best ticker, talent, features and programs. The integrated service will be called CNBC/FNN during the business day and CNBC at night and on the weekends. The integrated business will continue to provide our customers with financial news programming, consumer programming during the week and talk programming on weekends. To help assure a smooth transition, CNBC has set up an 800 question and answer line (1-800-SMART-TV) . This will help to serve our customers who may have questions since it's unclear how much advance notice and promotion will be possible. On the day of the integration CNBC will continually communicate to our customers all programmincj_ format changes so the information they are accustomed to receiving will be simple to find. CNBC will promote the 1-800-SMART-TV number on-air on the combined service continuously for the first several weeks. ACC will inform cable customers of this change via stuffers in their May billing statements and on-air messages in accordance with New York State rules and regulations, and in keeping with Er ssociation Standards. isto er J. oyle Marketing/Operations Manager enc. CJD/mkk 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272.3456' IACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION May 6, 1991 Ms. Callista Paolangeli City of Ithaca City Hall 108 E. Green St. Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms.Paolangeli: I want to call your attention to a special problem American Community Cablevision has and to provide you with advance information on how we intend to deal with it. The problem is theft of cable service. It is draining thousands of dollars in lost revenues from our cable company in City of Ithaca each year. Part of the problem is that many people don't think of stealing cable signals as a crime. But under New York law, it is just like shoplifting. And, when somebody steals, somebody else pays. We're going to alert our subscribers to this fact through a public education campaign during the month of May. During our "awareness period" those who may be taking cable or some of our services for free can turn themselves in without fear of reprisal. After that period, we intend to undertake a comprehensive audit of our system using the latest in advanced technology which will enable us to pinpoint where problems may exist. If we find them, we intend to see that the law is enforced. Our interest is in assuring that our friends and neighbors who subscribe to cable services aren't having to pay for the guy down the block. It costs us money, it costs them money and it costs the City of Ithaca money from lost franchise fee revenues. Because of your leadership position within our community, we thought you'd want to know about our program. If you have any questions about it, don't hesitate to call me. Sincerely, Barbara L. Lukens C/C General Manager 519 Was State Stree Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 i IACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION Ms. Callista Paolangeli City Clerk City Hall, 108 E. Green St. Ithaca, New York 14850 May 21, 1991 Dear Ms. Paolangeli: This is to inform you that the CNBC purchase of the Financial News Network has been approved. By the end of this week, FNN and CNBC will be integrated. ACC will notify you of the definitive date of integration as soon as we have a firm date. CNBC/FNN will replace FNN on cable channel 19 in Candor. CNBC/FNN will replace FNN on cable channel 20 in Newark Valley. CNBC/FNN will appear on cable channel 27,and we are investigating options for a possible replacement cable service for cable channel 42 on the Ithaca lineup. It is CNBC's intention to combine the best of CNBC and FNN --the best ticker, talent, features and programs. The integrated service will be called CNBC/FNN during the business day and CNBC at night and on the weekends. The integrated business will continue to provide our customers with financial news programming, consumer programming during the week and talk programming on weekends. more. . . vtb,1A 8 Mq , 1991 L� CURS OFFICE Ithaca, N.Y. L , Q. , `� 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 IACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CASLEVISION CNBC/FNN To help assure a smooth transition, CNBC has set up an 800 question and answer line (1-800-SMART-TV) . This will help to serve our customers who may have questions since it's unclear how much advance notice and promotion will be possible. On the day of the integration CNBC will continually communicate to our customers all programming format chances so the information they are accustomed to receiving will be simple to find. CNBC will promote the 1-800-SMART-TV number on-air on the combined service continuously for the first several weeks. ACC will inform cable customers of this change via stuffers in their June billing statements and on-air messages in accordance with New York State rules and regulations, and in keeping with Cable Association Standards. A press release to all media will be mailed immediately. Si a el Christo er J. Doyle Marketing/Operations Manager cc Mayor/Supervisor NYS Cable Commission Ithaca Cable Commission EFFECTIVE MAY 20, 1991 QVC IS CARRIED ON CABLE CHANNEL 35/41 IN ITHACA;40 IN NEWARK VALLEY;23 IN CANDOR. THIS CHANGE WAS MADE BY THE OWNER OF THE CHANNEL. THE CHANGE WAS NOT MADE BY JC PENNEY OR YOUR LOCAL CABLE COMPANY. ACC IS REQUIRED BY SEPARATE CONTRACTS TO CARRY QVC AS REPLACEMENT OF JC PENNEY. IN ITHACA, ACC IS REQUIRED TO CARRY QVC ON CHANNELS 35 AND 41. .THEREFORE, IN ITHACA, CHANNEL 35 WILL DUPLICATE THE QVC PRO- GRAMMING ON CHANNEL 41 UNTIL LATE SUMMER WHEN, WE ARE TOLD, THE PROGRAMMING WILL BE REPLACED WITH A DIFFERENT PRODUCT. 