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Cary Cable TV Commission to Hold Public Hearing Tonight about Time Warner Service

NEWS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE March 22, 1999

CARY CABLE TV COMMISSION TO HOLD PUBLIC HEARING TONIGHT ABOUT TIME WARNER SERVICE

CARY, NC – Continuing with its commitment to improve cable television service, the Town of Cary’s Cable TV Advisory Commission will hold a public hearing tonight to assess the performance of Time Warner Cable as a cable operator in Cary, NC. The public hearing will begin at 7:00 PM in the lower-level conference room of Town Hall Building B. During the hearing, citizens will have the opportunity to comment on any aspect of Time Warner’s service to the community. Time Warner will also be invited to make a short presentation and answer any citizen concerns that might have been raised.

For citizens who cannot come to Monday’s meeting, the Cary Town Council will also hold a separate public hearing regarding monthly rates for the basic service tier as part of their regular meeting this Thursday night at 7:30 PM at Town Hall. Written comments can also be forwarded to Town of Cary, PO Box 8005, Cary, NC 27512-8005.

"It’s important for the Town to be able to document how citizens feel about the company’s attempts to meet the community’s needs," said Cary Public Information Officer Susan Moran. "By holding regular performance evaluations, the Town can demonstrate the cable operator’s successes as well as its failures over time and use this information appropriately during renewal negotiations."

This week’s two public hearings are the latest in a series of actions taken by the Town to improve cable television rates and services in Cary. In January, Cary officials froze contract renewal negotiations with Time Warner and began exploring a variety of options for improving cable service including -investigating the cost and feasibility of the Town’s overbuilding of TWC’s Cary system with its own fiber optic network. The Town has also filed a formal complaint with federal officials over monthly cable rates and has contacted Congress for help with Cary’s cable problems.

Time Warner Cable’s existing franchise agreement with Cary was granted in 1988 and expires in September of 1999. The company serves about 25,000 households within Cary’s city limits.

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PRIMARY CONTACTS: Ben Shivar, Assistant Town Manager, 469-4003

Susan Moran, Public Information Officer, 460-4951