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AGENDA
IOWA CITY TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION
CITY CABLE TV OFFICE, 10 S. LINN ST., TOWER PLACE PARKING FACILITY, LEVEL 3A
October 24, 2016 at 5:30PM
1. Call to order
2. Approval of minutes
3. Announcements of Commissioners
4. Short public announcements
5. REPORTS
Consumer Issues
Mediacom Report not including litigation
Local Access Reports
City Cable TV Office Report
6. Adjournment
DRAFT
MINUTES
Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
September 26, 2016 – 5:30 P.M.
City of Iowa City Cable TV Office, 10 S. Linn St. - Tower Place, LEVEL 3A
Call to Order:Meeting called to order at 5:30 P.M.
Members Present:Nick Kilburg, Laura Bergus, Paul Gowder
Members Absent:Derek Johnk
Staff Present:Ty Coleman
Others Present:none
Recommendations to Council : NONE
Election of Officers:
Coleman explained that an election was needed to fill the seat of former chair, Alexa
Homewood, following her resignation from the Commission. Kilburg moved and
Gowder seconded a motion to elect Derek Johnk as the chair of the Telecommunications
Commission. The motion passed unanimously.
Kilburg moved and Bergus seconded a motion to elect Paul Gowder as the vice chair,
replacing Derek Johnk in that role. The motion passed unanimously.
Approval of Minutes:
Kilburg moved and Gowder seconded a motion to approve the August 29, 2016 minutes
as presented. The motion passed unanimously.
Announcements of Commissioners:
None
Short Public Announcements:
None
Consumer Issues:
Coleman referred to the consumer issues report presented within the Commission’s
meeting packet and that it was a bit lengthier than in previous months. Kilburg asked
whether there had been any resolution to a billing issue regarding a customer who had not
paid his bill and was being assessed late fees by Mediacom, as well as additional charges
by a collections agency. Coleman noted that the customer continued to assert that he
shouldn’t have to pay some of the extra fees. It was stated that while Mediacom had
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DRAFT
communicated to the Cable TV Office that they would remove one of the $8.50 late fees,
the customer reported that he had not received an updated bill reflecting this change.
Coleman mentioned that the billing process can be confusing to some customers and that
he recommended that the resident go to the local office and have Mediacom staff walk
him through the charges in order to provide a clearer explanation. Coleman questioned
whether the situation was at a point where the Telecommunications Commission might
serve in a mediation role to aid in the resolution of the issue and that he would talk to the
City Attorney’s Office to see what advice they might have.
Bergus asked if Mediacom was stating that the issue was out of their hands at this point.
Coleman was not certain, but noted that Mediacom’s local office staff had simply
provided him with the related dates and corresponding charges in an effort to explain the
current status of the account.
Kilburg asked if the fact that Mediacom had turned the account over to a collections
agency meant it was now out of their hands or if they still had some say in the matter,
noting that if it was now up to the collections agency, mediating between the customer
and Mediacom might provide any benefit. If Mediacom was still involved, Kilburg said
that there may be a chance to assist with the resolution.
Bergus wondered if the customer understood at the time of signing up for service that
there was a timeframe within which an account could be turned over to collections and
that fees could be assessed by an entity other than Mediacom.
Gowder said that confusion seemed to be the main issue and that perhaps this was a good
reason for the City to be involved, even if only to facilitate an opportunity for better
understanding. Kilburg said that if the issue came up again, it would be worth checking
with the City Attorney’s office to see what role might be appropriate for the Commission
to play. Kilburg understood the customer’s frustration of being assessed additional fees
while waiting for a corrected bill.
Gowder noted that if the collection fees are serious, the customer may need legal
representation. Kilburg agreed that it would be beyond the scope of the Commission.
Bergus said the ideal scenario would be that Mediacom still has a say in the matter and
that they could tell the collections agency to remove some of the fees.
