Beutler: Svoboda erred on Time Warner
BY DEENA WINTER / Lincoln Journal Star
Chris Beutler said his opponent for mayor, Councilman Ken Svoboda, was too easy on Time Warner Cable earlier this week when he voted against a performance evaluation of the company over the problems customers have had with its new channel guide and digital video recorder software.
Beutler supports the performance evaluation, and said he would have included a deadline for Time Warner to fix its problems or make arrangements to replace the software. He also thinks the Cable Advisory Board should examine whether Time Warner customers have been given fair refunds or credits.
“Time Warner Cable must give the money back to Lincoln residents,” Beutler said. “A service was promised. A service, in many cases, was not delivered. A deal is a deal.”
Svoboda was among the three Republicans on the City Council who voted against the performance evaluation. The other two were Robin Eschliman and Jon Camp.
He said Time Warner and its employees are “good Lincoln citizens,” but the city has an obligation to make sure the company is living up to expectations in its franchise agreement.
“I respect the efforts our local Time Warner management and employees are making to address the problem,” Beutler said. “They are working hard and should be recognized for their effort. However, customers don’t pay for effort. They pay for results, and it is up to city leadership to ensure those results.”
He said Svoboda’s reaction to the controversy demonstrates the difference in their philosophies.
“Sounds like desperation,” was Svoboda’s response to Beutler’s press conference. He accused both Beutler and Councilman Jonathan Cook, who introduced the legislation calling for the performance audit, of political grandstanding with the Time Warner issue.
Svoboda voted against the performance audit because he said government shouldn’t stick its nose into a private business matter. Time Warner subscribers should go to Time Warner, not the City Council, he said.
“This is exactly why in my opinion we need a businessman in the mayor’s office,” Svoboda said. “Should every business in Lincoln now fear that government is going to come in and try to control what it is that they do with their customers? God, I hope not.”
Svoboda said if he were mayor, he would have talked to Time Warner officials months ago about the problems customers are having. But Beutler says Svoboda and the mayor should hold Time Warner accountable.
“As mayor, I will hold vendors accountable for the services and products they deliver,” he said. “I will likewise hold city directors accountable for the services they deliver.”
But Svoboda said the resolution passed by the City Council was “toothless” because it puts a volunteer, once-a-month Cable Advisory Committee in charge of an evaluation that will take months to finish.
“By that time, this probably will already be solved,” he said.
He would have proposed a 60- to 90-day waiting period if he’d had enough support for it on the council, he said.