Re: Ameritech's HFC Cable Plant
Frank,
Great surfing on your linked website.
I found this interesting article. Another twisted copper pair Baby Bell powerhouse building a coaxial cable HFC plant. Sounds very similar to what happened in my area. I thought it was the strangest thing, after a couple of decades of writing out checks to GTE for phone service, to be writing them checks for cable TV (plus Internet access).
If anyone finds any other information of this nature (ILEC owning coax), please post. This will be most interesting to track on our thread. Who knows, it may become a trend.
I browsed the Ameritech website and apparently they don't offer cable modem service to their cable customers. It's an HFC network according to their website. Maybe it's just a matter of time or maybe because they can get more money by offering only their DSL services over copper?
Also, I found out that Americast (which is who GTE contracts out to for Television services) is owned by Ameritech. So I'm assuming that part of my monthly payment to GTE must go to the Baby Bell Ameritech.
MikeM(From Florida)
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Ameritech expands CATV presence
The Garfield Heights, Ohio, City Council unanimously voted Monday night to allow Ameritech New Media to offer its americast cable TV service in the Cleveland-area community. Garfield Heights is currently served solely by Cablevision.
Now 105 communities in the Midwest have allowed Ameritech New Media to compete for residential cable TV subscribers. I would assume broadband access would be offered too. But the article never came out and said that.
Earlier this week, Ameritech began offering americast service in the Chicago suburb of Crestwood. With this addition, 89 midwestern communities can chose between two competitive cable companies.
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Some info off Ameritech Website:
Cable -- Over 100,000 customers with Franchises in 65 communities with more than 2.5 million population
Internet Access -- Serving: Chicago, Cleveland, Columbus, Detroit, Grand Rapids, Indianapolis, Kalamazoo, and Milwaukee
Telephone -- 11.1 million homes, 1 million businesses, 3,000 communications/information companies |