519 West State Street Macs, Now York 14850 607-272-3456 ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION May 31, 1991 Ms. Cookie Paolangeli City Clerk City of Ithaca 108 E. Green Street Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms. Paolangeli: Enclosed is a check in payment of American Community Cablevision's franchise fee for the first quarter of 1991. A statement outlining the computation of this fee payment has been included. Should you have any questions, please feel free to call me. American Community Cablevision takes great pride in serving the residents of the City of Ithaca. Yar cer7lbara L. ukens General manager BLL/mkk enc. 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVI=ION R June 18, 1991 Vt �, 8 JUN2 0 1991 Ms. Debra A. Parsons CTI �t�lt'S OtF1C� Chamberlain's Office Ithaca, N.Y. 108 East Green Street Ithaca, NY 14850 cJl Dear Ms. Parsons: In July, 1991 ACC is informing City of Ithaca customers that a senior citizen's discount on basic cable service, which is need based, is available in Ithaca. The message will be printed directly onto their bills and says: "ACC OFFERS A 10% DISCOUNT ON BASIC CABLE SERVICE TO CUSTOMERS 65 YRS OF AGE OR OLDER AND WHOSE TOTAL ANNUAL HOUSEHOLD INCOME IS LESS THAN $15, 000. APPLICATION MUST BE MADE AT YOUR MUNICIPAL OFFICE. BRING PROOF OF AGE AND INCOME WHEN APPLYING. " I thought you'd like to know this since you may get a number of applicants following our notification. Also, we are looking for a way to indicate to seniors that they have received the discount. Right now, if they've satisfied the criteria, they are getting the discount, but there is nothing on the bill to indicate this. We'd like to end the confusion if we can. If I can be of further service, please call. Sincerely, Barbara L. Lukens, General Manager cc: Tom Terrizzi, Chair of Ithaca Cable Commission Cookie Paolangeli, City Clerk 519 West State Street Ithaca,New York 14850 607-272-3456 Audited- Financial Statements American Community Cablevision Division of American Television and Communications Corporation Year ended June 30, 1991 with Report of Independent Auditors ERNST&YOUNG AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION DIVISION OF AMERICAN TELEVISION AND COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION Audited Financial Statements June 30, 1991 Audited Financial Statements Report of Independent Auditors.............................................. ....1 Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Assets................... ..............2 Statement of Revenues and Expenses and Changes in Net Assets......... ........ ...3 Statement of Cash Flows.........................................................4 Notesto Financial Statements............................................... . . ..5 - - MERNST&YOUNG ■4300 Republic Plaza ■ Phone 303 534 4300 Denver, Colorado 80202 REPORT OF INDEPENDENT AUDITORS The Board of Directors American Television and Communications Corporation Stamford, Connecticut We have audited the accompanying statement of assets, liabilities and net assets of American Community Cablevision Division of American Television and Communications Corporation as of June 30, 1991, and the related statements of revenues and expenses and changes in net assets and cash flows for the year then ended. These financial statements are the responsibility of the Division's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements based on our audit. We conducted our audit in accordance with generally accepted auditing standards. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are _., free of material misstatement. An audit includes examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial statement presentation. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion. .- American Community Cablevision is a part of American Television and Communications Corporation and has no separate legal status or existence. Transactions with American Television and Communications — Corporation and other affiliates are described in Note 1. In our opinion, the financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the assets, liabilities and net assets of American Community Cablevision Division of American Television and Com- munications Corporation at June 30, 1991, and its revenues and expenses and changes in net assets and its cash flows for the year then ended in conformity with generally accepted accounting principles. September 20, 1991 - 1 - AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION DIVISION OF AMERICAN TELEVISION AND COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION STATEMENT OF ASSETS, LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS June 30, 1991 aw ASSETS Cash $ 55,233 Accounts receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts of $105,886 205,681 Prepaid expenses 17,297 Property, plant and equipment, y- at cost--Note 2: Land, building and improvements $ 1,892,252 Distribution system 18,270,946 .. Vehicles and other equipment 2,408,909 Construction in progress 177,809 22,749,9166 Less accumulated depreciation (9,057,836) Net property, plant and equipment 13,692,080 Franchise costs, less accumulated amortization of $1,167,156--Note 2 1,301,300 $15,271,591 LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS Accounts payable $ 510,220 Accrued liabilities 626,618 —' Subscribers' advance payments and deposits 235,420 1,372,258 