By Greg Ellison

Staff Writer

(Sept. 19, 2019) Before opening Ocean Pines to cable company competition last Tuesday by signing a 10-year-deal with Comcast, the Ocean Pines Association Board of Directors fielded questions from the public about the agreement that will end Mediacom’s reign as the community’s sole cable services provider.

The board’s contract with Comcast gives it access to association rights of way so it can install its own network along the same routes as Mediacom.

The vote, however, was preceded by a question from Joe Reynolds about what appeared to be a duplication of legal costs by producing two contracts that did essentially the same thing — grant the companies access to the rights of way.

“We spent $35,000 on a contact prepared by our attorney for Mediacom … that would serve for all future use,” Reynolds said. “There was obviously something in the contract we wrote initially for Mediacom, that either OPA, and or Comcast, was not happy with.”

OPA President Doug Parks said the arrangement with Mediacom was used as a starting point for discussions with Comcast.

“We used the contract that was developed by the attorneys for Mediacom as the template for our opening discussions with Comcast,” Parks said.

Former Board member Tom Terry, who worked with Parks and OPA attorney Jeremy Tucker on the Comcast deal, said the conversation began nearly two years ago.

“At that point, their offer came back with, basically, everybody in Ocean Pines has to buy service through the OPA and that was rejected,” he said.

During the interim, Terry said the lines of communication remained open regrading service options until Comcast recently came back to the table with more palatable terms.

“Basically, it’s an unsolicited offer,” he said.

Parks said the contract came into sharper focus following a recent meeting Tucker had with Comcast officials.

“Some other final adjustments had been made based on conversations Jeremy had with the attorney for Comcast,” he said. “The last iteration that I sent to you was this morning.”

Parks explained earlier work to revise the Mediacom contract enabled the discussions with Comcast.

“The contract with Mediacom still had the old terms and conditions from 1998 … where the exclusive rights were granted in that contract back in 1978,” he said. “Once we signed a new contract with Mediacom, it removed that concept of exclusivity.”

The Mediacom terms were revised as a right of way contract, Parks said.

“We had to get the Mediacom contract first, turn it into a right-of-way contract, and now Comcast comes in and they’re basically saying the same thing,” he said.

Terry said introducing competition for cable and internet services could lead to innovative approaches beneficial to consumers.

“When you had a contract, which was Mediacom-only for years here, no one could come in and compete,” he said. “We opened the doors for competition a couple years ago when that board was in place [and] Comcast is the first to take advantage of it at this point.”

The Comcast terms also includes plans for infrastructure build-out, Parks said.

“We don’t get to pick who gets built out first, but one of the things we did tell them was that we wanted to make sure that the highest priority we had was to build a backup business network at the Yacht Club and the other amenities,” he said.

Parks said Comcast has also agreed to provide 35 Wi-Fi access points and 25 video outlets.

“We’re putting public Wi-Fi out at all the different amenities,” he said. “We pay nothing for the Wi-Fi.”

Terry said the negotiations presented the challenge of working with a carrier lacking existing infrastructure.

“The keys are this contract, along with the Mediacom contract, set the stage for other carriers if they want to come in and provide service,” he said.

Besides eliminating exclusivity, the terms also require Comcast to build out the entire community within five years, Terry said.

“So while Mediacom was required to keep their network available for everyone, Comcast has to build a network for everyone,” he said. “Which sets the stage for any other carrier who wants to come in [to] not just cherry pick where they want to go.”

Opening the community to additional service providers is a topic for further discussion, Terry said.

“That’s one of the issues that, going forward, Ocean Pines has to decide — how many carriers do they want to allow to utilize the right of ways?” he said. “There’s no guidelines that’s been established by the board, that I know of, to govern that.”

The Comcast terms also stipulate that transmission lines must be underground, with the OPA allowed to review build-out, or design, plans, Terry said.

“That allows us to understand what communities are going first, second, third, fourth,” he said. “We don’t pick that, they’re picking that, but at least we will be able to communicate with the community as to their plans.”

Parks said the Comcast deal and Mediacom terms were negotiated at the same percentage of return.

“We are collecting the same 1.6 percent, and it’s not a franchise fee, it’s a right-to-access fee,” he said.

Terry said the Comcast deal also provides oversight for any future expansions.

“We took the approach, we don’t really know what all the new technologies are going to be, but the philosophy is if you’re using our right of way to put that … in place, then we have the right to negotiate with you how that fits into this deal,” he said.

From an operational perspective, the Comcast contract does impose added responsibility for the OPA to manage right of ways, Terry said.

“You now have multiple carriers coming in, one building on top of the other or on the other side of the street … but there’s language (in both contracts) which require those two carriers to cooperate with Ocean Pines to coordinate the work,” he said. “They can’t just go do whatever they want whenever.”

Board member Larry Perrone asked for clarification of the 10-year contract’s four-year renewal option.

Terry said if Comcast service is deemed less-than-satisfactory after four years, the OPA could elect not to renew after the decade term ended.

“Then you have an opportunity to tell them at that point, we’re not going to extend this after the length of this contract,” he said. “The language also doesn’t require that it be extended at four years [but] it can be.”

Former Board member Cheryl Jacobs voiced concern the contract was finalized without more community discussion.

Parks said the contract signing was fast-tracked because of Comcast’s concerns about coordinating with corporate marketing.

“I hate to wait on lead time and then squander an opportunity from Comcast to get the thing put in,” he said. “I would apologize to the membership but there were circumstances that required us to do it in this fashion.”

Reynolds said regardless of public comments that evening, with service specifics still forthcoming, the agreement represents a major coup for the OPA.

“I don’t think we’re going to have much discussion tonight about what shows are going to be on or what the prices are going to be,” he said. “I want to go on record to say this is a major accomplishment by this board of directors.”