For the purpose of this chapter, the following terms, phrases, words, and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein:
“ACT” or “CABLE ACT.” The Communications Act of 1934, as amended by the Cable Communications Policy Act of 1984, the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992, and the Telecommunications Act of 1996, as may be now or hereafter amended.
“ADDITIONAL SERVICE.” Any subscriber service provided by the grantee for which a special charge is made based on program or service content, time, or spectrum space usage.
“BASIC SERVICE.” All subscriber services provided by the grantee in one or more service tiers for an established regular monthly fee, which includes at a minimum the delivery of local broadcast stations, and public, educational and government access channels. “BASIC SERVICE” does not include optional program and satellite service tiers, a la carte services, per channel, per program, or auxiliary services for which a separate charge is made. However, the grantee may include other satellite signals on the basic service tier.
“CABLE OPERATOR.” Any person or group of persons:
(1) Who provides cable service over a cable system and directly or through one or more affiliates owns a significant interest in such cable system; or
(2) Who otherwise controls or is responsible for, through any arrangement, the management and operation of such a cable system. A “CABLE OPERATOR” shall include any person or persons who own or operate an open video system as defined by 47 U.S.C. § 573, or who are a multichannel video provider whose service is transmitted on leased telecommunications lines located within a public street or a public way.
“CABLE SERVICE.” The one-way transmission to subscribers of video programming or other programming service and subscriber interaction, if any, which is required for the selection or use of such programming or other programming service. This definition does not authorize, and shall not be construed, interpreted, or applied to authorize, the use of the cable system for telephone, data, or voice communication services, which services are not authorized by this chapter.
“CABLE SYSTEM” or “SYSTEM” or “CABLE TELEVISION SYSTEM.” A system of antennas, cables, wires, lines, towers, wave guides, or other conductors, converters, equipment or facilities, designed and constructed for the purpose of producing, receiving, transmitting, amplifying and distributing audio, video, and other forms of electronic, electrical or optical signals, which includes cable television service, and which is located in the Municipality. The definition shall not include any such facility that serves or will serve only subscribers without using municipal rights-of-way. The definition of “CABLE SYSTEM” shall not be construed, interpreted, or applied to authorize telephone or voice communication services, and no such telephone or voice communication services are authorized by this chapter. In addition, the definition of “CABLE SYSTEM” shall not be deemed to circumscribe any valid authority of any governmental body, including the Municipality, to regulate the activities of telephone or telegraph companies, or the provision of any service over the cable system that is not a "Cable Service" as such term is defined herein.
“COMPLAINT.” Any correspondence, whether in writing or verbal in nature, whether in person, by telephone, or by electronic mail, from any individual, business, unit of government, or institution to the franchising authority concerning an unresolved alleged problem with the service or other function of the cable system or the franchise.
“CONTROL” or “CONTROLLING INTEREST.” Actual working control or ownership of a system in whatever manner exercised. A rebuttable presumption of the existence of control or a controlling interest shall arise from the beneficial ownership, directly or indirectly, by any person or entity (except underwriters during the period in which they are offering securities to the public) of five percent or more of a cable system or the franchise under which the system is operated. A change in the control or controlling interest of an entity which has control or a controlling interest in a grantee shall constitute a change in the control or controlling interest of the system under the same criteria. Control or controlling interest as used herein may be held simultaneously by more than one person or group of persons.
“CONVERTER.” An electronic device which converts signals to a frequency not susceptible to interference, within the television receiver of a subscriber, and by an appropriate channel selector, and also permits a subscriber to view more than 14 channels delivered by the system at designated converter dial locations.
“DWELLING UNIT.” A single-family or multi-family residential place of occupancy or a business place of occupancy.
“FCC.” The Federal Communications Commission, and any legally appointed, designated or elected agent or successor.
“FRANCHISE.” The non-exclusive right and privilege granted through the authority of a franchise agreement between the Municipality and any grantee hereunder which allows the grantee to own, operate, construct, reconstruct, relocate, test, use, and maintain a cable system within the corporate boundaries of the Municipality.
“FRANCHISE AGREEMENT.” That certain written agreement entered into between a grantee and the Municipality wherein the franchise and the terms thereof are conferred upon the grantee.
“FRANCHISE FEE.” Any assessment imposed herein by the Municipality on a grantee solely because of its status as a grantee. The term “FRANCHISE FEE” does not include any tax, fee, or assessment of general applicability (including any such tax, fee, or assessment imposed on both utilities and cable operators or their services) excepting a tax, fee, or assessment which is unduly discriminatory against the grantee or cable subscribers; capital costs which are required by the franchise to be incurred by the grantee for the establishment of public, educational, or governmental access facilities; requirements or charges incidental to the awarding, reviewing, enforcing, or transferring of the franchise, including payments for professional, legal, or technical assistance, bonds, security funds, letters of credit; insurance, indemnification, penalties, or liquidated damages; or any fee imposed under Title 17, U.S.C.
“FRANCHISING AUTHORITY.” The corporate authorities of the town, its Town Council President, or his or her designee, Town Council, or any of its designated municipal officers or staff having responsibility over the supervision of the town's cable television franchise.
“GRANTEE.” A person or entity to whom or to which a franchise under this chapter is granted by the Municipality, along with the lawful successors or assign; of such person or entity.
