A grantee of a franchise hereunder shall install a broadband telecommunication network in the City, meeting the technical standards adopted by the Federal Communications Commission, in their Third Report and Order, to the extent that such Federal standards are more stringent than these proposed by the City.
(a) Definitions.
(1) "Cable television channel" means a frequency band 6MHz in width within which a standard television broadcast signal is delivered by cable to a subscriber terminal.
(2) "Class I cable television channel" means a signaling path provided by a cable television system to relay to subsecriber terminals television broadcast programs that are received off-the-air or are obtained by microwave or by direct connection to a television broadcast station.
(3) "Class II cable television channel" means a signaling path provided by a cable television system to deliver to subscriber terminals television signals that are intended for reception by a television broadcast receiver without the use of an auxiliary decoding device and which signals are not involved in a broadcast transmission path.
(4) "Class III cable television channel" means a signaling path provided by a cable television system to deliver to subscriber terminals signals that are intended for reception by equipment other than a television broadcast receiver or by a television broadcast receiver only when used with auxiliary decoding equipment.
(5) "Class IV cable television channel" means a signaling path provided by a cable television system to transmit signals of any type from a subscriber terminal to another point in the cable television system.
(6) "Discrete cable television channel" means a signaling path provided by a cable television system to transmit signals of any type to specified subscriber terminals within the cable television system.
(7) "Channel frequency response" means within a cable television channel, the relationship as measured at a subscriber terminal between amplitude and frequency of a constant-amplitude input signal.
(8) "Network noise" means the combination of undesired and fluctuating disturbances within a cable television channel, exclusive of undesired signals of discrete frequency which degrade the reproduction of the desired signal and which are due to modulation processes, thermal effects and other noise producing effects, not including hum. Network noise is specified in terms of its rms voltage or its mean power level as measured in a 4MHz above the lower channel boundary of a broadband telecommunications network.
(9) "Subscriber terminal" means the broadband telecommunications network 75 ohm cable terminal to which the subscriber's equipment is connected. Separate terminals may be provided for delivery of cable television signals, FM broadcasts or other signals of differing classifications.
(10) "Terminal isolation" means at any subscriber terminal, the attenuation between that terminal and any other subscriber terminal in that network.
(11) "Visual signal level" means the rms voltage produced by the visual signal during the transmission of synchronizing pulses.
(12) "BTN network channel capacity" means the highest total number of cable television channels on which television signals from separate sources may be delivered downstream simultaneously to every subscriber in the network. The network may have additional channel capacity for specialized or discrete purposes, but the technical performance specified shall not be materially degraded thereby.
(b) Performance Tests and Certification.
(1) The grantee of the broadband telecommunications network shall be responsible for insuring that the network is designed, installed and operated in a manner which fully complies with the technical provisions of this chapter. The grantee shall be prepared to show, at any time, upon reasonable request by an authorized representative of the City, that the network does, in fact, comply with these criteria.
(2) The grantee shall file with the Clerk-Treasurer a statement of the network channel capacity, listing the cable television channels which that network delivers to its CATV subscribers, and the television station or stations whose signals are delivered on each channel of the network under normal operating conditions. When television stations are to be deleted or added the Clerk-Treasurer and all subscribers shall be notified in writing thirty days prior to the date of such deletion or addition.
(3) The grantee shall conduct, as set forth by the FCC in their Third Report and Order, complete performance tests of that network at least once each calendar year, at intervals not to exceed fourteen months and shall file with the Clerk-Treasurer a certificate detailing the test standards and the results of such tests. The performance tests will be directed at determining the extent to which the network complies with the technical standards set forth in this section, and at the discretion of the City shall be conducted in the presence of a technical representative appointed by the City. The tests shall be made on each cable television channel in the network, and shall include measurements made at least two trunk extremities and three taps selected at random at least one of which is representative of a terminal most distant from the network input in terms of cable distance. A statement of the qualifications of the person performing the test and a description of instruments and procedures used shall be attached to the test results filed with the Clerk-Treasurer.
(4) After reviewing the certificates of compliance required in subsection (b)(3) hereof the City may require that certain additional measurements be made, or that clarifying explanation be supplied, as necessary to correct defective certificates.
(c) Technical Standards. The following requirements apply to the broadband telecommunications network performance for Class I, Class II and Discrete 6MHz Video Cable Television Channels as measured at any equivalent subscriber terminal with a matched termination and to each of the cable television channels in which signals picked off the air are delivered to such terminals. Such measurements shall not include the receiver converter if such is required at the customer's receiver for any of the channels of required carriage.
(1) The frequency boundaries of cable television channels delivered to subscriber terminals shall conform to those set forth in FCC Rules, Section 73.603(a). All local channels shall be carried on the network synchronously, i.e., on channel to the extent it is technically feasible.