Coleman said he has continued to relay information from Mediacom to the customer
without much success in helping them to reach an agreement. Coleman said he would
ask the question about Mediacom’s current authority in the situation.
Mediacom Report not including litigation:
None
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DRAFT
Local Access Reports:
Bergus noted the reports found in the meeting packet.
City Cable TV Office Report:
Coleman said that two new Multimedia Interns would be starting shortly and that they
would be working with the Special Projects Assistant to produce the City’s weekly
update program and covering City and community stories as assigned. Coleman said this
internship program has been very successful in the past at freeing up time for the Special
Projects Assistant to work on more in-depth projects while also providing students with
exposure to professional newsgathering processes.
Coleman reported that the City Attorney’s Office had given an okay for the Commission
to discuss matters related to other potential service providers - in response to a question
that was asked at the August 2016 Telecommunications Meeting.
Coleman said he recently observed that ImOn has an office located in Iowa City and
noted that the company had been engaged in efforts to provide business Internet services.
Gowder asked about the geographic area in which ImOn would be providing these
services and was curious to know which providers covered what areas within Iowa City.
Coleman was unsure as to what kind of information could be given by Mediacom and
other providers. Kilburg noted that a helpful feature on the City’s website could be
developed, wherein residents could identify which service providers were available for
their residence. Gowder said that such a map could also be useful to the City in guiding
future policy, allowing it to identify areas that may not have as many options as others.
Bergus provided some historical context with regards to fiber mapping, stating that the
Commission had looked at this in the past. She noted that it was challenging to get
information from the University about the location of its fiber in the area. Bergus also
mentioned that Mediacom is required to provide its plant maps to the City but that they
may need to be kept confidential.
Bergus noted that the cable TV franchise agreement between the City and Mediacom
requires Mediacom to extend service to areas that meet a certain density threshold, but
that anyone can get service from any provider as long as they are willing to pay to
connect to the existing plant. Bergus said her understanding is that in areas where
Mediacom is not required to extend service, Mediacom can provide a bid to the resident
for cable to be extended from the existing infrastructure to the residence. Bergus said it
may be a challenge to identify what provider’s service is available where if it is
technically possible to extend service anywhere, as long as the customer is willing to pay
a share of the cost. Bergus explained that with ImOn providing business Internet in the
downtown area, there is a similar process wherein a site visit is conducted and it is
determined what the costs will be to extend service from its existing fiber to the business.
Bergus said that a benefit of a cable TV franchise for cable TV providers is that it
mandates that service be extended to all residences inside of the city’s limits as long as it
falls within the required population density.
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DRAFT
Gowder said that a map showing service availability may therefore be impracticable.
Bergus noted that a map showing where cable has been planted could still be useful, for
example, to show where fiber might be going past a residence as it is extended to an area
where not everyone has service. Gowder wondered how much of this information might
be determined by way of public records, depending on how aggressively one wanted to
pursue it.
Bergus noted that the Commission had previously been interested in identifying the
location and ownership of fiber in Iowa City and that a map was generated by the Cable
TV Office. Kilburg said he thought that there was some confidential information
contained within the map. Gowder wondered if the map could be located and be stripped
of its confidential information.
Adjournment:
Kilburg moved and Gowder seconded a motion to adjourn. The motion passed
unanimously. Adjournment was at 5:53 p.m.
4
October 19, 2016
To: Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
From: Ty Coleman, Media Production Services Coordinator (MPSC)
Re: Cable Complaints - September 2016
Ongoing Issues:
Late Payment Charges and Collections Fees
Date: Originated on 08/09/16
Update:
Previously, the customer reported that a corrected bill, one reflecting the removal of one $8.50 late fee, had not been sent and
that he was being unfairly charged additional fees while he waited for the bill. MPSC contacted the local Mediacom office to
investigate and Mediacom’s Teresa Jones reported that a copy of the customer’s current ledger screen was being sent, with a
total amount that was reflective of the removed late fee. Jones noted that no further late fees had been added. However, the
customer is still responsible to also pay the collections fees that had been previously assessed.