“GROSS REVENUES.” All revenue collected directly or indirectly by the grantee, arising from or attributable to the provision of cable service by the grantee within the franchise area, including, but not limited to: fees charged subscribers for any basic, optional, premium, per-channel or per-program service; franchise fees; installation and re-connection fees; leased channel fees; game channel fees; converter, remote control, or modem rentals, including any internet services as defined by the FCC as being subject to Title VI of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and bandwidth leased to unaffiliated internet service providers to the extent permitted by law; program guide revenues; studio or production equipment rentals; late or administrative fees; upgrade, downgrade or other change-in- service fees; advertising revenues, including commissions; revenues from "infomercials", home shopping and bank-at-home channels; revenues from the sale, exchange, use or cable cast of any programming developed on the system for community or institutional use; and any value (at retail price levels) of any non-monetary remuneration received by the grantee in consideration of the performance of advertising or any other service of the system which are treated as revenues. Gross revenues shall include revenue received by any other entity other than the grantee where necessary to prevent evasion or avoidance of the obligation under this franchise to pay the franchise fees. Those gross revenues whose source cannot be specifically identified with a particular subscriber shall be allocated among the units of government served by the grantee from the cable system headend serving the franchise area in proportion to the number of subscribers in each. “GROSS REVENUES” shall not include any bad debts, copyright fees, or taxes on services furnished by the grantee herein imposed directly upon any subscriber or user by the state, local or other governmental unit and collected by the grantee on behalf of the governmental unit.
“INSTALLATION.” The connection of the system from feeder cable to subscribers' terminals.
“LAKE COUNTY, INDIANA CATV CONSORTIUM.” or “CONSORTIUM.” An Indiana agency formed by intergovernmental agreement between its members, local government subdivisions of the State of Indiana and the State of Illinois. The consortium may be delegated the authority to enforce cable television franchises and cable system operations for its member communities.
“MAY” is permissive.
“MULTICHANNEL VIDEO PROVIDER.” Any system distributing video programming to subscribers which use all or part of the Municipality's right-of-way in order to distribute such video programming or which distributes such programming to subscribers over the lines of a common carrier which are located in all or part of the Municipality's right-of-way.
“MUNICIPALITY.” The Town Council, which has issued a franchise to a grantee.
“NORMAL BUSINESS HOURS.” Those hours during which businesses are normally open to serve customers. In all cases, normal business hours must include some evening hours at least one night per week, and some weekend hours. For the purpose of this chapter, the term "some evening hours" shall mean at least one to four hours during which customers may be served by a grantee on one or more evenings from Monday through Friday, and the term "some weekend hours" shall mean at least one to eight hours during which customers may be served by a grantee on Saturday and/or Sunday.
“NORMAL OPERATING CONDITIONS.” Those service conditions that are within the control of the grantee. Those conditions that are not within the control of the grantee are defined in § 115.102.
“PERSON.” Any natural person, or any association, firm, partnership, joint venture, corporation, or other legally recognized entity or organization, whether for-profit or not-for-profit, but excluding the Municipality.
“PUBLIC STREET.” Except where expressly limited by this chapter or a franchise and, in any event, only to the extent necessary to permit the installation and maintenance of a cable system, the surface, the air space above the surface, and the area below the surface of any public street, highway, court, road, freeway, lane, path, sidewalk, alley, boulevard, drive, bridge, or tunnel now or hereafter held by or dedicated to the Municipality in which the rights and title of the Municipality are such as to entitle the Municipality and the grantee to the use thereof for the purpose of installing and maintaining the grantee's cable system. No reference in this chapter to “PUBLIC STREET” shall be deemed to be a representation or guarantee by the Municipality that its title or interest in any property is sufficient to permit its use for such purpose, and a franchise shall, by the use of such term, be deemed to grant only such rights to use property in the Municipality as the Municipality may have the right and power to grant in such franchise.
“PUBLIC WAY.” Except where expressly limited by this chapter or a franchise and, in any event, only to the extent necessary to permit the installation and maintenance of a cable system, the surface, the air space above the surface, and the area below the surface, of any conduit, park, parkway, waterway, utility easement (as defined in § 541 of the Cable Act) or other public right-of-way now or hereafter held by or dedicated to the Municipality in which the rights and title of the Municipality are such as to entitle the Municipality and the grantee to the use thereof for the purpose of installing and maintaining the grantee's cable system. No reference in this chapter to “PUBLIC WAY” shall be deemed to be a representation or guarantee by the Municipality that its title or interest in any property is sufficient to permit its use for such purpose, and a franchise shall, by the use of such term, be deemed to grant only such rights to use property in the Municipality as the Municipality may have the right and power to grant in such franchise.
“SHALL” is mandatory.
“SERVICE AREA.” All areas within the Municipality as defined in the franchise agreement.
“SERVICE INTERRUPTION.” The loss of either picture or sound or both for any channel for single or multiple subscribers.
“SUBSCRIBER.” Any person, firm, grantee, corporation or association lawfully receiving cable service provided by a grantee pursuant to this chapter.
“TOWN COUNCIL.” The Town Council of the Town of Cedar Lake.
“TOWN MANAGER.” The Town Manager of the Town of Cedar Lake.
“USER.” A party utilizing a cable television system channel for purposes of production or transmission of material to subscribers, as contrasted with receipt thereof in a subscriber capacity.
(Ord. 767, passed 4-25-00)