[R.O. 1998 § 635.005; Ord. No. 2501 §1, 10-10-2007]
A. To the extent permitted by the 2007 Video
Services Providers Act, the Board of Aldermen of the City of St. Ann,
Missouri, hereby ratifies all existing agreements, franchises, Code
provisions and ordinances regulating cable television operators and
other video service providers, including the imposition of a franchise
fee of five percent (5%) imposed on the gross revenues of all such
providers, and further declares that such agreements, franchises and
ordinances shall continue in full force and effect until expiration
as provided therein or until pre-empted by the issuance of video service
authorizations by the Missouri Public Service Commission or otherwise
by law, but only to the extent of said pre-emption.
B. It shall be unlawful for any person to provide video services, as defined in Section
635.010 hereof, within the City without either an agreement, franchise or ordinance approved by the City or a video service authorization issued by the Missouri Public Service Commission.
[R.O. 1998 § 635.010; Ord. No. 2501 §2, 10-10-2007]
As used in this Chapter, the following
terms shall have the following meanings unless otherwise defined by
context:
FRANCHISE AREA
The total geographic area of the City authorized to be served
by an incumbent cable television operator or incumbent local exchange
carrier or affiliate thereof.
GROSS REVENUES
The total amounts billed to subscribers or received from
advertisers for the provision of video services within the City, including:
1.
Recurring charges for video service;
2.
Event-based charges for video service,
including, but not limited to, pay-per-view and video-on-demand charges;
3.
Rental of set-top boxes and other
video service equipment;
4.
Service charges related to the provision
of video service, including, but not limited to, activation, installation,
repair and maintenance charges;
5.
Administrative charges related to
the provision of video service, including, but not limited to, service
order and service termination charges; and
6.
A pro rata portion of all revenue
derived, less refunds, rebates or discounts, by a video service provider
for advertising over the video service network to subscribers, where
the numerator is the number of subscribers within the City and the
denominator is the total number of subscribers reached by such advertising;
but gross revenues do not include:
a.
Discounts, refunds and other price
adjustments that reduce the amount of compensation received by a video
service provider;
d.
Amounts billed to subscribers to
recover taxes, fees or surcharges imposed on subscribers or video
service providers in connection with the provision of video services,
including the video service provider fee authorized herein;
e.
Fees or other contributions for PEG
or I-Net support; or
f.
Charges for services other than video
service that are aggregated or bundled with amounts billed to subscribers,
provided the video service provider can reasonably identify such charges
on books and records kept in the regular course of business or by
other reasonable means. Except with respect to the exclusion of the
video service provider fee, gross revenues shall be computed in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles.
HOUSEHOLD
An apartment, a house, a mobile home or any other structure
or part of a structure intended for residential occupancy as separate
living quarters.
LOW-INCOME HOUSEHOLD
A household with an average annual household income of less
than thirty-five thousand dollars ($35,000.00).
PERSON
An individual, partnership, association, organization, corporation,
trust or government entity.
SUBSCRIBER
Any person who receives video services in the franchise area.
VIDEO SERVICE
The provision of video programming provided through wireline
facilities, without regard to delivery technology, including Internet
protocol technology, whether provided as part of a tier, on demand
or a per-channel basis, including cable service as defined by 47 U.S.C.
Section 522(6), but excluding video programming provided by a commercial
mobile service provider defined in 47 U.S.C. Section 332(d) or any
video programming provided solely as part of and via a service that
enables users to access content, information, electronic mail or other
services offered over the public Internet.
VIDEO SERVICE AUTHORIZATION
The right of a video service provider or an incumbent cable
operator that secures permission from the Missouri Public Service
Commission pursuant to Sections 67.2675 to 67.2714, RSMo., to offer
video service to subscribers.
VIDEO SERVICE NETWORK
Wireline facilities or any component thereof that deliver
video service, without regard to delivery technology, including Internet
protocol technology or any successor technology. The term "video service
network" shall include cable television systems.
[R.O. 1998 § 635.020; Ord. No. 2501 §2, 10-10-2007]
A. A video service provider shall provide
written notice to the City at least ten (10) days before commencing
video service within the City. Such notice shall also include:
1.
The name, address and legal status
of the provider;
2.
The name, title, address, telephone
number, e-mail address and fax number of individual(s) authorized
to serve as the point of contact between the City and the provider
so as to make contact possible at any time ([i.e., twenty-four (24)
hours per day, seven (7) days per week]; and
3.
A copy of the provider's video service
authorization issued by the Missouri Public Service Commission.
B. A video service provider shall also notify
the City, in writing, within thirty (30) days of:
1.
Any changes in the information set
forth in or accompanying its notice of commencement of video service;
or
2.
Any transfer of ownership or control
of the provider's business assets.
C. A video service provider shall not deny
access to service to any group of potential residential subscribers
because of the race or income of the residents in the area in which
the group resides. A video service provider shall be governed in this
respect by Section 67.2707, RSMo. The City may file a complaint in
a court of competent jurisdiction alleging a germane violation of
this Subsection, which complaint shall be acted upon in accordance
with Section 67.2711, RSMo.
