Channel 77 on FIOS ? 1

The last Town Council Meeting gave rise to the question of “public access channels” on the new Verizon FIOS service. Once the providence of municipalities which negotiated franchise agreements individually to best suit the needs, wants and economies of individual communities, Trenton usurped that power in 2006. This paved the way for Verizon to, as Trenton says, “expeditiously” provide consumers with a more competitive and dynamic environment for the marketing of overplayed movies and highly profitable infomercials.

The legislation signed by the Governor in August 2006 states: “Existing municipal consents and certificates of approval to provide cable television service “shall remain in effect until such time as they may expire or until such time as the cable television company is granted a renewal of the franchise as a municipal franchise or converts the franchise to a system-wide franchise.”

Local municipalities no longer have any control over the companies such as Verizon or Cablevision who wish to access municipal utilities. The State of New Jersey, having proven itself a worthy steward in terms of property taxes, budgets, and pension plans, now assumes further control over the autonomy of cities and small towns. In addition, this new legislation opens the door for Cablevision to eventually be relieved of their obligations to continue providing the services enjoyed by Oakland residents with regards to Town Council meetings and other local events being broadcast by the Oakland Communications Commission.

There has been reported discussions that Verizon is seeking to provide public access channels through a “free” on demand feature such as that used by consumers renting videos on demand. But as noted by Mayor Szabo during the course of the meeting, this “free” service would require the set-top box which carries an additional monthly fee. Forcing residents to have to order the local public access channel through a set-top box erodes the purpose of public access and further disenfranchises citizens from involvement in their community.

Oakland makes great use of the public access negotiated with Cablevision. It might not be Hollywood, but it provides useful informative information on activities and events in town, and The Town Council meetings are widely watched. With a revolution in telecommunications leading us into the 21st century, municipalities now find themselves struggling to maintain the small advantages won through previous negotiations in the 20th century. Many residents are enticed by the introductory rate of FIOS with their varied menu of paid programming channels and infomercials, but soon miss the comforting monotony of town council meetings, children’s parades, concerts and assorted local events.

The Oakland Journal called the Verizon sales department and expressed a desire to switch over to the FIOS now available for television. Inquiries concerning the availability of Town Council meetings in the future were met with discouraging assessments from the salesperson. “It was highly unlikely that Verizon will ever offer the Town Council meetings on FIOS”, and that it was “just not worth it” to the company.

Residents wishing to express their displeasure with the existing process can easily contact their state representatives simply through this link
http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/SelectRep.asp

The Governor can be contacted through this link
http://www.state.nj.us/governor/govmail.html

This link provides the Governors press release touting the legislation and Verizon:
http://www.state.nj.us/governor/news/news/approved/20060804a.html

The first video below is part of a series by different individuals in their attempt to save public access in another town; it’s about 6 minutes long. The second is much shorter and is a quick lesson in making a difference by contacting your representative.