The North Suburban Communications Commission (NSCC) will hold a special meeting Thursday night (July 11) to consider a one-year extension of its existing cable TV franchise agreement with Comcast of Minnesota.
Comcast's current cable TV contract with Roseville and nine other East Metro cities is set to expire in either October or November (depending on the city). The parties have been in negotiations for several months for a franchise renewal.
But in a memo to the Commission, NSCC Executive Director Coralie Wilson said the franchise renewal process has taken longer than expected. That's partly because of problems that customers have had with Comcast call centers and its equipment, she said.
As a result, Wilson said she is recommending the Commission approve a resolution urging its 10-member cities to extend the group's current franchise agreement, without change. If approved, the extended franchises would run to Nov. 23, 2014.
" I want to emphasize that we still hope to conclude franchise renewal negotiations using the informal process well before the end of this extension," Wilson added in her staff report.
Comcast's franchise renewal has come in the midst of controversy earlier this year over the cable company's charges for digital transport adapters.
In a previous Roseville Patch story, Wilson said, "We have gotten lots of complaints about rates since the beginning of the year (2013) when Comcast started charging $1.99 for digital transport adapters (DTAs) that were previously free."
The North Suburban Communications Commission serves the cities of Arden Hills Falcon Heights, Lauderdale, Little Canada, Mounds View New Brighton, North Oaks, Roseville, St. Anthony and Shoreview.
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