Net assets--Note 1 13,899,333 $159271,591 See notes to financial statements - 2 - AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION DIVISION OF AMERICAN TELEVISION AND COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION STATEMENT OF REVENUES AND EXPENSES AND CHANGES IN NET ASSETS Year Ended June 30, 1991 Revenues: Service $6,625,132 Connection and other 1,303,520 $ 7,928,652 _. Expenses--Note 3: Operating and origination 3,027,726 Selling, general and administrative 1,668,518 Depreciation and amortization 1,685,228 Interest, net 653,222 7,034,694 Income before charge in lieu of income taxes 893,958 Charge in lieu of income taxes--Note 4 362,000 Net income 531,958 Net assets at beginning of year 11,976,925 Net advances from corporate office 1,390,450 Net assets at end of year $132899,333 See notes to financial statements - 3 - AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION DIVISION OF AMERICAN TELEVISION AND COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION STATEMENT OF CASH FLOWS Year Ended June 30, 1991 . Cash Flows From Operating Activities: Net income E 531,958 Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities: Depreciation and amortization 1,685,228 Change in operating assets and liabilities: Receivables and prepaid expenses (36,270) Payables, accrued liabilities and subscribers' advance payments 465,157 Net Cash Provided By Operating Activities $ 2,646,073 .. Cash Flows Used In Investing Activities: Net purchases of property, plant and equipment (4,001,638) Cash Flows From Financing Activities: •- Advances from American Television and Communications Corporation 1,390,450 Net increase in cash 34,885 Cash at beginning of year 20,348 Cash at end of year $ 55,233 Supplemental Disclosures of Cash Flow Information: Cash paid during the year for: Interest $ 720,563 Income taxes 362,000 See notes to financial statements - 4 - AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION DIVISION OF AMERICAN TELEVISION AND COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS June 30, 1991 1. Basis of presentation American Community Cablevision (the Division) is principally engaged in the cable television business. Such operations consist primarily of selling video programming which is distributed to subscribers for a monthly fee through a network of coaxial cables. It operates in the City of Ithaca, New York and contiguous areas under nonexclusive franchise agreements which are in effect ._ until 1998. The Division has no separate legal status or existence. The Division's .. resources and existence are at the disposal of American Television and Communications Corporation (ATC) management, subject to contractual commitments by ATC to perform certain long-term contracts within the present divisional structure. The Divisions's assets are legally available for the satisfaction of debts of ATC, not solely those appearing in the accompanying statements, and its debts may result in claims against assets not appearing therein. The Division is one of several divisions and subsidiaries of ATC, .� and transactions and the terms thereof may be arranged by and among members of the affiliated group. ATC is an 82% owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. (Time Warner). 2. Significant accounting policies Property, plant and equipment: Depreciation is provided on the straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives of the assets as follows: Building and improvements 10-20 years _ Distribution system 8-15 years Vehicles and other equipment 4-10 years Franchise costs: The Division has deferred costs incurred to acquire the franchises. Additional costs incurred to renew the franchise have also been deferred. Amortization of franchise costs is provided on the straight-line basis over periods of up to forty years. Statement of cash flows: For purposes of this statement, cash includes all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less. 3. Related party transactions The statement of revenues and expenses and changes in net assets includes a charge for programming and promotional services provided by Home Box Office Inc., a subsidiary of Time Warner. These charges were based upon customary rates. - 5 - AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION DIVISION OF AMERICAN TELEVISION AND COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS — June 30, 1991 3. Related party transactions (continued) The Division records charges for a portion of ATC's selling, general and administrative expenses ($531,461 for the year ended June 30, 1991) which are allocated to divisions and subsidiaries based upon subscriber levels. Interest charged to the Division by ATC ($720,563 for the year ended June 30, 1991) was computed by multiplying 61% of the Division's average net assets (computed using beginning and end of year balances) by the average interest rate on ATC's outstanding borrowings (9.13% for the year ended June 30, 1991); interest applicable to construction in progress ($66,195) was capitalized. 4. Income taxes The operating results of the Division are included in the Time Warner consolidated federal income tax return. ATC has a tax sharing agreement with Time Warner under which ATC calculates its income taxes as if ATC and its subsidiaries comprised a separate affiliated group. In lieu of income taxes, ATC charges the Division an amount which approximates statutory state and federal income tax rates on pretax income. 