(1) New licensees shall interconnect their system with any or all other systems located in the city or within the county for PEG and I-Net purposes upon the directive of the city. For existing licensees, the interconnect requirements shall be determined through the license renewal process under this chapter, subject to federal law. Interconnection of systems may be done by direct cable connection, microwave link, satellite or other appropriate methods. Interconnection may be required for one or several channels of the system, including but not limited to PEG channels.
(2) Upon receiving the directive by the city to interconnect, the licensee shall immediately initiate negotiations with the other affected system or systems in order that costs may be shared equally by the systems for both the construction and operation of the interconnection link.
(3) Each licensee shall cooperate with any city-county interconnection authority, the provisions of any city-county intergovernmental agreements, regional interconnection authority or state or federal regulatory agency which may be established for the purpose of regulating, facilitating, financing or otherwise providing for the interconnection of cable systems within and beyond the boundaries of the city. A licensee may be granted reasonable extensions of time to interconnect, or the city may suspend any order it may have issued to interconnect upon petition by the licensee to the city if the city finds that the licensee has negotiated in good faith and has failed to obtain agreement from the system of the proposed interconnection, or has demonstrated that interconnection is technically unfeasible. Nothing in this section 7A-12(3) creates an obligation to physically interconnect with another system where that obligation does not arise under a license agreement or other applicable law.
(4) Any connection whatsoever of the licensee's system with any other system shall not relieve the licensee of any of its obligations under this chapter or the license agreement.
(5) Once the city directs a licensee to interconnect, the licensee is under an obligation to interconnect promptly. The licensee shall have sixty (60) days to reach an agreement on the terms of interconnection, and to submit that agreement to the city. In the event that the parties to the agreement fail to submit that agreement, either may submit its interconnection proposal to the city. The city, after public hearing, may establish the interconnection requirements, and the parties shall promptly interconnect in accordance with the city's direction. However, nothing in this section prevents either party from appealing the city's order to a court of competent jurisdiction if the party believes that it is unreasonable.
(Ord. No. 8937, § 2, 9-2-97)