D. A video service provider shall comply with
ail Federal Communications Commission requirements involving the distribution
and notification of emergency messages over the emergency alert system
applicable to cable operators. Any video service provider other than
an incumbent cable operator serving a majority of the residents within
a political subdivision shall comply with this Section by December
31, 2007.
E. Indemnification.
1.
A video service provider shall, at
its sole cost and expense, indemnify, hold harmless and defend the
City, its officials, boards, board members, commissions, commissioners,
agents and employees against any and all claims, suits, causes of
action, proceedings and judgments ("claims") for damages or equitable
relief arising out of:
a. The construction, maintenance, repair or operation of its video services
network;
b. Copyright infringements; and
c. Failure to secure consents from the owners, authorized distributors
or licensees or programs to be delivered by the video service network.
2.
Such indemnification shall include,
but is not limited to, the City's reasonable attorneys' fees incurred
in defending against any such claim prior to the video service provider
assuming such defense. The City shall notify the provider of a claim
within seven (7) business days of its actual knowledge of the existence
of such claim. Once the provider assumes the defense of the claim,
the City may at its option continue to participate in the defense
at its own expense. This indemnification obligation shall not apply
to any claim related to the provision of public, educational or governmental
channels or programming or to emergency interrupt service announcements.
[R.O. 1998 § 635.030; Ord. No. 2501 §2, 10-10-2007]
A. Each video service provider shall pay to
the City a video service provider fee in the amount of five percent
(5%) of the provider's gross revenues on or before the last day of
the month following the end of each calendar quarter. The City may
adjust the video service provider fee as permitted in Section 67.2689,
RSMo.
B. A video service provider may identify and
pass through on a proportionate basis the video service provider fee
as a separate line item on subscribers' bills.
C. The City, not more than once per calendar
year and at its own cost, may audit the gross revenues of any video
service provider as provided in Section 67.2691, RSMo. A video service
provider shall make available for inspection all records pertaining
to gross revenues at the location where such records are kept in the
normal course of business.
[R.O. 1998 § 635.040; Ord. No. 2501 §2, 10-10-2007]
A. For purposes of this Section, the following
terms shall mean:
NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS
Those hours during which most similar businesses in the community
are open to serve customers. In all cases, the term "normal business
hours" must include some evening hours at least one (1) night per
week or some weekend hours.
NORMAL OPERATING CONDITIONS
Those service conditions which are within the control of
the video service provider. Those conditions which are not within
the control of the video service provider include, but are not limited
to, natural disasters, civil disturbances, power outages, telephone
network outages and severe or unusual weather conditions. Those conditions
which are ordinarily within the control of the video service provider
include, but are not limited to, special promotions, pay-per-view
events, rate increases, regular peak or seasonal demand periods and
maintenance or upgrade of the video system.
B. All video service providers shall adopt
and abide by the following minimum customer service requirements:
1.
Video service providers shall maintain
a local, toll-free or collect call telephone access line which may
be available to subscribers twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7)
days a week.
2.
Video service providers shall have
trained company representatives available to respond to customer telephone
inquiries during normal business hours. After normal business hours,
the access line may be answered by a service or an automated response
system, including an answering machine. Inquiries received after normal
business hours shall be responded to, by a trained company representative,
on the next business day.
3.
Under normal operating conditions,
telephone answer time by a customer representative, including wait
time, shall not exceed thirty (30) seconds when the connection is
made. If the call needs to be transferred, transfer time shall not
exceed thirty (30) seconds. These standards shall be met no less than
ninety percent (90%) of the time under normal operating conditions,
measured on a quarterly basis.
4.
Under normal operating conditions,
the customer will receive a busy signal less than three percent (3%)
of the time.
5.
Customer service centers and bill
payment locations shall be open at least during normal business hours
and shall be conveniently located.
6.
Under normal operating conditions,
each of the following standards shall be met no less than ninety-five
percent (95%) of the time measured on a quarterly basis:
a.
Standard installations shall be performed
within seven (7) business days after an order has been placed. "Standard"
installation(s) are those that are located up to one hundred twenty-five
(125) feet from the existing distribution system.
b.
Excluding conditions beyond the control
of the operator, the video service provider shall begin working on
"service interruptions" promptly and in no event later than twenty-four
(24) hours after the interruption becomes known. The video service
provider must begin actions to correct other service problems the
next business day after notification of the service problem.
c.
The "appointment window" alternatives
for installations, service calls and other installation activities
will be either a specific time or, at maximum, a four-hour time block
during normal business hours. The operator may schedule service calls
and other installation activities outside of normal business hours
for the express convenience of the customer.
d.
A video service provider shall not
cancel an appointment with a customer after the close of business
on the business day prior to the scheduled appointment.
e.
If a video service provider's representative
is running late for an appointment with a customer and will not be
able to keep the appointment as scheduled, the customer must be contacted.