5. Leases Rental expenses for all operating leases, principally office rent and pole attachments, for the year ended June 30, 1991 amounted to $132,423. The Division had no significant noncancelable rental commitments. 6. Pension and other benefit plans The Division participates in a noncontributory defined benefit pension plan (the Plan) which is maintained by ATC and covers substantially all employees. Benefits under the Plan are determined based on formulas which reflect employees' years of service and compensation levels during their employment period. Total pension cost for the year ended June 30, 1991 was $19,490. The Division also participates in a defined contribution plan maintained by ATC (the ATC Employees Stock Savings Plan--ESSP) which covers substantially all employees. The Company's contributions to the ESSP can amount to up to 6.67% of the employee's compensation during the plan year. The Board of -- Directors of ATC has the right in any year to set the maximum amount of the Company's contribution. Defined contribution plan expense totaled $23,573 for the year ended June 30, 1991. - 6 - f t ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION CD C� 9Ea August 12 1991 [�[l g , 5 AUG131991 �� CTI BLFRK'3 OFFICE Ms. Callista Paolangeli ], Ithaca,N.Y. City Clerk of Ithaca '4 City Hall 108 E. Green St. 1k Ithaca,NY 14850 Dear Ms.Paolangeli: As we review American Community Cablevision's supertier service, (the upper tier of our standard cable service, channels 21-45) , we can't help but notice the excellent programming being made available to our customers. The quality mix of programming on these 25 channels is superb. We're proud of our responsiveness to customer requests for new channel additions, especially those channels that add to the overall diversity of programming that is available only on cable. We have enclosed some information to highlight what is available including brief programming descriptions for each. We have just added another two new channels to the lineup that really enhance the overall product and which respond directly to the wishes of our customers. The two new channels are Mind Extension University (42) and The Monitor Channel (45) . Mind Extension University - A diverse educational channel which pFr—ovid—es--a-aTH uca ion selections from GED preparation, SAT preparation, literacy classes and bachelor degree programs to an otherwise wide variety of classroom experiences via television. ACC simply provides the television signal and Mind Extension University does the rest. Customers can register via a toll free 800 number and can go to school in their own homes. In new channel surveys conducted last August more than half of the respondents stated that they were "very or somewhat interested" in having ACC add ME/U. In addition, nearly a third rated ME/U as one of their top three choices for a new channel. The Monitor Channel - A news and documentary channel, primarily. IE-oT e�eguTa--rin-depth news programs, children's programming, gardening, personal finance, updates on what's happening in Congress and more. Additionally, there are specials such as "The Silk Road", a 60 plus week series on the travels of Marco Polo. 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 On October 1st we are changing some rates. ACC will initiate a late payment fee of $5 for customers whose accounts are in arrears by sixty days. The fee we charge for checks returned by the bank will be $25. A very small percentage of our customers drive a disproportionately high administrative cost for collections procedures. We owe it to the large majority of our on-time customers to reduce, and/or cover that collections expense. On October 1st the rate for Supertier will be $9. 13 plus the applicable franchise fee. As stated earlier, our standard customers will receive 44 services including the country's most popular entertainment, news, information, and education based channels. All of this for about 75 cents a day. We will continue to back this value with quality customer service. sincerely, or / n Barbara L. Lukens (1>14,rL� General Manager enc. BLL/mkk St, ACC Standard Services CM With ACC's Standard Ser- Cable News Network ESPN,the total sports net- The Learning Channel vice you will receive over telecasts in-depth news 24 work,provides sports fans is America's educational 42 channels of the most hours a day,every day of the with the broadest and most network,with a full range of year. CNN transmits news in-depth coverage of sports programs helping you live popular and diversified Cable programming for as it happens from all over the on television. From NFL more easily in today's world. P g g world. It also offers daily pre-season and regular sea- Whether it's a new skill,a only $22.40 per month, sports highlights shows,busi- son games to the race for the science or history program, which includes franchise ness news&talk shows such America's Cup to college or a college entrance exam fees. as Larry King Live. Week- football,baseball and bas- preparartion course,the ends bring special interest ketball,ESPN has it all: Learning Channel is your programming on health,sci- tennis,soccer,boxing,la- source for learning when- Our Standard 42 Channel ence,fashion,cooking and crosse,auto racing,golf and ever you're ready. Cable Service is comprised travel. CNN surely is"The skiing. SportsCenter, Channel 40 full time, of two tiers of service; a world's most important net- recognized by many as tele- Channel 13 daytime tier of 17 channels priced work."Channel 05 vision's most comprehensive at $13.31 which includes daily sports news show,is an- franchise fees and a