[TriLUG] TWC "Existing Customer Promotion"

David Burton ncdave4life at gmail.com
Fri Mar 14 11:43:58 EDT 2014


On Fri, Mar 14, 2014 at 9:34 AM, John Vaughters <jvaughters04 at yahoo.com>wrote:

> Ok let's be straight here, I never said I am happy with TWC, just they are
> no a utility. All I heard was how successful they were at cornering their
> market with the Gov to get their product placed. If that is what makes them
> a utility, then we have to reclassify a ton of HUGE corporations in our
> society.
> ...
> TWC is nothing remotely resembling a Utility. Not in any shape, form or
> fashion.
>


Well, I disagree with you, John, but we're really just quibbling over
dictionary definitions.

"Utility" is short for "public utility." Here's one definition:

http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/public+utility
public utility n. any organization which provides services to the general
public, although it may be privately owned. Public utilities include
electric, gas, telephone, water, and television cable systems, as well as
streetcar and bus lines. They are allowed certain monopoly rights due to
the practical need to service entire geographic areas with one system, but
they are regulated by state, county and/or city public utility commissions
under state laws. (See:
monopoly<http://legal-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/monopoly>
)


Other dictionaries sometimes add the word "essential" (as in "essential
public service"), and, personally, I don't think cable TV is "essential."
Nevertheless, conventionally, cable TV is considered to be a public utility.

TWC has many business interests, some of which, such as their pornography
distribution business, might not be considered to be public utilities. But
their core business is cable TV, and whatever else they can piggyback on
those cable TV fibers & wires.

They often negotiate monopoly contracts with municipalities, and the terms
of those contracts sometimes require them to provide services to locations
or of types which they might otherwise not be inclined to provide. For
example, they run the free public access cable TV studios in Raleigh,
because they're required to do so under the terms of their contract.

Dave


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