Bulk cable tv

[Stuart Kelson]

I am an owner in a Florida HOA, the Association entered into a 10 year bulk service contract with Comcast to providecable TV. 75% of residents are seasonal and pay more than subscribers who live outside the community, because they cannot put their service 'on vacation'.

Fl St 720.309 2(c) was effected in 2011 this reads:-

A resident of any parcel, whether a tenant or parcel owner, may not be denied access to available franchised, licensed, or certificated cable or video service providers if the resident pays the provider directly for services. A resident or a cable or video service provider may not be required to pay anything of value in order to obtain or provide such service except for the charges normally paid for like services by residents of single-family homes located outside the community but within the same franchised, licensed, or certificated area, and except for installation charges agreed to between the resident and the service provider.

Should seasonal residents within the community be entilted to put their service 'on vacation' ?

Your thoughts would be appreciatedWhat is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?

 

[FarmerJ]

If you are a seasonal user then do you have a option to opt out and just pay reg rates + any activation fees /install fees for services to be on while you are there then DCd when you leave for the season? That statute sounds to me to address the issue some have these days like when a service is provided via a so called bulk arrangement with a LL for example then if the user is not happy that they can obtain own , pay bill and suffer no penalty from the LL for doing so. I dont see a thing about a service provider being required to offer a vacation/ seasonal rate nor did I see anything that would relieve a resident of the fees a hoa/LL sets up to get the service via a bulk deal. Can you opt out and decline the service ?

 

[Stuart Kelson]

Bulk Cable TV

There is no provision for owners to opt out of the Bulk Service Agreement. Seems to me the intent of the legislation is ensure owners are not disadvantaged, by being required to pay more than a similar subscriber who deals direct. Whilst there is no specfic mention of vacation rates it would, in my view, be inequitable and not in harmony with the legislation for direct subscribers to receive a discount to which owners were not entilted e.g a Senior , Florida resident or Seasonal Residennt discount etc etc.
Your comments are appreciated

 

[FarmerJ]

Like I said how i see that info you posted has more to do with a problem that began a couple years ago or so where there were landlords who were contracting with services then going as far as attempting to write into the leases saying tenants could not use any other services other than the one the LL contracted with , there was more than one posting about net services being lousy , I recall thinking what was to stop the resident from ordering say DSL and using it anyway instead of LLs contracted services. So it appears that statute now makes sure that a resident can arrange for their own. But as to so called vacation rate / cottage rate / seasonal rates see my folks lake home , up there they indep phone co has offered seasonal users a discounted rate based on ten months a year of use since the least likely times of the year for cabin users was jan- feb for as long as I can recall , they even offered it back when all they had up there was rural multi party (4 to 8 on a line) but the former bell system company in my state did not offer a seasonal user rate , either the customer had to keep it on all year long with them or the customer had the option of calling in suspension of service to retain same number at half rate or just calling in a disconnect order then paying a reconnection fee when services were desired again so perhaps its time to voice your concerns to your legislator for the area where the home is about having a option being able to totally decline and not pay for so called bulk services a LL -HOA arranges on top of being able to get your own, then plan for disconnection prior to leaving for the season and re connection upon return ( so if you were only there say 6 months of a year then you only pay for 6 months of service no matter whom you used )

 

[Stuart Kelson]

Cable TV Service

Thanks Farmer - the problem is similar to the issue you outlined namely homeowners who wish to deal direct have to pay twice, as they are unable to opt out of the HOA bulk arrangement.
The question is does the amendment to Fl St 720.308 address this by effectively stating that homeowners may not be required to pay more that a similar subscriber resident outside the community? To put it into context 75% of the seasonal members of my HOA are paying around $150 more than a similar seasonal subscriber resident outside the community, who can put their service 'on vacation' for around $8.00 per month.
The amendment may have sought to address another issue but in doing so could have provided the opportunity for owners within a HOA to opt out of a bulk agreement if it is more expensive than dealing direct.
The wording of the legislation seems equitable and fairly clear to me.

 

[Zigner]

Your entire premise is flawed. The seasonal owners are NOT paying more for their service.

 

[FarmerJ]

I get it that your paying for services you do not use during the part of the year you are not there , this is why I said to go to legislators , see my thinking is that the idea of a HOA/LL being the one to bring in services via a contract is not allways the best thing, first off yes once in a while there are residents who just dont watch any broadcasted tv and I have known a few folks who if the home had a tv it was only used to watch vhs/dvd movies or local free channels off the rabbit ears. See renters can refuse to rent from a LL who has inc services like catv , net in the rental agreement even if they require the tenant to pay a monthly fee a tenant can rent elsewhere, but with owners this is definitly something to take up with your legislators because if your only there like a former LL of mine did ,( he and wife left Mn every year after thanksgiving then stayed in a unit they owned for 5 months b4 returing to Mn) so when contacting legislator voice that all residents ideally should have the right to not only use whom they want for catv/ net/ digital entertainment or communications but have the right to not be forced to pay for something they dont use or will not use when absent for months at a time due to agreements for services that another party/ outside party has made.

 

[JoeM10]

The question is does the amendment to Fl St 720.308 address this by effectively stating that homeowners may not be required to pay more that a similar subscriber resident outside the community? To put it into context 75% of the seasonal members of my HOA are paying around $150 more than a similar seasonal subscriber resident outside the community, who can put their service 'on vacation' for around $8.00 per month.

This relies completely on the sort of deal that the cable company made with your folks (HOA/LL/Whoever). Some cable company's (mostly smaller, local guys) will give "snowbirds" an opportunity to discount their service in months they are away. I don't know if they offer this with bulk agreements, as "bulk agreements" are typical packages that are offered at significant discount to regular services.

The law says that it is illegal for a HOA/LL to make an agreement to a broadband/phone/cable provider that offers "exclusivity" - meaning that you can only get COMCAST or NOTHING at your condo. That being said, if your condo is participating in a bulk agreement, you are getting charged either in rent or HOA dues for the broadband services offered to you, almost like an amenity ( it's a stretch, but think of it offered like a pool or tennis court or gym...). It is your right to not participate in that service, contact an alternate provider, as long as you are willing to pay whatever fees they charge for their service, but also still pay whatever amount the HOA is charging you as a built in cost...

I'm not a lawyer but work with bulk quite a bit. If you have any questions, you can feel free to PM me and I'll see what I can help with.

--JoeM10

PS: Sorry Farmer J - had a real tough time working through your posts... punctuation helps, especially in msg boards!

 

[Stuart Kelson]

How I PM

joem10.

I'm new to this how do I Pm you

Stuart