Greenwich Officials Push Back On Optimum Decision To Move GCTV Channel

GREENWICH, CT — Greenwich officials are criticizing a decision by Optimum to move Greenwich Community Television (GCTV) from Channel 79 to Channel 1310 later this month, calling the change confusing and harmful to public access.

The new channel assignment is set to take effect Aug. 21 as part of a broader reshuffling of Optimum’s cable lineup. Town officials said the move will make it harder for residents to find government meetings and other community programming that GCTV provides.

"We are deeply disappointed and confused by this decision," First Selectman Fred Camillo said in a prepared statement. "Unfortunately, we have checked and apparently there’s nothing we can do to change Altice’s mind about this arbitrary move."

GCTV broadcasts a range of live municipal meetings, including the Board of Selectmen, Planning and Zoning Commission, and Representative Town Meeting, as well as the annual town budget hearings. The channel has operated on Channel 79 for more than two decades.

"Optimum is committed to providing our Connecticut customers with the best possible TV viewing experience, which includes access to a wide range of programming content. Beginning August 19th, Optimum will be repositioning the location of PEG (Public, Education, and Government Access) channels to a new location within our channel lineups. Customers will not experience any disruption in service and will be able to access this content through their existing TV packages," Optimum said in an emailed statement to Patch.

"Once the channels are moved, on-air channel slates will direct viewers to the new locations of their PEG channels and Optimum has notified all customers, cable councils and regulators of these shifts," Optimum added. "We value our partnership with the Greenwich community and are committed to making this transition as seamless as possible for all viewers."

Station officials say they were not consulted before the change.

"We are not happy about this move," said Drew Marzullo, president of GCTV, in a prepared statement. "We were not consulted before Altice, which owns Optimum, made this change."

Marzullo added that the switch will bring additional costs and logistical challenges to the station, which operates on a limited budget supported primarily by grants from Altice and town funding.

GCTV’s sister station, Greenwich Channel 78—which carries Board of Education programming—is also being moved, to Channel 1305.

"Right now, we’re just trying to let our loyal viewers know about the impending move," Marzullo added. "We know there will be some confusion but are hopeful our viewers will find us at our new channel."

The change affects only Optimum subscribers.

Viewers using Verizon Fios (channel 24), AT&T Cable, or GCTV’s YouTube livestream and on-demand archive will not see any interruption or change in service.