The company would add capacity, include a high-speed two-way Internet connection and eliminate the annoying A-B switch.
By: Jane Karlicek
The RCN Corp. announced last week that it will rebuild Princeton’s cable system within the next one to two years, prior to the renewal of its cable franchise with the two municipalities.
For residents, according to Bernard Miller, chairman of the Princeton Joint Cable Television Commission, the cable system rebuild means:
• the capacity to provide more channels;
• one fiber-optic cable entering homes, instead of the current two cables requiring an A-B switch; and
• high-speed, two-way Internet access, instead of the current one-way, high-speed access, which will allow residents to upload and download at the same high speed.
“The community feels we have an antiquated system,” Mr. Miller said. “RCN has stepped up to address the problem and now they’re planning to upgrade and rebuild the system. Yes, I’m pleased with it and I’ve asked RCN to give us something in writing and they said they will.”
The upgrade and rebuild of Princeton’s cable system will be at RCN’s expense.
“We actually have already spent over $1 million just to maintain our current Princeton system,” RCN spokeswoman Valerie Haertel said. “The rebuild will amount to several million dollars.”
Ms. Haertel said she isn’t sure if monthly cable rates would increase as a result of the rebuilding of the system.
RCN’s announcement came at a May 16 meeting held to gain feedback from the community on the company’s service. The session was the second of two such meetings.
Princeton Borough and Princeton Township are in the first stage of a three-step process of reviewing RCN’s franchise renewal, which is expected to be completed by October 2002, when the cable provider’s current franchise expires.
Residents have complained about RCN’s service. The criticisms ranged from the converter boxes being a nuisance to RCN not being responsive to customer complaints, Mr. Miller said.
Ms. Haertel said residents won’t need a converter box after the system is rebuilt, unless they want some of the premium channels, such as HBO and Showtime.
Also, as a part of the upgrade, she said, there is a possibility of a telephone service that would allow Princeton residents to use the Internet without blocking their phone lines.
The system’s existing one-way, high-speed Internet access allows a user to “download with a fire hose and go back out of the home with a little pipe,” Mr. Miller said. The new, two-way Internet access will allow users to upload data at the same high speed data are downloaded, he said. Residents will also be rid of the A-B switch, which has been “a thorn in people’s sides,” Mr. Miller said. Both analog and digital televisions will work with the new system, he added.
RCN will continue to provide local community access channels and be responsive to the communities’ needs, Mr. Miller said.
Ms. Haertel said RCN hopes to continue its service to Princeton.
“We are very committed to the Princeton area,” she said. “It is our home town and we’re very interested in continuing to serve the community.”