Date of Resolution: Resolution will be confirmed once proper payment has been received from the customer.
New Issues:
1.)
Date: 09/08/16
Method of contact: Email to MPSC
Complaint/Comment Summary:
The customer reported that his cable TV had gone out around midnight and that while he called and heard a recording saying
that it would be fixed soon, after a few hours, it had not yet been fixed. The customer reported calling again and said his call
was not answered.
Resolution Summary:
MPSC checked with Mediacom’s Rick Karnes about a potential service outage. Karnes reported that there had been some
emergency fiber maintenance work done in Cedar Rapids that affected service in Iowa City. Karnes said that service had
been restored in the early morning.
MPSC reported this information to the customer. No further response was received from the customer.
Date of Resolution: 09/08/16
2.)
Date: 09/10/16
Method of contact: ICgovXpress
Issue/Comment Summary:
The customer complained of experiencing dropped calls when using her Mediacom phone service and also received a “no
Internet” warning when attempting to use her cell phone instead. The customer also reported that her neighbors had been
experiencing similar issues.
Resolution Summary:
MPSC forwarded the issue to Mediacom’s Rick Karnes. Mediacom staff arranged for a service call and it was determined that
the issue was due to a faulty modem. The customer reported that two of Mediacom’s staff worked to resolve the problem and
then investigated the service connection to the customer’s apartment building.
Date of Resolution: 09/18/16
3.)
Date: 09/15/16
Method of contact: Phone call to MPSC
Issue/Comment Summary:
The resident reported a low-hanging cable stretched over his lawn, coming from a pole in the alleyway and going to a
neighbor’s house. The resident wondered if the cable could be brought back up and whether it needed to be run over his yard
at all.
Resolution Summary:
MPSC forwarded the issue to Rick Karnes. Karnes arranged for a technician to investigate. Karnes reported that it was a
cable that had come loose at the pole and that his technicians had replaced the line. Karnes also reported that typically, the
cable is run in a direction that follows the electrical line.
Date of Resolution: 09/16/16
4.)
Date: 09/15/16
Method of contact: Contact through the City’s development services office
Issue/Comment Summary:
A representative from a local developer and property management company expressed frustration with getting Mediacom and
CenturyLink to extend services to a new development in south Iowa City, despite repeated attempts over the course of a year
to collaborate in order to get cable connected and buried when trenches were open for utility work. Two multi-family dwelling
units had been completed since early August and residents were without cable, Internet, and phone services.
Resolution Summary:
MPSC asked Rick Karnes about the area and whether there were plans for Mediacom to extend service to it. Karnes said the
project had been submitted to Mediacom’s construction department but he did not have a completion date. Karnes said he
would have someone from the construction department contact the company directly. MPSC later followed up with Karnes
and was told that a return on investment analysis had been submitted for the area and that there was still not an estimated
date of completion.
MPSC inquired about the issue with Mediacom’s Lee Grassley and Tom Larsen after having received calls about a similar
situation in another Iowa City neighborhood (to be included in the October 2016 Consumer Issues report). Mediacom’s Todd
Robinson responded, saying that the construction department in Iowa City was undergoing some restructuring due to some
problems with these kinds of issues and that both of the projects in question were approved and would be completed by the
end of the year. Robinson noted that the time frame was vague due to the need to work with an outside contractor to get the
work done.
MPSC asked Robinson whether it was typical for service to be extended after an area is developed and living units are
complete. Robinson said that Mediacom prefers to get in early to minimize damage to the yards. Robinson said that a three
to four week timeline is the general rule once a project is approved and it is handed to the contractor, but noted that
contractors are trying to get everything they can in the ground before it freezes, so it is possible that the work could take longer
to complete.
Karnes later reported to the MPSC that a date of November 9th had been set for completion of the project in this development.
