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Optimum stresses statutory obligations, warns regional transfer could cut local control of PEG programming
Summary
At a June 10 PURA hearing, Optimum defended its management of public, educational and government (PEG) channels, said it provides studios and administrative review even when usage is low, and warned that transferring CAP responsibilities to Nutmeg TV could remove Optimum's operational control and potentially change local delivery models.
Optimum told the Public Utilities Regulatory Authority during a June 10 hearing that it continues to provide public, educational and government (PEG) services at the level required by statute and that the company subsidizes PEG operations when annual subscriber fees fall short.
"We collect the absolute minimum that we are required to collect," an Optimum representative said, adding that the company often covers shortfalls from corporate funds to meet statutory obligations. The witness said Optimum's annual reports list program counts (not episodes) and that staffing and administrative review explain recent increases in reported PEG expenses.
Nutmeg TV and intervenors pressed Optimum on how PEG subscriber funds are distributed regionally, pointing to roughly $2.3 million in area-based grants reported over a two-decade span and a recurring $100,000 allocation to an Area 9 cable advisory council. Optimum said those funds are administered by the cable council and awarded as grants to schools and municipalities for equipment and programming support, and said it does not directly control how council-issued grants are spent.
On the possibility that the authority transfers CAP roles to Nutmeg, Optimum said it would transmit whatever programming the new CAP supplies but would lose discretion over scheduling and local channel configurations. "If the commission makes that determination, Optimum would lose all control over how you guys decided to put programming on or consolidate channels," the company representative said, stressing that such decisions would rest with the chosen CAP.
The hearing also covered studio access and operations in Area 1 (including Stamford and Norwalk) and Area 20 (Litchfield and seven other towns). Optimum witnesses described in-person studio bookings, Telview uploads and administrative reviews for uploaded programs. Studio staff and operators testified they maintain logs of aired programs and schedule content, though they said rejected files were not always logged in detail.
Commissioners and PURA staff requested late-file exhibits and updated data: Telview/programming logs since January 2025, updated responses to interrogatories on interconnects and fiber feeds, and an accounting of per-subscriber funds collected from other video providers (e.g., Frontier) over the past five years. Optimum agreed to search the docket and provide updated filings where available.
The authority did not make a decision at the hearing; commissioners set further procedural dates and asked parties to provide supporting exhibits that will inform upcoming deliberations.
