Reference: BreezeLine Cable TV Agreement with Century Village West Palm Beach
Date: 8/17/2024, Time: 2:08 PM
Now, what I’m about to say to you all is not set in stone, as I’m still waiting to receive the documents from UCO regarding the current cable TV contract as well as any proposals for a new streaming TV/Internet contract that is supposedly in the works. I will update this blog post as more information comes in. However, I think you all should know what I just found out by talking to several technicians and customer service representatives from Breezeline. I believe this information should have already come from UCO to all of the unit owners before now, as it’s been a month since the last communication from Breezeline to whoever’s working with them on the “new” Breezeline streaming TV/Internet agreement that is supposedly being negotiated right now. WHAT? WHAT THE HECK? I THOUGHT WE STILL HAD SEVERAL YEARS ON OUR CURRENT CONTRACT! WHAT GIVES?
Well, here’s why the hairs on the back of my neck are standing up!
It has come to my attention that Breezeline cable TV service has indicated through several conversations with 4 technicians and customer service representatives at Breezeline corporate, that they having difficulty fulfilling their service obligation regarding the agreement with Century Village West Palm Beach. Their explanation for the issue is that they are no longer receiving functional refurbished DVR boxes to replace defective boxes currently in the homes of Century Village owners.
I know of one person who is directly involved with the above statements – ME! Here’s how I came upon these interesting tidbits of extremely important and potentially costly information…
Case in point:
- My DVR went out approximately 3 weeks ago. The box was no longer able to record TV programs, and I was unable to use the fast-forward, rewind and pause buttons during live TV programming.
- I contacted Breezeline and a technician came out about week later to replace the box. He provided me with another DVR box. As he was replacing the box he stated, as if to say, “I know I’m giving you a piece of garbage but I can’t say that, so I’ll say this instead.”. So, he instead says this, “I hope this box works for you. It’s been rebooting itself a lot lately so I’m not sure if it will work.” I asked him why he’s giving me a defective box to replace another already defective box. He stated that the technicians are not receiving boxes that work anymore and that Breezeline is not purchasing any new DVR boxes. He stated that the number of leftover refurbished boxes is getting smaller and smaller all the time, so the supply is very limited. Here’s where it gets very interesting… He stated that “Breezeline is in the process of negotiating a new agreement with Century Village to go away from hardware and begin streaming programming from the cloud. This would eliminate the need for hardware (the DVR boxes).” I told him, “You need Internet for that to happen. Are you saying that all unit owners are going to have to pay for Internet in addition to the current prices for TV monthly?” He replied, “Yep.” Sure enough, the box started rebooting itself every few minutes right after he left!
- I called Breezeline the same day that I received the 2nd defective DVR box to have that box replaced with a 3rd. The customer support person on the telephone said they would expedite a tech out in a couple of days. The tech came out the following week anyway. So much for expedited service!
- The technician arrived a few days ago and replaced the 2nd defective box with the 3rd DVR box. It worked for about one day and began malfunctioning the same as the 1st and 2nd boxes, with the inability to record TV shows and use the live TV functions.
- So, I tried to locate an office to physically take the DVR box to and have it replaced with another DVR box that I could test on site before I brought it home. I couldn’t locate an office that had any boxes. I found out why later from a customer service rep I spoke to.
- I then tried online chatting with a live technician who told me that he would have to send out another technician with a replacement DVR box.
- I then called Breezeline customer support and spoke to a customer service representative who is very pleasant and informative. She said the following, “I want to be transparent with you Mr. Hunt. We don’t keep boxes in any offices anymore. Breezeline is in the process of negotiating a new agreement to provide streaming service to your village. This service will replace the current agreement which will eliminate the need for the hardware. However, you will need to have Internet to receive the service, as the service comes from the cloud (the main Breezeline servers). You will be required to pay more for the streaming service as well as an additional fee for Internet service monthly.
