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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTelecommunications Board - Minutes - 11/18/1997TELECOMMUNICATIONS BOARD MEETING MINUTES November 18,1997 7:00 pm Council Liaison: Chris Kneeland Staff Liaison: Liz Stroh, Michael Gitter Chairperson: Phil Wadas Phone: (H) 221-0065 (W) 221-1764 Members Present: Members Absent: City Staff Present: Guests: Tom Maher Howard Lowell Tim Tillson Phil Wadas Greg Smith Barbara Hain Ernie Powell Michael Gitter, Cable 27, ICS Department None Meeting was called to order at 7:05 pm. I. APPROVAL OF OCTOBER MEETING MINUTES The October 14, 1997 Board minutes were amended. The first line of page 3 was changed to read "Tom mentioned that the University still wants the provision of high-speed off -campus access to the Internet, and... (the rest of the sentence remains the same). On page 2, second from the last paragraph, fourth line down, the sentence was amended to read, "The new ratio will result in the decrease in channels, going from 40 to 36." The October 14, 1997 Board minutes were approved as amended. II. TCI UPDATE Kathy Stewart distributed TCI's digital cable program guide and a handout on MPEG-2. Tom Maher has been using the new digital services and offered feedback to the Board and Stewart. He said that the universal remote is somewhat complicated, but that the color - coding helps. He reported that the compressed signals have low contrast, some bleed and trails (he refers to these as compression artifacts); he mentioned a few minor glitches, such as a confusing screen message, he reported no audio artifacts. On Balance, Maher said that he believes the new digital system is working pretty well. He said that the set -top box is about the size of a VCR, which created some difficulty in terms of its placement. Stewart reported that, due to must -carry rules, an infomercial channel will be positioned on Channel 97 on the local system. The channel is KUBD out of Denver. This move will result in the loss of some FM services. Stewart also said the WGN, out of Chicago, will be back on the system in the first quarter of 1998. Ernie Powell asked if the number of must -carry channels could be controlled; they can't, according to FCC regulations, but there is a finite number of such infomercial channels. Stewart said that TCI monitors the signal quality of must -carry channels. III. SYSTEM UPGRADE DISCUSSION Kathy Stewart reported that TCI will provide the City with the bandwidth required by the Franchise Agreement, and that Channel A-2 is available for City use. Staff member Michael Gitter reported that the City, in conjunction with its consultant, River Oaks Communications Corp., and the City Attorney's Office, has been reviewing TCI's cable system upgrade as it relates to the requirements of the Franchise Agreement. Gitter said the review is still in progress and that staff would likely make a recommendation to the City Manager regarding the upgrade within a week or two. IV. BY-LAWS After some discussion, Board members said that they required more time to consider the new by-laws. Tom Maher moved that the Board table consideration of the new by-laws until the December meeting. The motion was unanimously approved. V. 1998 WORK PLAN After some discussion, the Board developed its 1998 work plan, consisting of the following items: 1. Developing strategies and plans for the five-year review of TCI, as required by the Franchise Agreement. 2. Monitor TCI's compliance with the terms of the Cable TV Franchise Agreement. 3. Monitor TCI's compliance with the system upgrade provisions of the Franchise Agreement, and advise accordingly. 4. Provide input and feedback regarding the telecommunications initiatives of the City's Light and Power Utility. 5. Provide direction on the implementation of the City's telecommunications policies. 6. Monitor the status of the Telecommunications Board web page. 7. Assist in the development of surveys of cable TV subscribers. 8. Monitor state and federal legislation regarding the telecommunications industry. 9. Monitor developments in the local telecommunications market. VI. OTHER BUSINESS Board members asked if all Board correspondence can be sent to members via e-mail. Staff will investigate and provide information at the next meeting. The next meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, December 9, 1997 at 7:00 pm. The meeting was adjourned at 8:10 pm.