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F’ville criticizes rising cable TV rates

By BEN NELMS
bnelms@TheCitizenNews.com

How would you like to give your cable TV company bigwigs an earful?

Fayetteville’s City Council got that chance last week when Comcast executives had to show up for their license-required annual report.

Council member Larry Dell said he had problems in the fall that were corrected, only to resurface lately. Picture quality would become fuzzy, then clear up, then get fuzzy again, he said. Dell also cited the need for customer service to improve.

“One of the most irritating things is when I’m calling in on the phone, sitting there for probably 10 minutes punching buttons, then all of a sudden I get a dial tone again,” he said.

Dell suggested that an e-mail site might be set up to help the communication process and give the customer a record of their contact with the provider.

Council member Wilson Price had questions about the the company’s Customer First surveys.

Council member Walt White said he had received questions from citizens about the rising price of cable television services.

“They complain to me about prices going up every time they turn around,” he said. “Is it ever going to slow down? It’s just constantly going up. This is what I’m hearing from people, that they are concerned.”

Responding to White’s concern, Comcast Government and Community Affairs Director Andy Macke said a combination of variables are involved in changes to the rate structure. Those variables play into the value of the service, he added.

Upgrading Fayette County alone was a $15 million proposition, said Macke. The monthly fee increase put in place March 1 puts Comcast in line with services offered by Direct TV and Dish Network in terms of channel per-dollar figure and the features that are offered, he said.

“Cost is definitely a variable,” said Macke. “Gas prices is an example because we roll a lot of trucks. Programming costs are roughly 20-30 percent of our cost basis, and those prices go up. And quite frankly we’ve a tremendous amount of capital investment. I don’t know that there is another company that has made the amount of capital investment in plant that we have over the past five years. And there is a certain amount of payback that’s expected by our investors and there is certain debt service that goes on.”

Council members were updated on the 2004 activities of Comcast Cable Communications and posed service-related questions and concerns at the March 3 council meeting. An annual report is a requirement for cable television operators.

The report was presented by Macke and Comcast General Manager Trevor Yant. Macke updated the council on recent personnel changes within the Comcast system and provided the four components, or Key Priorities, of the report. Those included People, Growth at All Costs, Customer Service and Local Community Involvement.

Referencing its people, Yant said Comcast has formed a new management team and has continued staff development. The company also had building relocations in Conyers and Clayton County during the past year. Those locations, like Fayetteville and Fayette County, are served by Comcast’s Perimeter System, one of three systems comprising the company’s Atlanta region.

Concerning the company’s growth, Yant said Comcast has completed the rebuild of its system and has launched its Digital Video Recorder (DVR), Video on Demand (VOD) and High Definition Television (HDTV) services. The Griffin system was acquired in 2004 and has been integrated into the company’s Perimeter System. Comcast has also entered into a long-term relationship with Berry College in Floyd County, Yant said.

Yant said the Customer Service component was enhanced in 2004 with the addition of Comcast’s Customer First initiative, an internal ranking survey done within the community to help improve customer service.

“It’s been a good project for us and it’s been an eye-opener in some cases, and it’s helping us focus in the right direction,” said Yant.

Comcast increased the speed of its High-Speed Internet service during 2004, reorganized its operations reporting structure and began certification on its Internet-based Comcast Digital Voice (CDV) service, projected for the third quarter of 2005.

Macke provided the council with an overview of the company’s local community involvement initiatives. Those included participation with Fayetteville Main Street, the county Chamber of Commerce, Comcast Cares Day, the Fayette School Channel and local programming projects such as county commission debates and transportation forums.

Macke said initiatives for 2005 include the launch of CDV and the digital simulcast of analog-only channels 2-78 likely in April or May. Comcast expects to improve on its Customer First initiative and expand community programming capabilities during the period. Also a priority during 2005 is the acquisition and training of qualified personnel, he said.

“It’s not a simple business anymore where you just plug the cable into the jack and the TV turns on,” Macke said. “With the new products and technical sophistication of the system it really does require a level of education to successfully troubleshoot and solve problems.”