- I asked her if the negotiations are ongoing or if they have begun yet. She stated that she received an email on July 17 stating that the village had been notified that a new agreement needed to be negotiated. She did not know the status of the negotiations at this time but said Century Village was one of the groups that had not signed a new contract yet.
- I then asked her what the plan is for Breezeline to fulfill the current contract they are obligated to meet if they have no functional boxes to provide our owners. She replied, “I really have no answer for that.” She then said she would send a technician back out with another box. I then replied, “so the technician will come out and replace the box, and then hope for the best, right?”. She replied, “I hope so.”.
During the initial negotiations between the former UCO regime and Breezeline, along with a 2nd negotiation to sign another supplemental agreement (which I personally thought was insane and told them as much) with Breezeline for cable TV service, I and many others stated during delegate meetings and at other forums that UCO was making a huge mistake in signing such a long-term contract, as the whole industry was going to move to streaming within a few years. This was approximately 8 to 10 years ago. It took a little longer than I expected, but here we are. Now, instead of UCO holding Breezeline’s feet to the fire with the current contract and forcing them to meet their obligation to provide service through the end of the contract, they’re asking the village owners to agree to another huge contract cost increase that will also include an additional required cost for Internet!
The previous negotiations between Breezeline and representatives of the UCO officers who were supposed to represent the associations, came from a third-party negotiation firm of lawyers or negotiators which, from the last 2 negotiations, cost the unit owners hundreds of thousands of dollars and left us in this current situation with Breezeline. The bind that Breezeline finds itself in contractually, however, is not because of anything the high-priced negotiators agreed to in our favor. It is simply because Breezeline is no longer able to provide us with the hardware needed to honor their agreement with us.
IMHO, Century Village has the leverage and is in a very strong position to force Breezeline to come up with an alternate solution to resolve this issue. They have several years left on their current contract with us and must fulfill their contractual obligation to us. If they want to go to streaming service, then they need to provide us with a compensatory penalty, or early termination fee, or call it what you want, to compensate us for the remaining years left on the contract as part of the negotiations for the new contract. As a result, the price we would normally pay under the new agreement should be cut by at least half, including no charge for the Internet, which is not required as part of our current contract but will be required as part of the next. Breezeline needs to eat a huge part of their cost proposal if they are not able to fulfill their current obligations to the unit owners at Century Village. It doesn’t take a $200,000 negotiation fee – or a rocket scientist – to figure that out!
I think all of the owners and Board officers of all of the 309 associations of Century Village need to request a copy of the current Breezeline cable TV contract as well as any other proposals that have currently been provided to the UCO officers or their third-party negotiation team if there is one.
If Breezeline cannot fulfill their current obligation without a substantial reduction in the cost of the new contract, then we should hold them to their current contract or force them to pay a substantial termination fee and seek proposals from other TV cable providers.
Prior to any preliminary agreements by UCO of any changes to the current contract, the 309 Association board officers should demand a copy of all of these agreements and insist that at least 2-4 Association board officers from the 309 associations be included on any committees and in any negotiations with Breezeline or any other RFPs provided by other TV and/or or Internet service providers before moving forward with any negotiations.
The 2 previous negotiations for cable TV service did not appear to be done with complete transparency or in good faith prior to presentation to the delegate assemblies for a final vote. I was a participant in those meetings and many of the delegates did not understand what they were voting on. When the UCO presenters were asked to clarify positions, their answers were vague or not easily understood by the delegation. I would like to see a completely different process during this next phase of the TV/Internet streaming agreement. By process I mean complete transparency to include Association board officers being involved directly in the committee meetings and negotiations, so they can report back to the unit owners directly.
That’s just my take, but not lightly taken… 🙂
Lee
Thank you again for all the updated and pertinent information on Breezeline cable. I appreciate knowing what’s going on in Century Village when I am not there in person. Every owner should read this give their feedback and discuss with their Board what they are going if a vote is needed by Delegates. As always, a very informative blog! Much appreciated.