Date of Resolution: The estimated completion date was reported on October 18, 2016, but this issue will be fully resolved
once the build-out is complete and service is available to residents in the development.
5.)
Date: 09/20/16
Method of contact: Phone call to MPSC
Issue/Comment Summary:
A customer reported that his Mediacom email service was not working and that he was not able to get through to tech support.
Resolution Summary:
MPSC forwarded the issue to Lee Grassley and asked if there had been a known email service outage. Rick Karnes
responded, saying that there were no outages he was aware of, but that he would arrange for tech support to contact the
customer to investigate the issue. The customer later reported that he learned that Mediacom had changed the routing
pathway to the webmail page and that he was able to reconfigure his mail client with the new information and get it working.
Date of Resolution: 09/22/16
6.)
Date: 09/29/16
Method of contact: Online cable complaint form via the citychannel4.com website
Issue/Comment Summary:
A customer reported that his Internet service went out for two days during the prior weeks, then two days later it was out again
and said he had been scheduled for a service call after reporting the issue on Mediacom’s customer service Twitter page, but
then received information that his appointment had been cancelled with no reason provided and no replacement appointment
scheduled.
Resolution Summary:
MPSC asked the local Mediacom office to look into the account and was told that the customer’s appointment had not actually
been cancelled. The customer had complained about having to wait a week for his appointment, so the local staff said they
would call to arrange for an earlier date. Mediacom staff reported that the appointment had been moved up and that the issue
had been resolved.
Date of Resolution: 10/03/16
PATV Report to Iowa City Telecommunications Commission October 2016
Fall is in full swing here at PATV. As part of a community outreach, we will be hosting in our parking-
lot a Bike-In Theater on Friday Oct. 21st. Our new member organization, InterDance, is hosting an
outdoor event in our parking-lot on Oct. 22nd. We have been actively producing and reproducing PSA
for organization like: Iowa Disability Creative Works Gallery, The Bike Library…
PATV Board Meetings
PATV Board of Directors next meeting Nov. 17th at 6 pm.
Intro Workshop
Guidelines orientation is the first Thursday of every month, 6 pm at PATV.
Next Guidelines is Thursday, October 6th at 6 PM.
Video Workshops Schedule
Studio Training – The second Tuesday of the month from 5 – 7 pm.
HD Camera – The third Thursday of the month from 6 –8 pm.
Digital Editing – The fourth Thursday of the month from 6 - 8 pm.
Current and upcoming staff supported productions
In Your Neighborhood – (New Name)- We Are Iowa City
The Joseph Dobrian Show
Hello it’s us
GreenFire
The LyleStyle Show
PATV Presents: Thursday Night Live at Uptown Bills
Tom’s Guitar Show
Time for truth
Submitted by Gerardo Sandoval 10/19/16
206 Lafayette St. • Iowa City, Iowa 52240 • Phone 338-7035
Fax 338-8456 • contact@patv.tv • http://www.patv.tv
Julieta Rangel
Programming Coordinator
Public Access Television
October 6, 2016
Ty Coleman
ty-coleman@iowa-city.org
Dear Ty,
During the third quarter of 2016, Public Access Television aired 618 programs
that played 2871 times approximating 2426.5 hours of cablecast television. 327 of those
programs were produced using PATV equipment and facilities.
Of the 618 programs, 391 programs, approximating 1059 hours of cablecast
television, were new programs that were produced by local residents and appeared for the
first time and replayed on PATV during this quarter. 108 programs, approximating
1248.5 hours of cablecast television, were programs produced by local residents that were
reported as “new” in previous reporting periods, and were replayed this quarter.
In addition, there were 119 programs, approximating 119 hours of programming,
that were “imported”, or produced by people from outside of the Iowa City area
community, that were submitted for playback by local residents and subsequently
cablecast for the first time and replayed on PATV during this quarter. There were 0
programs that were designated as an “imported program” and reported as “new” in
previous reporting periods that played on PATV this quarter.