tier of other highlight of ESPN,one of cable's most popular chan- 25 channels priced at an nels. Channel 10 additional $9.13. Included in our Standard USA Service are satellite than- OSPAn nels, plus full-time carriage NE11N01irK of popular services Discov- ery,American Movie Classic and the Family Channel. These channels and more Cable Satellite Public Music Television, USA Network has some- Affairs Network is best Americas leading 24-hour thing for everyone! USA has are highlighted on the known for its live unedited music video channel,is here! the movies,the sports and pages that follow. proceedings of the US House Get set rockers. .. MTV the specials plus suspense of Representatives during features continuous videos, and drama series for the en- the day with rebroadcast rock concerts,music world tire family. Mornings,after And within our basic highlights at night. Other news and special events. school and weekends are channel lineup we feature programming includes live Channel 21 devoted to USA's award- local broadcast affiliates Congressional hearings, winning childrens pro- including WSYT from Press Club speeches and gramming. During the day, Syracuse, a member of the daily call-in shows that allow exciting lifestyle programs, FOX Network and New York viewers to speak with politi- great movies and fun-filled City based Independent tally prominent guests. game shows can be found. Channel 19 During prime time,USA channels WWOR and WPIX. viewers watch original comedies,exclusive series, In all, ACC's Standard and sports including wres- tling you with a Ch from the WWF. Service P Y Channe122 wide range of choice, and one of the best entertain- ment and information values available today! The Weather Channel Turner Network Tele- Nickelodeon/Nick-at- brings the weather to life vision is the latest offering Nite offers award-winning with local conditions and from the people who bring programs such as Pinwheel forecasts every eight min- us CNN and Headline News and Sharon, Lois & Bram's utes,regular national and re.- . . .an entertaitiment than- Elephant-Show ani other gional updates,plus features nel built around blockbuster family favorites day and on weather conditions and events available only through night. At "prime time," their impact on daily life. TNT. Made-for-television Nickelodeon becomes Nick- A C Channel 23 movies, live NBA action, at-Nite, the network that and entertainment specials delivers nostalgic T.V.shows help make TNT one of such as Car 54, Where Are cable's most exciting new You, Mr. Ed, The Donna channels. Channel 24 Reed Show and Route 66. Coming Through Channel 25 519 West State Street Ithaca, NY 14850 607-272-3456 Standard Service, continued - CPfT�TRAWL I �.� Look to rGreatness CHANNEL i:abie Netwom Arts & Entertainment Consumer News and Madison Square The Travel Channel. is a distinctively different Business Channel from Garden.Look to MSG for Before you go anvwhere, cable network featuring a NBC delivers programming greatness with NY Ranger consult an authority, The wide range of quality pro- that's sure to score with hockey,NY Knicks basket- Travel Channel. We bring gramming including drama, viewers. . .Consumer and ball and NY Yankees you an informative, enter- ballet,jazz,comedv and in- business news, up-to-the- baseball. MSG completes atwining and inspiring look at siehtful documentaries that minute menev managementlull S�JrtS ilretlp with pI'a iiic giOhc lliwi e1lilClllg are sure to entertain and en- tips, market coverage for boxing,tennis,WWF wres- destinations.You'll also find lighten the entire family. the serious investor, health tling, college sports, exclu- tempting travel packages. Channel 26 care, nutrition, and exer- sive Garden events and prig- Tune in Mondav-Friday cise, new home buying in- inal sports series. Tune in daily. The Travel Channel formation to clarify the Monday-Friday 7pm-2am. is a part-time service shared mortgage mystique, tax Weekend hours vary accord- with the Madison Square programs and tips to help ing to programming events. Garden channel. prepare now for next year Channel 28 Channel 28 . . .24 hours a day. Channel 27 ,4mFo sp Ann uCLASUCS Bravo is a commercial-free Cable Satellite Public The Discovery Channel American Movie Classics. service offering a unique Affairs Network focuses on entertaining, No other cable channel or TV blend of entertainment: in- The cable industry created non-fiction programs about station offers so many movie ^ oP "' II in i 9116 to cable- classics ui every kind. Shown tcrrationa, fnovies, plays, nature,science and technol- dance,jazz,opera and more. cast the live sessions of the ogy,history,world explora- from sharp quality prints, Bravo programming is un- U.S. Senate, in their entirety. tion,and human adventure. unedited and commercial-free. duplicated by PBS or A&E C-SPAN 11's round-the-clock Discovery programs are as Behind-the-scenes documen- programming compliments the taries and celebrity interviews, and is great for VCR owners endlessly fascinating as the exclusive on AMC.Even a movie rams are . because most programs original C-SPAN Network by world around us p g offering more viewing alterna- trivia game show. Weekdays not available in video stores. tives to cable TV audiences Channel 30 from 3 pm to 4:30 am and During the day,Bravo sub- weekends from 1 pm to 7:30 am. interested in public affairs scribers can watch politics programming. Channel 31 in action with live gavel-to- gavel coverage of the U.S. Channel 29 Senate on C-SPAN II. Channel 29 NEWS E )TNN Headline News