Hi Bernadette! Great hearing from you! I agree! We should make sure all the owners know about this and are well informed of what is happening well before it comes up for a vote. If they don’t, the solution is very easy! We vote the proposal DOWN! When we are given the info and have had enough debate and time to become better informed as to what we are voting on, only then will we vote! We are the party that decides, not UCO! Tell all of your friends and neighbors to read these posts and spread the word! United we stand -divided we fall! Let’s stand tall!
If you recall, the original negotiations with Breezeline
Included forced internet which everyone had to pay for internet.
Myron Solomon, Ed Grossman and myself negotiated with Comcast to bid as well.
As a result, Breezeline caved in and eliminated forced internet. As a result we received a better deal.
Breezeline wanted to gain entrance into So Florida and wanted our contract desperately. As a result, I believe they had a small profit line.
I
Hi Olga,
Great point! Yes, I remember the previous talks. Breezeline has a huge stake in the Village, as they spent a lot of money putting in all of the fiber cable infrastructure in the village. I don’t think they are too eager to leave early!
The relevant portion of the contract:
ATLANTIC BROADBAND A COGECO COMPANY
INSTALLATION AND DISTRIBUTION AGREEMENT
This Installation and Distribution Agreement is dated June 5,2017.
The initial term (“Initial Term”) of this Agreement shall be ten (10)
years from the Start Date. The Initial Term shall expire on the
Expiration Date and shall automatically renew for consecutive
terms of one (1) year each (each a “Renewal Term”), unless either
party notifies the other in writing of its intention not to renew the
Agreement no less than ninety (90) days prior to the end of the
then-current Initial Term or Renewal Term (the Initial Term and
Renewal Term are collectively referred to as the “Term”). On or
after the sixth anniversary date of the Start Date, if requested by
the Owner in writing, the parties shall negotiate in good faith a
upgrade of the Bulk Services including the equipment provided as
part of such Services. The Owner acknowledges negotiated
upgrades to the existing Bulk Services, including the equipment
used with such services, may result in a change to the then
current monthly per unit Bulk Rate Price paid by the Owner,
provided that in no event shall the new monthly Bulk Rate Price be
less than the then current Bulk Rate Price. Furthermore, in no
event shall the negotiation for upgraded Bulk Services result in a
reduction of the Initial Term.
Hi Richard, Thanks for the info. Do you have a copy of the current Breezeline contract or agreement and any other new proposals that you could forward to me? I will make them transparent for all to download and review. Transparency is paramount in that this contract will have a significant financial impact on all of us. There are also several unanswered questions that need to be asked before any new contracts are approved by the delegates.
Hello All. Last I heard at one of the Breezeline meetings, Breezeline was going to put a offer together to include WIFI, which I think is a great idea, then I wouldn’t have my $45.00 a month bill. I realize it would be included in the HOA. I recommended education as to how to stream for the village. Not hard at all via an app once it’s downloaded to a smart TV. Funny, I thought all the Breezeline meetings were on UTube. Looked for it and unable to find. I’m assuming these boxes are a thing of the past as well as the TiVo – dinosaur!
Hi Regina, I find it interesting that they don’t have problems posting their UCO committee meetings, executive committee meetings and delegate meetings on YouTube. So why are we not seeing televised meetings for other big-ticket discussions. I would say those are probably the more important of the meetings that need to be televised, as the residents need to know where they stand on different issues. After all, UCO is performing these duties as our representatives, so they should be totally transparent in everything they do.
Our next Synergy Club meeting is this coming Thursday at 1:30 PM in Room C at the Main clubhouse. Please join us and we will discuss this topic further and try to come up with a game plan. Hope to see you there!