Julieta Rangel
Programming Coordinator
verify
Total Unique Programs:618.00 618.00
Total Unique Airtime:32940.00 32940.00 549
Total Plays:2871.00 2871.00
Total Airtime:145590.00 145590.00 2426.5
Unique Programs Using
PATV Equipment 327.00
Community Programs Airtime
New 1st Play 0.00 0.00 0
New Replay 0.00 0.00 0
All New 0.00 0.00 0
Old 1st Play 0.00 0.00 0
Old Replay 0.00 0.00 0
All Old 0.00 0.00 0
Unique Programs 0.00 0.00 0
Plays 0.00 0.00 0
Import Programs Airtime
New 1st Play 119.00 6150.00 102.5
New Replay 33.00 990.00 16.5
All New 152.00 7140.00 119
Old 1st Play 0.00 0.00 0
Old Replay 0.00 0.00 0
All Old 0.00 0.00 0
Unique Programs 119.00 6150.00 102.5
Plays 152.00 7140.00 119
Local Programs Airtime
New 1st Play 391.00 21780.00 363
New Replay 913.00 41760.00 696
All New 1304.00 63540.00 1059
Old 1st Play 108.00 5010.00 83.5
Old Replay 1307.00 69900.00 1165
All Old 1415.00 74910.00 1248.5
Unique Programs 499.00 26790.00 446.5
Plays 2719.00 138450.00 2307.5
Date: October 20, 2016
To: The Iowa City Telecommunications Commission
From: Ty Coleman, Media Production Services Coordinator, City of Iowa City Cable TV Office
Re: City of Iowa City Cable TV Office report for the October 2016 ICTC meeting
Media Production Services
Recent production activities:
●Recorded a panel at MERGE discussing affordable housing and inclusive zoning in Iowa City.
●Recorded a forum moderated by the League of Women Voters of Johnson County about a voting
measure on the ballot for amending the city of Iowa City’s charter.
●Recorded the Iowa City Noon Rotary Club’s meeting about the University of Iowa’s
award-winning India winterim program.
●Recorded 4 lectures from the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council including topics such as the
refugee crisis in the Middle East and U.S. - Kosovo relations.
●Cablecast live on channel 5 and recorded 5 panels from the Iowa City Book Festival.
●Recorded the Arc of Southeast Iowa’s 2016 Annual Awards Ceremony.
●Cablecast live and recorded the Iowa City City Council work sessions and formal meetings of
October 4 and 18.
●Recorded a meeting of the City Council’s Economic Development Committee.
●Recorded a performance by the Iowa City Fire Department at Alexander Elementary for Fire
Prevention Week.
●Completed a public service announcement for Systems Unlimited, Inc. to promote its upcoming
Strides for Rides 5K and Monster March fundraising event.
●Completed a short video on how to learn about recent City job postings and how to apply.
●Recorded the introduction by former congressman Jim Leach and Iowa City mayor Jim
Throgmorton to the “Building and Crossing Bridges Together” event sponsored by the Iowa City
Human Rights Commission.
●Shot and produced 4 Iowa City Updates. Topics included the University of Iowa Homecoming
events, the Iowa City Book Festival, Fire Prevention Week and a new bike parklet installed in
downtown Iowa City.
●Created an October edition of Iowa City In Focus that explained the City’s Affordable Housing
Action Plan. Other topics included the Leaf Vacuum Program, a visiting author who writes about
ageism in our society and upcoming Halloween events being put on by the City.
●Completed 3 Community Highlight videos, which recapped the Jingle Cross Cyclocross events,
Northside Oktoberfest and the annual Dog Paddle.
Upcoming production activities:
●Working on a November edition of Iowa City In Focus. The feature story will breakdown some
major changes being proposed to the City of Iowa City’s Recycling Code.
●Planning to produce Community Highlight video of the Iowa City Book Festival, Halloween
Parade and Carnival and the Tot Monster Mash.
