-Joins with Consumers Union, NYPIRG in Effort to Improve Cable Accountability, Protect Consumers-

New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. announces a “Cable Consumer Bill of Rights" at a news conference on Wednesday, March 26, 2008. Thompson is joined by Consumers Union and the New York Public Interest Research Group to unveil the measure, which provides more accountability and transparency to cable customers. Pictured (l to r) are: Chuck Bell, Program Director, Consumers Union; and Thompson.

New York City Comptroller William C. Thompson, Jr. today unveiled a “Cable Consumer Bill of Rights” aimed at protecting New York City consumers by demanding significant protections in cable companies’ franchise agreements with the City.

“New Yorkers deserve more transparency, more accountability and more choices from their cable providers,” Thompson said at a news conference in his office at 1 Centre Street. “This ‘Cable Consumer Bill of Rights’ will ensure consumers are protected, informed and empowered.”

New York’s two original cable companies, Time Warner Cable and Cablevision, have begun negotiations for franchise renewals with the City as their existing 10-year franchise agreements expire in October, and the City is in the process of negotiating a new cable television franchise agreement with Verizon.  Franchise agreements are subject to approval by the Franchise Concession and Review Committee (FCRC), which is comprised of Comptroller Thompson, Mayoral appointees, and the five borough presidents.

“We now have the opportunity to implement the strongest, most comprehensive set of cable consumer protections in the country,” Thompson said.

The “Cable Consumer Bill of Rights” is a multi-pronged blueprint crafted by the Comptroller’s Office, in conjunction with the New York Public Interest Research Group (NYPIRG) and the Consumers Union – two leading consumer voices on telecommunications issues.
 
The measure aims to give cable consumers meaningful information about customer service performance; increase cable accountability on service issues; offer more disclosure of what comprises monthly cable bills; protect the privacy of cable and internet subscribers; provide more disclosure of how much consumers are charged for different categories of channels, including channels owned by cable service providers; and ensure customers have access to more independently-owned channels by requiring that cable companies arbitrate access disputes fairly and quickly.
 
“The ‘Cable Consumer Bill of Rights’ will ensure that consumers are protected and that they receive the information they deserve about their cable service provider,” said Chuck Bell, Director of Advocacy Programs at Consumers Union. “We’re proud to stand with Comptroller Thompson and other consumer advocates to fight for these much-needed reforms, which would ensure New York City is the nation’s leader in cable consumer protections. The ‘Cable Consumer Bill of Rights’ puts the power back into the hands of consumers, where it belongs.”
 
Added Russ Haven, Legislative Counsel of the New York Public Interest Research Group: “Pay TV subscribers need more information about cable company performance, easy to understand information to comparison shop, and a more competitive cable marketplace.  Comptroller Thompson is leading the way in protecting consumers in the city by standing up to the cable behemoths with a comprehensive cable Bill of Rights.”
 
The major provisions of the “Cable Consumer Bill of Rights” are:

1.      Customer Service Transparency

• Cable companies will be required to collect and report detailed information about consumer complaints, and to follow-up with complaining consumers within 30 days to ensure their problems have been resolved
  
  
• Companies must also collect and report detailed information about service outages by borough and community district, and submit a quarterly Plan of Correction for communities that are routinely subject to service outages
  
  
• Companies must also improve meaningful consumer disclosure; including providing consumers with a full and accurate list of all service tiers, sub-tiers and channel offerings for their franchise area
  
  
• Cable operators must provide convenient service centers that are easily accessible by mass transit.  We recommend one service center for every 500,000 customers served
  
  
• Ensures privacy protection for the customer which prohibits the cable providers from sharing data on customer’s internet usage and television viewing habits

2.      Cable Rate Transparency

• Cable companies must provide needed transparency about their cable rates so that consumers know what percentage of each bill is allocated to:
  
  
• Cost of content, capital expenditures, system maintenance, administrative expenses and profit
  
  
• Independent programmers affiliated / non-affiliated with cable or broadcasting companies

3.      Independent Arbitration

• Create an independent arbitration system to help cable companies and independent programmers efficiently resolve disputes over access, rather than denying consumer access to popular programming. (This mechanism would avoid the type of blackouts that consumers have experienced such as when Yankees and Mets programming were not available to many cable subscribers for lengthy periods of time

4.      Annual Cable Consumer Report Card

• Cable companies must publish and distribute an annual Cable Consumer Report Card so that consumers can easily:
  
  
• identify their cable company’s performance over the previous year,
  
  
• access cost and service information,
  
  
• view improvements that have been made and service outages that have occurred, and
  
  
• view complaint ratios by community board   
  
  
• The availability of a report card as well as where to obtain the information (web site, phone number) must be included in all promotional materials issued by the providers
  
  
• This annual report must also disclose the existence of exclusive contracts that cable companies make with Multiple Dwelling Units (MDUs), which prohibit residents from choosing among cable providers

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