Traverse City Record-Eagle

Grand Traverse County

February 2, 2010

City votes to settle Charter channel suit

Cable provider to help with interference issues

BY ART BUKOWSKI

TRAVERSE CITY -- Those who see static when tuning in to recently moved public access television channels have a chance at relief.

Traverse City commissioners on Monday voted to settle the city's lawsuit against Charter Communications. Under the settlement agreement, Charter is required to fix interference problems for analog viewers who have trouble watching channels 96 and 97.

Those channels are the new home of Up North 2 and Northwestern Michigan College 13, respectively, and Charter won't charge customers for the tune-up.

"We really are encouraging Charter subscribers to look very carefully at their channels 96 and 97," said Joe VanderMeulen, executive director of Land Information Access Association. "We're encouraging everyone to get to Charter, and get (any problems) fixed now."

The city filed a federal lawsuit against Charter last fall in an attempt to halt the company's plan to move the two public access channels. A federal judge denied the city's request for a temporary restraining order on Nov. 30 and Charter moved the channels the next day.

Some customers without digital service reported varying degrees of interference when they tried to view the channels after the switch.

Subscribers with interference complaints have six months to contact Charter after the settlement agreement is finalized in the near future. If Charter can't fix the interference, it will provide a converter box free of cost.

Presence or lack of interference will be determined by a measurable government standard, City Attorney Karrie Zeits said. Those with a box hadn't reported interference problems, she said.

Subscribers with a box will be able to dial up both public access channels by hitting their old locations on the dial through a technology called "channel mapping." That service will be provided through at least June 2011, under the settlement agreement.

The settlement also requires Charter to run a 30-second television commercial telling viewers how to find the public access channels. Notes also will be included with customers' bills advising them to call Charter representatives to report interference problems.

LIAA is contracted to operate Up North 2 and was the first to draw the public's attention to the channel lineup switch back in September.

VanderMeulen opposed the switch, contending that it would damage public access channel branding efforts and lead to decreased viewership at the new locations on the dial.

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