●Record a panel held by Mission Iowa City to discuss sexism in America.
●Record 4 lectures by the Iowa City Foreign Relations Council.
●Record a program about voting rights held by the League of Women Voters of Johnson County.
●Record the State Historical Society of Iowa’s History for Lunch entitled “Invisible Hawkeyes.”
●Record a presentation by Jeff Speck entitled “Walkable City: How Downtown Can Save America,
One Step at a Time.”
●Record the 33rd Annual Human Rights Breakfast.
●Cablecast and record the Iowa City City Council work session and formal meetings of November
1 and 15.
Programming and Interactive Services
Recent and Upcoming Projects
We're continuing to upload our backlog of
streaming videos to YouTube. We now have
over 960 videos available on YouTube. We're
also busy debugging and updating our new
voice-driven InfoVision program on channel 5,
and adding information to our Meet the
Candidates webpage.
Website:
In September, we had 2,800 users access
5,483 pages in 4,336 sessions. Our most
popular pages were Mediacom's channel
lineup, our homepage, our video page, our
program schedule, Mediacom's cable rates, our bandwidth troubleshooting page, our Meet the
Candidates page, and access channels program schedule that we provide to the Press Citizen.
EarthChannel, our streaming media provider, reports 9,814 total hits, which includes 4,074 Events
(player window was loaded), 434 Sessions (media was played), and 3,836 OnDemand Hits (media
was scrubbed or index point was clicked). 1,312 podcasts were downloaded, and our HQ media
was accessed 151 times. Our live stream was accessed 417 times. Our YouTube analytics page
shows 8,300 minutes of watch time on 2,657 views.
Programming:
We cablecast 142 programs produced in-house 888 times for 545 hours of programming, 38
locally-produced (DITV, Senior Center, Hoover Library, JC Board of Supervisors, Coralville, North
Liberty and University Heights) programs 104 times for 110 hours of programming, and 20 imported
programs 65 times for 28 hours of programming. We also showed 88 PSAs 1119 times for 29 hours
of programming.
[A list of programs completed in the month of September can be found on the following page.]
Programs Completed by the Cable TV Office in September 2016
●Friday Night Concert Series 2016
○Shade of Blue
○Christopher the Conquered
●Iowa City Noon Rotary Club
○Mayor Jim Thorgmorton
○An Emmy-winning documentary producer's perspective: The Art of being a
Collaborative Doer
○Iowa City Foreign Relations Council Presents: Iowa's Award-Winning India
Winterim Program
●Iowa City Foreign Relations Council
○Continuity and Change in the Political and Cultural Life of a Small West African
Country
○Everyday Corruption in Russia & Ukraine -- Who, Why and With What
Consequences?
○Celebrating the City of Literature
○The Human Face of the Middle East Refugee Crisis
●United Way Kickoff 2016
●Sierra Club - Sustainable Iowa Land Trust
●2016 Annual Iowa Women's Foundation Luncheon
●History for Lunch - MacKinlay Kantor, Iowa Author
●Noon Rotary Club - Brain Health and Aging
●Galaxies, Stars, Planets, & Life: A Dynamic and Fruitful Universe
●LWV Forum on the Charter Amendment
●Iowa City Update
○Taste of the Market
○1st Avenue Update
○Cyclo-Cross comes to town
○Homecoming Week
●Community Highlights
○United Way Meal Packaging Event
○Taste of Market 2016
○Kids Day 2016
●Market Music 2016
○Ryne Doughty
○Young Ramblers
○The Snake Chasers
○Dandelion Stompers
●2016 Farm to Street Dinner
●It's Reigning Cats & Dogs
●Affordable Housing Action Plan Open House
●Iowa City City Council Work Session
○September 6, 2016
○September 20, 2016
●Iowa City City Council Meeting
○September 6, 2016
○September 20, 2016
●Washington Streetscape Project September 2016