The transfer of Peachtree City's cable television franchise should be to the city's advantage, and it hopefully will lead to much better Internet service before too long, according to a report given at last week's City Council meeting.

InterMedia Partners is preparing to transfer control of the franchise to TCI South Carolina, an affiliate of AT&T Corp. The city has received written assurances from AT&T that they will comply with all technical and customer service requirements of the current franchise.

This change is a “move up,” according to city manager Jim Basinger, who added that it will be in the long-term best interests of Peachtree City residents.

The city has requested that AT&T provide a timetable for upgrading the system to being offering high-speed Internet access utilizing cable modems. City staff said that residents have already begun expressing a desire for this service.

An AT&T representative has assured the city that the company is eager to provide the service, but cannot specifically say when it will happen, although it is likely to come before the end of 2000, according to city staff reports.

City staff recommended approval of the transfer, but also asked the council to “firmly express their desire to the AT&T representatives to have high-speed Internet access to our residents as soon as possible.”

The transfer resolution was approved unanimously.

Council members inquired about the current relationship between the city and InterMedia, and Miller said it is “good.”

A new customer service representative has recently come on board at InterMedia, Miller said, and complaints are down, with speedier resolution of problems in the past year than before.

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