(2) The frequency of the visual carriers shall be maintained 1.25 MHz + 25 KHz above the lower boundary of the cable television channel, up to the receiving terminals, exclusive of any receiver attachments, such as channel converters, except for the local VHF channels which shall be carried synchronously to the extent it is technically feasible.
(3) The frequency of the aural carrier shall be 4.5 MHz + 1 KHz above the frequency of the visual carrier, except where monochrome signal origination occurs within the system, under which conditions, the tolerance shall be + 5 KHz. All color local origination channels shall have aural-visual separation + 1KHz from 4.5MHz.
(4) The visual signal level at the picture carrier frequency on each channel shall not be less than 1,000 UV, microvolts, across a 75-ohms terminating impedance and shall be maintained within the following limits over the entire ambient temperature range of minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit to +120 degrees Fahrenheit and with variations in supply voltages from 105 to 130 volts.
A. 12 decibels of its minimum value, and
B. 6 decibels of the visual signal level on either adjacent cable television channel, and
C. 10 decibels of the visual signal level on any other cable television channel, and
(5) The rms voltage of the aural signal shall be maintained between 13 and 17 decibels below the associated visual signal level.
(6) The peak to peak variation in visual signal level caused by undesired low frequency disturbances (hum or repetitive transients) generated within the system or by inadequate low frequency response shall not exceed three percent (3%) of the visual signal level.
(7) The ratio of visual signal level to network noise and of visual signal level to any undesired cochannel television signal operating on a proper offset assignment shall be not less than 42 decibels. This requirement is applicable only to:
A. Each signal which is carried by a cable television system serving subscribers within the Grade B contour for that signal, or
B. Each signal which is first picked up within its predicted Grade B contour,
C. Any local origination channel.
(8) The ratio of visual signal level to the rms amplitude of any coherent disturbances, such as intermodulation products, or discrete-frequency interfering signals, not operating on proper offset assignments shall not be less than 46 decibels.
(9) The terminal isolation provided each subscriber shall not be less than 30 decibels, except that the isolation between separate television and FM broadcast terminals for the same subscriber shall not be less than 15 decibels.
(10) Radiation from the broadband telecommunications network shall be limited as follows:
Frequencies | Radiation Limit (uV/m) | Distance (feet) |
Up to and including 54 MHz | 15 | 100 |
Over 54 up to and including 216 MHz | 20 | 10 |
Over 216 MHz | 15 | 100 |
(11) All echos originating within the network shall meet the nonvisibility criteria developed by P. Mertz of the Bell Telephone Company, i.e., shall not be greater than minus 36 db for echos dispersed more than 2 micro seconds. For shorter term dispersed echos, the network, including head-end terminal, shall follow the Mertz Curve, merging to a K pulse deformation not exceeding four percent (4%) of the total system. This latter measurement shall not include the K response of the test modulator and demodulator (if used), i.e., shall be "network" K response. 2-T pulse or equivalent measurement techniques shall be used for these measurements. All unused subscriber tap ports may be terminated during net work measurement.
(12) The total net chrominance/luminance delay accumulated by the system and head-end equipment shall not exceed +130 nanoseconds, as measured with 20 T-pulse deformation tests. This measurement is to be made with external traps and band pass filters removed. This measurement is to be repeated with band pass filters and traps added, and new data taken. No compliance criteria are established for the latter, merely that the data be taken. Where measurements involve a channel with baseband video signal source, the measurements of the network shall be made with a demodulator following the equivalent reciprocal FCC transmission standards. Twenty T-pulse tests will be used to determine compliance with this section, or equivalent techniques with envelope delay measurement equipment.
(13) Network frequency response as measured at any subscriber terminal shall not vary by more than +2 db over the 6 MHz bandwidth of any cable television channel or correspoiding portion of the FM and mid or upper band spectrums if utilized.
(14) Network cross-modulation as measured at all network frequencies from the network input to any subscriber terminal shall be at least 52 db below the normal transmission level and at least 57 db below the normal transmission level as measured at any point of the network trunk (network cross-modulation specifications based on NCTA standard).
(15) Subscriber installation shall conform where applicable to Articles 800 and 810 of the National Electrical Code, current edition.
(16) Notwithstanding the fact that the network may be in compliance with all the standards set forth herein, the City may require a higher level of performance in any area to resolve signal quality or interference problems.
(d) distribute signals by using multiple cable techniques or specialized receiving devices, which, because of the basic design, cannot comply with one or more of the technical standards set forth in subsection (c)(11) hereof, he may be permitted to operate with such equipment provided that an adequate showing is made which establishes that the subscribers are provided an equivalent quality of service. The City expects full technical proof of equivalent performance before it can judge whether such an alternate approach would be acceptable.
(Ord. 29-1972. Passed 3-5-73.)