ATLANTIC BROADBAND OFFER - FINANCIAL ANALYSIS

The Financial Impact of the Atlantic Broadband Proposal (as of August 6th.) 

ABB currently provides all 7854 Century Village condominiums Century Village with TV through a bulk rate contact with eight years left, at $34/month, plus optional individual internet (average $37/month) and telephone (25/month). 

 A summary of the proposal:

• Include Internet to Bulk Package with the Modem Included 

• TiVo Cloud DVR will be included in the new package 

• $34 Bulk TV rate to be raised to Bulk TV + Internet rate of $51.50. An addition of $17.50 

• Cancellation of separate internet bills. Presently, an Internet bill with Tivo is $21.99, plus $8 for the modem,  plus 5.25 for “Hi-Speed Network Recovery Fee for a total of $35.25. (If subscribers have their own modem, the cost is $21.99 and without Tivo it's $17.99.). The proposal not only drops the Internet portion from $21.99 to $17.50 but includes the modem and the network recovery fees, dropping the total bill from $35.25 to $17.50 

• Internet speeds will be increased from 100 Mbps to 250 Mbps download speeds. (Note: Unless the kids or grandkids are visiting, or a resident is an inveterate gamer, 100 mbps is more than enough.) 

• Battery Backup will be included for all Phone customers at Century Village 

• Century Village to receive revenue share for Phone retail purchases throughout community  

• Starz would be removed from the package while all other Video programming would stay the same. 

(From the ABB proposal): For residents who want to purchase Starz on retail, Amazon Prime has an $8.99 promotion. Caution: Once the promotional period ends (usually one year), individual fees escalate 

• Present Agreement extended by 5 years.  Thirteen years in total. 

In addition: the proposal includes a $1.68 annual increase, a $.43 increase over the present $1.25. Should the proposal be accepted, then, over the eight years remaining on the present contract, an resident would pay $3.44 (8 x $.43) more than if the present contract remains operative. 

In 2035, the 13th and last year of the proposal, the future resident would be paying $73.34/month, up $21.84 from the $51.50 of 2022. 

 The impact on Villagers: Three Scenarios. 

 According to the August Reporter article, 63% of CV'ers (about 5000) get internet through ABB; 10 - 12%, (about 900) through other providers (ISP's); and 25% (about 2000) do not have internet. 

The approximately 5000 residents who presently have internet through ABB, would realize an average $20 monthly savings on their TV + Internet bill 

The approximately 900 residents who receive internet through other providers ( Comcast, AT&T...), would have to switch to ABB to realize the $20 savings. If these residents do not switch (dissatisfaction with ABB service, programs, etc.), they would be adding $17.50 to their monthly obligatory CV assessment for no additional service. 

The approximately 2000 residents who do not have internet would also be adding $17.50 to their monthly obligatory CV assessment for no additional service. 

 To summarize financially: 

an excellent offer for those who obtain internet through ABB; 

a potentially excellent offer for those who will switch to ABB; 

a lousy offer for those who do/will not switch or get no internet at all. 

Richard Handelsman.