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Chrisma 1998 M8f'J415 *1 Photo by Ron Kuzyk Marguerite Smith and daughter, Deana-Rose, 6, are interuiewed by Cogeco reporter Kelly Drennan and camera operator Kevin Marchand. Cogeo is pluged in -ito Halton communiies and ieidents it serves *, I 'S S S' S '~ 1 By Lawson Hunter If you live i one of the 150,000 homes in Haltan with cable television, chances are you're a Cogeco cable subscriber. Cogeco Cable serves virtuaily ail of Oakviile and Burlingtan, along with several other cities i Ontarlo and Quebec. Licences ta provide cable TV and other telecommunications services are grantad and regulated by the Canadian Radio-Tlevision andTeblecommunications Commnission (CRTC). The CRTC entruists various cable companies ta deliver high quality cable transmission signais ta homes withln exclusive territories. However, cable compamies must adhere ta a set of regu- lations that enforce the priority of Canadian over American channels, 'broadcast' over 'spe- cialty'channels, and as wide a variety of choic- es as possible. Cogeco Cable, the fourth largest system i Canada with some 750,000 suhecrihers, has enjoyed along and successfülrelationship with its custamners by offering such thmng as coin- munity television programmlng, a variety of btered'TV channel packages and, most recent- ly, the Internet service known as the 'Wave'. "fIhere are many forms of etrannn competing for the saie dollar," said Leonard Colins, directar of marketing and sales. "We have ta oflbr prenium producta, at aflrdable pricesY Sw'vey cuatomeru Collins noted the CRTC dictates many of tise changes and restrictions on oeble place- ment fo:rcng the cable company ta ha innova- tive i its arrangements and the packages offered. ««Chnel re-aligament on Dec.1 allows us ta offer Moviepùx, an ali-movie net- work, on the third tier," Collins explained, "while TVA, a French language station, wiil get a basic cable spot." Keeping up with CRTC changes and keep- ing customnera happy with those changes is a full turne jo. Collins said, «We centinusily sur- vey ail custamers, not just a representative numbe' tafind out what channels people want and what services they want oflbred." Hie admita not eveiwne filla out tise survey cards icluded witis monthly billa but a fair number do and that helpe hM, and others at the company, make better infibrmed decialons. "Cogece firmly believes in an honest, open relationship with our custamers," the director of marketing said. As ewamp1es of premnium custamner services, hie points ta the oeil centre and the timely response subseriberse an expeet from service oeils. Another, ¶eading-edge' service offred by Cogeco is its Internet hook-up, currentlyoealled the Wave but soon ta change ta a newer, improved service for home computer usera, called @Home. The @Home Internet hook-up boasts even fastar connection times tha the older 500Kbps modems that Cogeco intro- duced ta the area in late 1996. Plugged into the communiiry According ta Michael Foley, vice-pre-sident of Tlecom for Cogeco, -itfs what the Internet was advertised ta be7" New modems are cur- rently being introduced ta Cogeco1s 10,000 Internet subscribers, more than 5,00of whom live in Haltan. "Phese new modems are les expensive, very fast (2Mbps) and 100 per cent oeble modem standard," said Foley Until now, subscribers had tarent modems from the cable company but they are expected ta be sold i stares early next year. Foley also said Cogeco is committad ta the community with a separate cail centre just for the Internet service that recently opened in Hamilton. With an mnvestment of $1.5 million and employmient for an additional 45 people, Cogeco does seem'pluged Wn'ta the communi- ty it serves. The third pillar of cable services at Cogeco Cable is the Community Channel that offers unique, comunity-based prograrmming mun by a dedicated staff and tralned volunteers drawn fmom the neighbourhood. Prograins such as city and regional counicils, hlgh school football, community news and Neighour to Neighbour, are just some of the TV shows that you can see on Cogeca Cable. Run with enor- mous enthuslasm, these prograins give the community the opportunity ta let its voice be heard i the midst of commercial hype and for- mula-based shows. The Burlington-Oakville area is Cogecos largest territary i Ontario and, undoubtedly, ita launch pad for new andnnvative services. The relationship between community and cable company extends back anumbler ofyears and seems destined tcontnue furflly more.