Hi Lee,
When I lived in Massachusetts, in some towns Comcast/Xfinity was the only service available. They were expensive and their service level was crap to put it mildly. The only decent company I dealt with was RCN and I’m not sure they still exist. I do not want streaming because I have an older TV that I don”t think can handle it. I don’t want to have to buy a new TV either. I pay $49.70 a month for internet from Breezeline which way less than Comcast. Like a lot of older folks, I am not a big fan of change.
Hi Jean, you bring up an interesting point. Residents should not have to purchase new TVs to meet a requirement that is already in place. However, on a lighter side note, smart TVs are really cheap these days! LOL
Our next Synergy Club meeting is this coming Thursday at 1:30 PM in Room C at the Main clubhouse. Please join us and we will discuss this topic further and try to come up with a game plan. Hope to see you there!
This was very informative. I hope UCO does right by us. This renegotiation is unacceptable as stands and should be brought to the Delegate assembly for discussion and vote!
Hi Joy, You are correct! You actually hit it right on the head – the delegates are the final approving authority here, so we have the power to approve or disapprove! Those who are negotiating a new contract must give us the information to review PRIOR to presenting it to the delegates for a vote. If they don’t, WE VOTE NO! – until they do their due diligence and meet the delegates review requirements.
Our next Synergy Club meeting is this coming Thursday at 1:30 PM in room C at the Main clubhouse. Please join us and we will discuss this topic further and try to come up with a game plan. Hope to see you there!
WELL, MR.HUNT I DO BELIVE SOMETHING MUST AND SHOULD BE DONE!. AS WHEN THIS WAS DONE WITTH THE INTERNET AND BLUE TOOTH IT WAS A FAIR PRICE FOR US AS SEINOR’, but now it has gone 4 times higher . we are still the same seniors our money has not gone up soooooo I believe we should contact Comcast again, Wrong, this is the first time I have gotten involved
Hi Lester,
Thanks for your reply. I removed your duplicate reply, as I’m sure you replied twice thinking that the original reply was not accepted the first time. Replies submitted are not visible until cleared for profanity or abusive language. This could take up to 24 hrs.
Please forward the email to other owners and friends and asked them to read this to become informed about the Breezeline TV situation and the potential problems ahead.
Our next Synergy Club meeting is this coming Thursday at 1:30 PM in room C at the main clubhouse. Please join us and we will discuss this topic further and try to come up with a game plan. Hope to see you there!
I’ve been unhappy with Breezeline since day one and have had similar experiences in regards to faulty replacement parts. In my humble and non legal opinion if they cannot uphold their end of the contract we should be able to renegotiate or even get out if the contract completely by citing their inability to continue to provide the service they contracted to provide
Thanks Lee for always being on top of things
Hi Maria, I’m with you 100%! Please forward the email to other owners and friends and asked them to read this to become informed about the Breezeline TV situation and the potential problems ahead.
Our next Synergy Club meeting is this coming Thursday at 1:30 PM in room C at the main clubhouse. Please join us and we will discuss this topic further and try to come up with a game plan. Hope to see you there!
What was bought with the $3 or $4 Million doorway fee we got from Breezeline for letting them into CV. I do not believe it faded into the general fund. Ed Grossman knows or maybe Olga?
That’s a good question we should explore further! Thanks Elaine!
I now have the Breezeline TV Contract. It is available for download. Contact me for the password.
After reading the contract, I by my original post even more staunchly!
Please tell all of your friends and neighbors to vote NO!! when asked to pass the newly negotiated BREEZELINE TV contract! They must pay US, as they cannot continue to provide the service they agreed to. DON’T LET UCO LET THEM OFF THE HOOK!!!
VOTE NO!!
Pingback: NEW BREEZELINE TV CONTRACT -VOTE NO!!
What does one do about a President who does not follow the Docs ? Goes over the vote n heads of the Board. I could go on, but I won’t, and yes I do have texts to prove my point
Bonnie, are you referring to a building president, or a UCO committe president, or UCO president?? I’m confused.