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Comments on news posted 2008-11-18 08:25:08: Comcast will be buying a financially strapped municipal cable operation run by Alameda Power & Telecom in the San Francisco Bay Area. ..

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knightmb
Everybody Lies
join:2003-12-01
Franklin, TN

knightmb

Member

wow, sweet deal for Comcast

Wire everywhere already, customers already, just take over management and hopefully your technicians can fix up the network setup. Sounds like a sweet deal at $15 million since with that many customers, turn over $6 million a year get the amount paid off after a couple of years.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5

Premium Member

Just close it down

$15 million well spent. Shut down the system and let them be converted to Comcast Cable customers. All they will have to do is switch out some headend gear.
JJV
Premium Member
join:2001-04-25
Seattle, WA

JJV

Premium Member

Bad news for their customers

Comcast recently bought my Moms local cable system.

Nothing has changed but the bill went up 50%.

sashwa
Mod
join:2001-01-29
Alcatraz
446.4 4.0

2 edits

1 recommendation

sashwa

Mod

Speechless almost....

I have had AP&T cable and internet since 2004. I've heard rumors that they were in financial trouble and might be selling out. I should have figured it would be to Comcast.

I choose them because I wanted to support my community rather than a big corporation.

I wonder how the switch over is going to affect me?

Alameda is an island off of Oakland which is across the bay from San Francisco.
dynodb
Premium Member
join:2004-04-21
Minneapolis, MN

1 recommendation

dynodb

Premium Member

Another one bites the dust

Yet another Muni bites the dust. Is there a list somewhere of failed municipal broadband initiatives, or would it be too long to fit on one page?

Of course the next time a state or local government proposes becoming a broadband provider, most on BBR will think it's a great idea.
dynodb

dynodb to knightmb

Premium Member

to knightmb

Re: wow, sweet deal for Comcast

said by knightmb:

Wire everywhere already, customers already, just take over management and hopefully your technicians can fix up the network setup. Sounds like a sweet deal at $15 million since with that many customers, turn over $6 million a year get the amount paid off after a couple of years.
It's a sweet deal until they have to fork over the $35 million debt payment, assuming that's part of the deal and the taxpayers aren't eating the debt.
Expand your moderator at work

badtrip
Premium Member
join:2004-03-20

2 edits

1 recommendation

badtrip

Premium Member

Re: Another one bites the dust

No, Albany is

EDIT: I live in Albany. It was a joke Mr. Mod =/
badtrip

badtrip to sashwa

Premium Member

to sashwa

Re: Speechless almost....

»www.unwiredltd.com/

is based in Berkeley. I use their service, they are very reliable, friendly and I am very happy with them.

sashwa
Mod
join:2001-01-29
Alcatraz

1 recommendation

sashwa to Anon

Mod

to Anon

Re: Another one bites the dust

That is not true!

I think they are failing because they don't offer the internet speeds that Comcast offers and the upcoming change 2/09 in TV.
sashwa

sashwa to badtrip

Mod

to badtrip

Re: Speechless almost....

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look into it.

Matt3
All noise, no signal.
Premium Member
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC

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Premium Member

to dynodb

Re: Another one bites the dust

said by dynodb:

Yet another Muni bites the dust. Is there a list somewhere of failed municipal broadband initiatives, or would it be too long to fit on one page?

Of course the next time a state or local government proposes becoming a broadband provider, most on BBR will think it's a great idea.
And how many telecommunication companies have failed over the years?
Expand your moderator at work

boku
@comcast.net

boku to Matt3

Anon

to Matt3

Re: Another one bites the dust

I bet it is OVER 9000!
Sammer
join:2005-12-22
Canonsburg, PA

Sammer to dynodb

Member

to dynodb

Re: wow, sweet deal for Comcast

said by dynodb:

[It's a sweet deal until they have to fork over the $35 million debt payment, assuming that's part of the deal and the taxpayers aren't eating the debt.
Since 95% of the debtholders have agreed to the sale, that debt is apparently part of the sale although it sounds like Comcast is insisting on better terms.
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4 to FFH5

Member

to FFH5

Re: Just close it down

they'll leave the network in place and won't change anything but maybe a channel line up and changes the pricing and internet speeds. Why spend the money to change out the headend? Especially if it is working just fine and it's not that old.