is fast- The Family Channel The Nashville Network paced news programmed in features wholesome, uplift- will satisfy your country half-hour cycles. Featured ing entertainment for every- appetite with game shows, are live, around-the-clock one with comedy classics, motor sports, comedy and reports on the day's major classic westerns, timeless taik, fishing and home im- stories, including business, films, news, game shows provement shows. In addi- sports, weather, entertain- and inspirational messages. tion the songs of country ment news and more. Channel 33 and western stars Tom T. Channel 32 Hall,Dolly Parton,Emmv- lou Harris and others are featured. Channel 34 continued Lurrnrrrnrarrrorr BET ■ Video Hits-1 is a 24-hour Lifetime is loaded with Black Entertainment E! Entertainment music channel offering a shows for"today's woman," Television (BET) is the Television is a 24 hour a soft, contemporary side of from self-help, parenting, nation's first and only network day cable network that music videos, featuring exercise and health features showcasing quality black presents news and features songs from the '60s, '70s to controversial talk shows programming 24 hrs. a day. about the entertainment world and'80s by many of today's and quality film classics. BET's programming is an and its' major celebrities; it is popular artists. Some of Lifetime's popular exciting mix of today's hottest also an information source Channel 36 hosts are Dr. Ruth West- music videos,jazz,gospel,action about current entertainment heimer, Joan Lunden and packed sports, news, public options. E! deals with all affairs,classic movies,star- kinds of popular entertain- Dr. T. Berry Brazelton. studded specials and more. ment; movies, television. Sundays are dedicated to BET-the network that dares to major- books, theater, and the world of medicine. be different with distinctive fashion are just some of the Channel 37 programming that reflects the worlds covered in Ps galaxy. needs, interests and diverse Channel 39 lifestyles of Black America. Channel 38 a M B�QVC y4 14 V The Learning Channel QVC stands for Quality Value The Comedy Channel is America's educational and Convenience. QVC offers —it's your place to laugh. . . network,with a full range of shoppers a large selection, big a familiar, comfortable programs helping you live savings and lots of opportuni. clubhouse you'll love to more easily in today's world. ties to win prizes! Features visit. The Comedy Chan- Whether it's a new skill, a include "Ideas for the Cook," nel's host will welcome you science or history program, "ideas to Beautify Your to a world of comedy.You'll or a college entrance exam Home," and "QVC Fashion see clips from classic come- Fair. QVC also offers high- preparation course, the quality merchandise from Sears, dies and the newest films. ,. Learning Channel is your You'll go behind-the-scenes and many other product lines source for learning when- available to cable shoppers with top comics.And there's ever you're ready. exclusively. much more, because The Channel 40 Channel 41 Comedy Channel covers the full spectrum of humor.The Comedy Channel—there whenever you need it. So turn it on.. .just for laughs. Channel 43 J Nostalgia Television is The Monitor Channel Mind Extension television geared to the A wide variety of informa- University The education tastes, interests and concerns tional programming for the Network that enables you to of the fast-growing active globally minded viewer. The learn at home,24 hours a day. adult American market. it's Monitor Channel's daily fare MEU offers live interactive television for the viewers are news,sports,news analysis high school courses,advanced that want their program and commentary by distin- degree program,and adult ming to reflect the active guished columnists and personal and professional de- lives they lead. Nostalgia experts,enriching coverage of velopment courses. delivers news and informa- the arts,and worldwide enter- Channel 42 tion programming that tamment programming. affects todav's active adult Channel 45 American. Timely informa- tion that is relevant to their lifestyles now as well as to the wealth of possibilities in the future. Channel 44 ACC Coming Through 519 West State Street Ithaca, NY 14850 607-272-3456 IACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION October 22, 1991 Ms. Callista Paolangeli City Clerk of Ithaca City Hall 108 E. Green St. Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms.Paolangeli: The purpose of this letter is to notify the municipality of a trial service being offered to ACC's customers. In response to customers who upgrade their cable service to add HBO or Cinemax for a weekend of viewing and then drop the service on Monday, ACC is adding pay-per-view weekends on HBO and Cinemax on a trial basis. By making this a PPV weekend at $4.95, plus '5ppIicaSl-e -Tr—anchise fees, customers will be able to add the service from Friday evening at 6: 00pm through Monday morning at 6: 00am. It will require only one phone call, and the customer will be able to order it through the audio response unit rather than needing to talk to a customer service representative to upgrade their service level. (ACC charges $5. 00 for a service upgrade, and there is no charge for a downgrade. ) We're simply making it easier for customers to accomplish what they have indicated they want - HBO or Cinemax just for the weekend. We believe that helping customers get what they want is good customer service. These new PPV weekends will be available to customers in the period from November 22 - December 22, 1991. Please feel free to call your ACC "ambassador" if you have any questions about this new service. If it is successful, ACC may continue to provide the service. Si ereelly, oC Barbara Lukens General Manager �; cc: Molly Cummings n Christopher Doyle John Herrewyn Paula Tarallo IIY CL i.