Atlantic Broadband To Pitch Internet Competition In Concord

CONCORD, NH — One of the largest Internet and cable services providers in the nation will meet with Concord officials and the public on Monday to discuss a potential franchise agreement.

Atlantic Broadband, the 8th largest provider in the United States, based on the number of television service customers, will be meeting with the Concord City Council and others at a public hearing at 5:30 p.m. to discuss a proposal. The company is a subsidiary of Cogeco, a Canadian telecommunications and media company. It started in 2004 by acquiring "nonstrategic regions from Charter Communications," according to Wikipedia, as well as MetroCast, a company that had been doing business in New Hampshire for many years before being acquired. Atlantic Broadband serves about 160,000 customers in New Hampshire.

Andy Walton, the head of corporate communications for the company, confirmed the meeting and said details about the proposal will be presented Monday.

“Atlantic Broadband has reached out to Concord to express its interest in commencing a franchise agreement process,” he said. “If a franchise is negotiated and approved, it would grant the right to Atlantic Broadband to provide internet, video, and phone services to homes and businesses in that community.”

Details are limited but the public hearing should include an analysis of whether or not the company has the ability to construct and install cable components and offer quality services to city residents. The meeting will be held in the Concord City Council Chambers at 37 Green St.

The city of Concord is in the middle of a 10-year agreement with Comcast which runs through April 2026.

The agreement has a non-exclusivity of the renewal franchise clause — meaning the city has the ability to allow for competition with another company if officials grant permitting for use of public ways, streets, and other accesses. However, the granting of a competitor “shall not be on terms more favorable or less burdensome than those contained” in the Comcast contract.

At the Sept. 13 Concord City Council meeting, councilors approved by consent a one-year contract extension between the city, SAU 8, and Concord TV, the city’s cable access center.

The existing five-year contract with the public, education, and government channels, according to City Manager Tom Aspell, expires on Oct. 21. He said, in a memo, “given the existing circumstances, a one-year extension is most prudent due to the upcoming city council review of a potential new cable franchise in the community.”

Also at Monday’s meeting, Mayor Jim Bouley will also be making appointments to the city’s Redistricting Committee to eye ward lines in Concord, based on the Census 2020 data.

In 2011, city councilors and the public held a number of meetings about redistricting and the shifting of ward lines in the city.

2011 Redistricting And Census Coverage:

• Concord's Voting Ward Boundaries Could Change
• Committee Narrows Down Concord Ward Map Options
• Voting Wards Taking Shape
• Concord Loses Nearly 6,700 Voters

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