Usually MSOs will only change out the headend if its beyond using like my old mom and pop cable company in Fremont, OH. The only thing we had was 45 channels of analog and 1 HBO and CinMax. Those were not even on a cable box just some type of scrambler that was just screwed on the line. TWC had to overbuild the network before they could even use it.
hottboiinnc4

hottboiinnc4 to sashwa

Member

to sashwa

Re: Another one bites the dust

cable does NOT have to change anything to digital in 2/09 that is only for OTA tv viewers. Comcast has a private network and would not be affected by the change. The only thing MSOs want to do is move all the channels to digital to free up that used space for more digital channels, HDTV, and internet. but are NOT required to do so.

sashwa
Mod
join:2001-01-29
Alcatraz

1 edit

sashwa to hottboiinnc4

Mod

to hottboiinnc4

Re: Just close it down

The only problem I've been seeing with my connection is a bottleneck within the Alameda network at night since this summer. Once we peer off to AT&T no problem.
sashwa

sashwa to hottboiinnc4

Mod

to hottboiinnc4

Re: Another one bites the dust

The last time I talked with AP&T, they told me they had to buy some expensive equipment to reconvert the digital signal back to an analog signal. I took that with a grain of salt.
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4 to sashwa

Member

to sashwa

Re: Just close it down

Comcast will move you to their network and shit can AT&T.

But would be the same network within your town.

sashwa
Mod
join:2001-01-29
Alcatraz
446.4 4.0

sashwa

Mod

Well that's gonna be a bummer. Maybe they will fix that up eventually. At least my speeds will be faster so I might not notice it as much. After 8 pm or sooner, my pings within the network can hit as high as 500.
hottboiinnc4
ME
join:2003-10-15
Cleveland, OH

hottboiinnc4

Member

the comcast network is built out to keep your traffic on their network until it needs to peer out. which means you won't have to go directly out to the Internet after you request the page. you can stay on the comcast network all the way to FL if you are requesting a website there before you "touch" the internet.

its part of their own network called CRAM. Also you'll have PowerBoost too

sashwa
Mod
join:2001-01-29
Alcatraz

1 edit

sashwa

Mod

This shall be interesting come Saturday when I switch over.

I decided to switch now to take advantage of a promo for a year - It's less than what I am paying AP&T now.

dadkins
Can you do Blu?
MVM
join:2003-09-26
Hercules, CA

dadkins to hottboiinnc4

MVM

to hottboiinnc4
said by hottboiinnc4:

the comcast network is built out to keep your traffic on their network until it needs to peer out. which means you won't have to go directly out to the Internet after you request the page. you can stay on the comcast network all the way to FL if you are requesting a website there before you "touch" the internet.

its part of their own network called CRAN/B>. Also you'll have PowerBoost too
CRAN... I can tracert all the way to New Jersey and never leave Comcast's network!
rody_44
Premium Member
join:2004-02-20
Quakertown, PA

rody_44 to sashwa

Premium Member

to sashwa

Re: Another one bites the dust

actually we dont know where they were at. its possible that they only recieve a analog signal. and after feb. that signal goes away. its very possible that they would have to upgrade after the feb deadline if thats the case.
rody_44

rody_44 to boku

Premium Member

to boku
the article says comcast competes directly with them. in them cases where comcast buys systems where they already have plant they usually would scrap the old and use there own.

sashwa
Mod
join:2001-01-29
Alcatraz

1 edit

sashwa

Mod

Yes, we do or at least did have a choice between Comcast and AP&T. Comcast was here first as far as I know.
rody_44
Premium Member
join:2004-02-20
Quakertown, PA

rody_44 to knightmb

Premium Member

to knightmb

Re: wow, sweet deal for Comcast

i dont know where you get your calculations, but i come up with probably around 950,000 a year in gross revenue. your not going to average more than 100.00 a month average and thats tops.

funchords
Hello
MVM
join:2001-03-11
Yarmouth Port, MA

funchords

MVM

said by rody_44:

i dont know where you get your calculations, but i come up with probably around 950,000 a year in gross revenue. your not going to average more than 100.00 a month average and thats tops.
(Did you forget that there are 12 months in a year?) That's $11.4 million. Comcast runs around a 20% operational profit, leaving it $2.3 million/year to pay off the debt, somewhere between 6-7 years from now.

That sounds like a good deal -- it's probably not exactly that rosy because the network they're buying has probably suffered some neglect over its past austere years.

I'm bummed that it's Comcast as it can't keep up with its own problems and is dead last in customer satisfaction -- it's exactly the kind of buyer that the bondholders wanted to avoid when they started this thing.
mdurkin
join:1999-08-11
San Bruno, CA

mdurkin to rody_44

Member

to rody_44
Check your math. You forgot the X 12 for yearly gross.
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