-ii 1 Ithaca, N.Y. BLL/mkk ti J� 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 REPORT OF OWNERSHIP, OFFICERS, AND BOARD MEMBERS June 30, 1991 American Community Cablevision is a 100% owned division of American Television and Communications Corporation. ATC is an 82% owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. The following lists include individuals who are currently officers, and members of the Board of Directors of American Community Cablevision. OFFICERS OF THE COMPANY: Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer Joseph J. Collins President & Chief Operating Officer James H. Doolittle Executive Vice President James P. Cottingham Executive Vice President John F. Gault Executive Vice President Kevin H. Rorke Senior Vice President-Engineering & Technology James A. Chiddix Senior Vice President-Finance, Treasurer and Assistant Secretary Richard J. Davies Senior Vice President, Secretary and General Counsel Henry J. Gerken Senior Vice President-Management Information Services Edward 0. McCarthy Senior Vice President-Investments David E. O'Hayre Vice President William H. Brown Vice President Don E. Carroll Vice President Frank J. Chiaino Vice President-Technology Walter S. Ciciora Vice President-Programming Fred M. Dressler Vice President Anthony S. Esposito Vice President-Marketing Timothy W. Evard Vice President Thomas C. Feige Vice President Randall 0. Fraser Vice President Gayle L. Greer Vice President Jeffrey M. King Vice President Stephen G. Kniffin Vice President-Corporate Public Affairs Michael E. Luftman Vice President Robert B. Niles Vice President Thomas K. Rackerby Vice President-New Business Carl U. J. Rossetti Vice President Jay L. Satterfield Vice President Jack W. Stanley Assistant Controller Gail L. Allaman Assistant Controller Robert W. Gaskins Assistant Secretary and Associate General Counsel Marc J. Apfelbaum Assistant Treasurer Patricia L. Armstrong Assistant Treasurer Kathryn Corry DIRECTORS OF THE COMPANY: Arthur R. Barron Glenn A. Britt David C. Chang Joseph J. Collins Brian Conboy James H. Doolittle James H. Knowles, Jr. Herbert S. Schlosser 91-012FR rt AC-C AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION November li, 1991 Ms. Cookie Paolangeli, ClerkClT1'Clfgi, City of Ithaca �iaca, off,,, City Hall 108 E. Green Street ` Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms. Paolangeli: Enclosed is a copy of ACC's audited financial statements for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1991 as well as a list of the Officers and Directors of American Television and Communications Corp. as of June 30, 1991. ACC will be doing a more complete recap of 1991 in January for your benefit and information. ACC is pleased to be the cable provider in the City of Ithaca. If I can do anything for you, please contact either me. I'm here to help. Siz;cerely, Barbara L. Lukens, General Manager cc: Mr. Benjamin Nichols, Mayor (w/o attachment) Mr. Thomas Terrizzi, Chair Ithaca Cable Commission (w/o attach) BLL/mkk 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 ACC ze� A AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABLEVISION dry CIfS199, yfflif Move mbe 26, 1991 Ms. Callista Paolangeli 0) City Clerk of Ithaca City Hall 108 E. Green St. Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms. Paolangeli: Beginning January 1, 1991, American Community Cablevision will be adding two new pay-per-view services to its channel line-up. The two new services, Request Television and Viewer's Choice II, will bring additional movie titles and events to ACC subscribers. As you may know, customers pay only for the movies and events which they order and can thus customize their viewing as well as make selections consistent with their budgets. In order to receive a pay-per-view movie or event, the customer must have an addressable converter box. (Customers who subscribe only to the basic cable service will not have an addressable converter in their home. They may obtain one from ACC if they wish to order pay-per-view events on a fairly regular basis. ) Pay-per-view makes watching movies and events more convenient by bringing them to the customers. There's no need to make two trips to the video store, and the whole family can watch a movie for less than the price of one movie theater ticket. It's another way that ACC is Coming Through for our customers. Sicerely, `,/ 4— Barbara L. Lukens, General Manager cc: The Honorable Bon Nichols,Mayor BLL/mkk 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 e ACC AMERICAN COMMUNITY CABIEVISION 11LU V $" December 3, 19 SEC . 