Officials tweak Greenlight rates

With at least 80 percent of its fiber in place and a testing period underway, Greenlight Dunnellon Communications is tweaking its rate structure after the City Council approved minor modifications as well as established small-business rates Monday night at its regular meeting.
Originally, the Council OK’d the rate structure in November; however, after concerns from residents and small-business owners, city officials went back to the drawing board to tweak several of the rates Greenlight plans to charge its customers.
Gone is the triple-play combo, which consisted of Expanded Basic, one phone line and 10 Mbs on its data line for $119.99. The plan did not include DVR services or the phone features such as voice mail, caller ID or call waiting.
Also, nixed was the residential starter package, which comprised one phone line and Internet (5 Mbs). That package had been valued at $59.99. Phone features such as voice mail, caller ID or call waiting were not included.
Now, as Algiere, pointed out, the city will offer residents the chance to bundle services as they would like while receiving up to a 20 percent discount.
If potential customers chose two services of their liking from expanded basic, one phone and a data plan, Greenlight will offer a 10 percent discount. For example, Algiere pointed out, if customers subscribe for video at $69.99 plus Internet (5 Mbs) at $34.99, the total price would be $104.98; however, with a 10 percent discount the total bill would be $94.48.
Residents who bundle three services together such as video, phone and Internet, they would receive a 20 percent discount. Overall, the savings equal just 1 cent from the previous offered triple play combo, Algiere pointed out, but now they can choose the type of Internet service they want. Greenlight will offer speeds from 5 Mbs up to 20 Mbs for residential customers.
“These plans offer a lot of flexibility,” Algiere told the Council.
The city could benefit from the addition of small-business rates for Internet usage. Algiere said there are three options to chose from: up to 5 Mbs at $44.99; up to 10 Mbs at $59.99; and up to 20 Mbs for $79.99. The small-business rate does not feature a dedicated line as the regular business rates, which remain the same, does.
As it stands now, most of the original fees Greenlight established remain the same:
— Limited Basic is $29.99 and includes 59 channels.
— Expanded Basic, which includes the Limited Basic channel package, is $69.99. Expanded Basic features 197 channels, 50 of which are music channels.
— The variety package is $14.99, but subscribers must have the Expanded Basic Package to get this. The variety package features an additional 36 channels.
— Premium channels such as HBO, Cinemax, Starr, Showtime, etc., are $16.99 each.
— For HD programming, it’s an additional $3.95 per month. Video on Demand access is also an extra $1.95 per month; and for customers wanting DVR (digital video recorder) service, that is an extra $3.95 per month.
— Customers will now have to pay for set-top boxes, unless a promotion is offered. Each box in the home will cost $7.95 per month. If a customer wants three set top boxes in their home, it will cost $23.85 per month. Initially, the city was going to attempt to provide a Second Stream TV Kit, but cannot because it’s not compatible with the system.
As for phone services, prices as well as additional charges for specific features is unchanged. Those potential customers wanting phone service, the base rate is $34.99, which includes unlimited long distance. Features such as voice mail ($3.95), caller ID ($1.95) and call waiting ($1.95) can be bundled together for a price of $5.95. Commercial users will pay $49.99 for one line; pricing for extra features will be by quote.
A two-by-two business plan features two phone lines and 2 Mbs and will cost $179.99, while a 5-by-5 business plan features five phone lines and 5 Mbs of data speed for $499.99.
To get services Greenlight will provide, customers will have to pay a $200 installation fee as well as a $40 activation fee. Algiere explained that she is hopeful the City Council will allow officials to waive the installation fee as Greenlight begins accepting customers. How long that fee would be waived is unknown. Currently, customers will not be required to sign a contract, such as ones required by DirectTV and Dish Network. Councilman Dennis Evans said he would like to see it mentioned as a possibility if installation fees are waived.
 

Jeff Bryan

Contractors with Hewitt string fiber throughout the downtown area in December 2011. City Manager Lisa Algiere said 80 percent of the fiber for Greenlight Dunnellon Communications is now in place.

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