Citizens and Selectmen critical of MediaOne failures
Published on January 26th, 2000
STONEHAM, MA - People have been asking a lot of questions about MediaOne, and now the company is ready to respond.
MediaOne is holding an open house at their local public access cable television studio on the fifth floor of 41 Montvale Ave. in Stoneham on Jan. 31 from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Residents of Stoneham and Woburn are invited, said MediaOne studio staffer Allan Segal.
"We have heard a lot of complaints, and we want to turn things around," Segal said.
The last Board of Selectmen's meeting, for instance, was broadcast without sound. Also, at that meeting the selectmen announced that the town was challenging MediaOne's 1999 rates and proposed 2000 rate increase. And selectmen have been angry for weeks about MediaOne's failure to fully comply with the licensing agreement the board agreed to last year: inadequate staffing and the resultant lack of services promised irked the board.
"I don't understand how a company that grosses $3 million and nets $1 million each year can't run a simple cable access studio," Selectman Darin Leahy said in a recent interview.
MediaOne spokesperson Tim Murnane said the company has staffed the Stoneham studio with four full-time employees and a part-time worker, one staff person more than required in the license. Murnane said this arrangement will remain until at least April to make up for lost time. Segal confirmed Monday that all those folks are on the job.
Another promise MediaOne is ready to deliver is equipment training for citizen volunteers. Courses begin Feb. 2, according to Segal.
To find out more about these courses call the studio at 438-1342 or ask questions in person on Jan. 31.
Meanwhile, the town continues talks with RCN, another cable provider...
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