06/09/23 - SPECIAL UPDATE - Spectrum
SPECIAL UPDATE - Spectrum 06/09/23
SPECTRUM CONTRACT
Well, it has taken a few twists and turns to get here, but I was just notified that the final agreement for our new TV and Internet service has been approved by all the higher ups at Spectrum. We have gone back and forth on exactly what the plan was going to be. The main problem is that they list our name as “Safari RV Park” and to the folks in North Carolina, that tells them we are a normal RV park when we are anything but that.
The operations team kept trying to fit Safari into that RV Park model. So, for example, they wanted us to issue internet access codes on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis depending on how long you would be staying. That model works great for a true RV Park but would not work at all for us.
So, we are finally all in agreement on what we are and what they will offer us. Let me hit the highlights of the agreement:
• Safari will pay a base fee of about $28.47 plus local taxes per site per month. This fee will be billed to each site as it is now every 6 months. All sites will be included as that is the only way to get the great bulk price.
• The base price will not increase by more than 4% per year.
• Each site will have 2 set top TV boxes included at no additional fee. If you need more than that, you will pay a small monthly charge directly to Spectrum for the additional box.
• Each site will have a modem and a router included at no additional fee. We do not know yet if that will be 2 boxes or a box having both modem and router. It depends on local inventory. The modem speed will be 500mb download and 20mb upload. This is a dramatic improvement over the 15mb down/3mb up speeds that we have now.
• You will be acquiring the equipment by choosing one of two methods. First, you can go to the Spectrum store in Warrenton at 1546 SE Ensign Lane to pick up the new equipment once we give you the word that they are ready to process you. DO NOT GO THERE NOW as they do not have the devices in stock yet. When you have your devices, you can self-install them. The second way to get them is to call Spectrum and have them come out and do the installation for you. There may be a service charge for this. DO NOT CALL THEM YET as they are not stocked up to do this. The Safari office will not be issuing any devices, nor will we stock them.
• Each site will receive a $50 discount on their next Safari Invoice in September. This $50/site is a one-time payment we are receiving from Spectrum and the board decided to give it directly to the members. (If you choose to have Spectrum do your installation and they do charge you, this $50 will help offset the cost to you.)
• When you have your new equipment, you will need to turn in your old boxes to the Safari office. We will check off the items to ensure that all that were checked out to you are returned. If you do not return all boxes, Charter may charge Safari $100 per box and that charge will then be billed to you. We will send more information on the returns when we have it.
• When you sell your membership, you will take the boxes back to Spectrum and the new buyers will arrange to pick up their equipment from Spectrum.
• When you have TV or internet problems, you will contact Spectrum directly and not Safari. The new Spectrum boxes allow the techs to diagnose the problem remotely and either fix it online or dispatch a tech with the replacement items to get you running again.
• The new TV boxes get an onscreen TV schedule and many more TV channels than we had before. If you look at the new TV Lineup, you will see local stations for both Seattle and Portland as we get now. There will now be 218 TV channels instead of the 70 we currently have. Additionally, there are 95 music channels you can listen to.
• You will start receiving notices from Spectrum directly letting you know what you need to do.
• This will all be happening within the next 60 days, so I will keep you updated as things start happening.
Thanks!
Dave Krajcar
Safari President