The appointment shall be rescheduled, as necessary, at a time convenient
for the customer.
7.
Refund checks shall be issued promptly,
but no later than either:
a.
The customer's next billing cycle
following resolution of the request or thirty (30) days, whichever
is earlier; or
b.
The return of the equipment supplied
by the video service provider if the service is terminated.
8.
Credits for service shall be issued
no later than the customer's next billing cycle following the determination
that a credit is warranted.
9.
Video service providers shall not
disclose the name or address of a subscriber for commercial gain to
be used in mailing lists or for other commercial purposes not reasonably
related to the conduct of the businesses of the video service provider
or its affiliates, as required under 47 U.S.C. Section 551, including
all notice requirements. Video service providers shall provide an
address and telephone number for a local subscriber to use without
toll charge to prevent disclosure of the subscriber's name or address.
C. As required by Section 67.2692, RSMo., this Section
635.040 shall be enforced only as follows:
1.
Each video service provider shall
implement an informal process for handling inquiries from the City
and customers concerning billing issues, service issues and other
complaints. If an issue is not resolved through this informal process,
the City may request a confidential nonbinding mediation with the
video service provider, with the costs of such mediation to be shared
equally between the City and the video service provider.
2.
In the case of repeated, willful
and material violations of the provisions of this Section by a video
service provider, the City may file a complaint on behalf of a resident
harmed by such violations with Missouri's Administrative Hearing Commission
seeking an order revoking the video service provider's Public Service
Commission authorization. The City or a video service provider may
appeal any determination made by the Administrative Hearing Commission
under this Section to a court of competent jurisdiction which shall
have the power to review the decision de novo. The City shall not
file a complaint seeking revocation unless the video service provider
has been given sixty (60) days' notice to cure alleged breaches but
has failed to do so.
[R.O. 1998 § 635.050; Ord. No. 2501 §2, 10-10-2007]
A. Each video service provider shall designate
the same number of channels for non-commercial public, educational
or governmental ("PEG") use as designated by the incumbent cable operator.
B. Any PEG channel that is not substantially
utilized by the City may be reclaimed and programmed by the video
service provider at the provider's discretion. If the City finds and
certifies that a channel that has been reclaimed by a video service
provider will be substantially utilized, the video service provider
shall restore the reclaimed channel within one hundred twenty (120)
days. A PEG channel shall be considered "substantially utilized" when
forty (40) hours per week are locally programmed on that channel for
at least three (3) consecutive months. In determining whether a PEG
channel is substantially utilized, a program may be counted not more
than four (4) times during a calendar week.
C. The operation of any PEG access channel
and the production of any programming that appears on each such channel
shall be the sole responsibility of the City or its duly appointed
agent receiving the benefit of such channel, and the video service
provider shall bear only the responsibility for the transmission of
the programming on each such channel to subscribers. The City must
deliver and submit to the video service provider all transmissions
of PEG content and programming in a manner or form that is capable
of being accepted and transmitted by such video service provider holder
over its network without further alteration or change in the content
or transmission signal. Such content and programming must be compatible
with the technology or protocol utilized by the video service provider
to deliver its video services. The video service provider shall cooperate
with the City to allow the City to achieve such compatibility.
D. The City shall make the programming of
any PEG access channel available to all video service providers in
a non-discriminatory manner. Each video service provider shall be
responsible for providing the connectivity to the City's or its duly
appointed agent's PEG access channel distribution points existing
as of August 27, 2007. Where technically necessary and feasible, video
service providers shall use reasonable efforts and shall negotiate
in good faith to interconnect their video service networks on mutually
acceptable rates, terms and conditions for the purpose of transmitting
PEG programming. A video service provider shall have no obligation
to provide such interconnection to a new video service provider at
more than one (1) point per head end, regardless of the number of
political subdivisions served by such head end. The video service
provider requesting interconnection shall be responsible for any costs
associated with such interconnection, including signal transmission
from the origination point to the point of interconnection. Interconnection
may be accomplished by direct cable microwave link, satellite or other
reasonable method of connection acceptable to the person providing
the interconnect.
E. The franchise obligation of an incumbent
cable operator to provide monetary and other support for PEG access
facilities existing on August 27, 2007, shall continue until the Missouri
Public Service Commission date of franchise expiration or January
1, 2012, whichever is earlier. Any other video service provider shall
have the same obligation to support PEG access facilities as the incumbent
cable operator, but if there is more than one (1) incumbent, then
the incumbent with the most subscribers as of August 27, 2007. Such
obligation shall be prorated, depending on the nature of the obligation,
as provided in Section 67.2703.8, RSMo. The City shall notify each
video service provider of the amount of such fee on an annual basis
beginning one (1) year after issuance of the video service authorization.
F. A video service provider may identify and
pass through as a separate line item on subscribers' bills the value
of monetary and other PEG access support on a proportionate basis.
[R.O. 1998 § 635.060; Ord. No. 2501 §2, 10-10-2007]
All video service providers shall
comply with all other applicable laws and regulations.