199 Ms. Callista Paolangeli cl 4ft'=wl" City Clerk of Ithaca City Hall 108 E. Green Street A Ithaca, NY 14850 Dear Ms. Paolangeli: I am pleased to inform you that Time Warner Inc. , which is the parent corporation of American Television and Communications Corporation ("ATC") and American Community Cablevision, has recently announced an agreement with Toshiba Corporation and C. Itoh & Co. , Ltd. to create a unique strategic partnership at the subsidiary level, to be known as Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P. ("TWE") . The partnership will own, or have an interest in, all of Time Warner's cable television system interests, and will own Time Warner's interest in the Franchisee, as well as Time Warner's filmed entertainment business (Warner Bros. and Lorimar Telepictures) and certain of its cable television programming businesses (such as Home Box Office) . Time Warner, through subsidiaries, will be the managing general partner of TWE with full management, operational and creative control over TWE's cable and other businesses. TWE, which will have a total capitalization of $20 billion, will issue 6-1/4 percent limited partnership interests to each of C. Itoh and Toshiba for their investment of $1 billion in TWE. The remaining 87.5 percent of TWE will be owned by Time Warner which will also have a preferred equity interest in the new company which the parties have valued at approximately $5 billion. Time Warner may admit other suitable limited partners to the venture in the future, but on a basis which preserves Time Warner's right to control and manage these businesses. Our new international partners bring impressive size, international influence, prestige and diversity to Time Warner Entertainment. Toshiba is a worldwide leader in the manufacture of integrated high technology electronic and electrical products, including advanced information and telecommunications systems, electronic devices, heavy electrical equipment, consumer and other products. C. Itoh is the world's largest trading group and deals in a broad range of products and services including electronics and communications services. In conjunction with the formation of Time Warner Entertainment, Time Warner has offered to purchase the 18 percent of ATC's Class A publicly traded common stock which it does not presently own. Any such purchase by Time Warner which now owns 82 percent of ATC and has 93 percent voting control of ATC, will 519 West State Street Ithaca, New York 14850 607-272-3456 r. a not result in any change in control of the Franchisee. These transactions will have no effect on the ongoing local management of the cable system serving your community. In fact, we believe that the formation of Time Warner Entertainment will bring added strengths to Time Warner and will assure a stronger, more technologically and creatively innovative and exciting cable television company which can only benefit our customers. Although the day-to-day operations and management control of American Community Cablevision will not change, our franchise agreement may require City of Ithaca's approval to certain aspects of the TWE transaction. If you conclude that such approval is required, I would appreciate the consideration and adoption of the accompanying form of resolution. I, of course, would appreciate that prompt adoption of such a resolution if you conclude that it is, in fact, necessary. If you have any questions or wish to discuss this matter, I will be happy to meet with you. Si erely, Barbara L. Lukens, General Manager Enclosure: Resolution 2 cc: The Honorable Benjamin Nichols, Mayor Mr. Robert Romanowski Ms. Barbara Blanchard Ms. Susan Cummings Mr. Joseph Daley Mr. John Johnson Mr. Richard Booth Mr. Neil Golder Mr. John Schroeder Ms. Carolyn Peterson Mr. Daniel Hoffman Mr. Tom Terrizzi BLL/mkk RESOLUTION 2 WHEREAS, American Community Cablevision (the "Franchisee") is the holder of a cable television franchise (the "Franchise") for the City of Ithaca; and WHEREAS, the Franchisee is a subsidiary or division of American Television and Communications Corporation ("ATC") ; WHEREAS, ATC is a majority owned subsidiary of Time Warner Inc. ("Time Warner") , a widely held New York Stock Exchange company which has offered to purchase the shares in ATC which it does not own (the "ATC Minority Shares") ; and WHEREAS, Time Warner intends to create a new limited partnership entity comprised of the business and assets of its filmed entertainment, programming and cable divisions, which entity shall be known as Time Warner Entertainment Company, L.P. ("TWE") ; and WHEREAS, Time Warner will retain majority ownership as well as operating and management control of TWE and will operate TWE as a controlled subsidiary of Time Warner employing the assets of ATC including the Franchise and the Franchisee, and the assets of Warner Cable, Lorimar Telepictures, HBO, and Warner Bros. ; and WHEREAS, Time Warner intends to offer minority limited partnership interests in TWE to strategic partners in TWE, including Toshiba Corporation and C. Itoh & Co. Ltd; and WHEREAS, ATC will continue to exist as an operating division of TWE, with the existing management structure remaining at both the local and corporate levels and no change is anticipated in the manner in which the business and operations of the Franchisee are conducted; and WHEREAS, the Franchisee will continue to be the grantee of the Franchise as an operating division of TWE and will continue to operate under the Franchise; NOW, THEREFORE, be it resolved that, insofar as may be necessary or advisable under the Franchise, transfer of the ATC Minority Shares to Time Warner and transfer of the Franchise and the cable television system operating pursuant to the Franchise from the Franchisee to TWE (including any necessary transfers through one or more subsidiaries of Time Warner) , are hereby authorized and consented to in all respects. i This resolution shall take effect and be in force from and after the earlier of the date of the final passage hereof or the earliest time permitted by law. Passed this day of , 1991. ATTEST: [Mayor, Common Council or other duly authorized signatory] Clerk Date