Cable TV customers of Auburn will gain the knowledge of competition between their service providers.
Auburn was introduced to cable television in 1959 and has had only one choice in service, said Mayor Bill Ham.
Knology is moving into the area and will put an end to the 50-year reign of a market monopolized by Charter Communications.
A groundbreaking ceremony was held Thursday April 1 at the Knology office in the Tutton Hill development off Hamilton Road.
"We are thrilled Knology is willing to bring high-end Internet and all the capability that come with their services to the local area," Ham said. "And bring some competition for our citizens. They have been begging for this for years and years."
Ham said he gets the most questions and comments about whether an additional cable company is going to provide competition in the market.
"We think we are partnering with a very good company," Ham said. "Small enough to provide excellent service and still has incredible integrity."
The vote for progressive movement on this project was unanimous in City Council, Ham said.
"We already have one cable provider," said City Manager Charlie Duggan. "But we think by an introduction to another that everyone's service is going to improve and rates will go down. That is certainly what we are hoping for."
However, service is not going to be here tomorrow, but rather in time as Knology spreads its wires throughout Auburn, Duggan said.
"The product that they're offering, they're all about high-speed and also customer service," Duggan said. "Those are two of the things I know citizens have been very interested in."
Duggan also said Knology's data offerings for broadband service are excellent and they have two call centers located domestically.
"We are going to provide advanced services that will meet everybody's needs," said Bill King, network manger for Knology. "It won't be anything below the current desire of the people."
Knology's headquarters are in West Point, Ga. The company claims it is the leading provider of interactive communications and entertainment services. The company also founded the Internet service provider, Mindspring.
Knology offers more than 200 digital channels, local and long-distance calling and high-speed Internet access.
"As a resident of Auburn for 12 years I can tell you this is just a phenomenal and wonderful place to live, but it is about to be even more wonderful when Knology comes to town," said Todd Holt, president and CFO of Knology.
Anticipation about the new business venture is shared between Auburn and Knology.
"We are excited to be moving in and the plan we are going to put in is state of the art basically," said Paul Lujam, network supervisor for Knology. "We are not going fiber to the home, but fiber to the curb with a node plus eighty."
A node plus eighty means only one amp feeding 80 homes with service, Lujam said.
"It is going to be a lot easier to maintain, a lot quicker to upgrade, so the future is going to be pretty bright for people in this area," Lujam said.
Lujam also said modem speeds will be top notch with the installation of new equipment.
"We are going to invest about $15 million in the next three years to build out a broadband network," said Royce Ard, general manager for Knology.
Representatives at Charter Communications were not available for comment.
"I am actually pretty excited about Knology coming in," said Bradley Green, senior in radio, television and film. "I may be in the Auburn area after I graduate. Charter has been a pain in the past, and I look forward to having some choice."
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