A partnership between two area nonprofit companies will allow
more people to take advantage of the city’s public access cable
channel and regional production services, according to
producers.
A partnership between two area nonprofit companies will allow more people to take advantage of the city’s public access cable channel and regional production services, according to producers.
The Morgan Hill city council is scheduled to vote on a proposal in which the Media Access Coalition of Central California will continue to run Channel 19, and the Gilroy-based Community Media Access Partnership will offer its larger studio, equipment and training expertise to local MACCC members.
CMAP provides public access cable in Hollister, San Juan Bautista and Gilroy, and has a permanent studio at Gavilan College.
The Morgan Hill channel is currently run by Morgan Hill Access Television, an all-volunteer affiliate of MACCC that has operated the channel since 1999.
If approved by the city council, the partnership between CMAP and MHAT will increase opportunities for people throughout the South Santa Clara Valley to use public access cable services. The proposal allows residents from Morgan Hill to join CMAP at the same cost as Gilroy residents, and allows residents of Gilroy, Hollister and San Juan Bautista to join MHAT at the same cost as Morgan Hill residents, MHAT board member Bob Snow explained.
Now, if non-residents of CMAP’s service area want to become members, they pay a higher annual rate. MHAT charges $20 for an annual membership, but Snow said that cost will likely go up with the partnership. One reason for the cost increase is that membership allows access to more facilities and equipment.
Being a member of either organization allows people to use MHAT’s and CMAP’s facilities to produce content, and to check out equipment, Snow said. MHAT studios are located in the BookSmart book store on Second Street.
“We show you how to operate the equipment – that’s our basic training,” Snow said. “CMAP offers more advanced training.”
Plus, MHAT has long sought to increase its membership, which at 25 members is less than that of CMAP, Snow said. A partnership between the two is a possible way to draw more members to MHAT.
There is no charge for members of the public to submit content to be broadcast on Channel 19.
Furthermore, as part of the partnership CMAP will be given access to MHAT’s studio, where its staff will teach advanced classes up to four hours per month. Revenue from those classes will go directly to CMAP.
Plus, members from both organizations will be invited to produce content for broadcast on all channels they serve.
Public access cable channels are offered by Charter as part of its franchise agreements with the cities. A portion of subscribers’ monthly cable bills pays for the service, which costs about $18,000 annually in Morgan Hill.
The city solicited bids for Channel 19 operators last year, after learning that other companies were interested in running the channel. A third group – Access Morgan Hill – submitted a bid but city staff has recommended adopting the MHAT/CMAP partnership proposal.
The council was first scheduled to accept an operator in February, when staff recommended hiring CMAP. However, due to protests that such a proposal contravenes the benefit of keeping money and services within the Morgan Hill community, council members asked the three groups to work out a collaborative proposal.
The concerns over the local economic benefits are why CMAP staff decided to take a role that’s more supportive of MHAT in the proposed partnership, and backed off its original proposal to run the city’s channel from the Gilroy studios, according to CMAP executive director Kathy Bisbee.
“We’re happy to collaborate to improve access to Morgan Hill, whether through MHAT or CMAP,” Bisbee said.
According to city staff, CMAP and MHAT representatives were not interested in participating in Access Morgan Hill’s proposal, and the third group was excluded from the partnership.
A spokesman for Access Morgan Hill did not immediately return a phone call.
