Hawaii Administrative Rules › Title 16 - DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS › Chapter 131 - HAWAII CABLE COMMUNICATIONS SYSTEMS › Subchapter 1 - GENERAL PROVISIONS › Section 16-131-1 - Definitions

Current through June, 2024
As used in this chapter:
"Cable franchise" means a nonexclusive initial authorization
				  or renewal thereof issued pursuant to chapter 440G, Hawaii Revised Statutes,
				  whether the authorization is designated as a franchise, permit, order,
				  contract, agreement, or otherwise, which authorizes the construction or
				  operation of a cable system.
"Cable operator" means any person or group of
				  persons:
(1) Who provides cable service over a cable system and
				  directly or through one or more affiliates owns a significant interest in the
				  cable system; or
(2) Who otherwise controls or is responsible for, through any
				  arrangement, the management and operation of a cable system.
"Cable or wire" means cable, wire, fiber optics, microwave,
				  or other facilities utilized in extending wide spectrum cable services.
"Cable service" means:
(1) The one-way transmission to subscribers of video
				  programming or other programming service; and
(2) Subscriber-cable system interaction required for the
				  selection of video programming or other programming service.
"Cable system" means any facility within the State
				  consisting of a set of closed transmission paths and associated signal
				  generation, reception, and control equipment that is designated to provide
				  cable service which includes video programming and which is provided to
				  multiple subscribers within a community, but does not include:
(1) A facility that serves only to retransmit the television
				  signals of one or more television broadcast stations;
(2) A facility that serves only subscribers in one or more
				  multiple unit dwellings under common ownership, control, or management, unless
				  that facility or facilities uses any public right-of-way; or
(3) A facility of a public utility subject in whole or in
				  part to the provisions of chapter
				  269, HRS except to the extent that
				  those facilities provide video programming directly to subscribers.
"Capital contribution by a cable operator" means
				  contributions made by the cable operator to finance construction of line
				  extensions.
"Date of presentation" means the date upon which a bill or
				  notice is mailed, properly addressed to the subscriber, or if not mailed, the
				  date upon which that bill or notice is delivered to the subscriber.
"Department" means the department of commerce and consumer
				  affairs.
"Director" means the director of commerce and consumer
				  affairs of the State of Hawaii or the director's representative.
"Facility" includes all real property, and antenna, poles,
				  supporting structures, wires, cables, conduits, amplifiers, instruments,
				  appliances, fixtures, and other personal property used by a cable operator in
				  providing service to its subscribers.
"Feeder cable" means any coaxial cable that transfers
				  signals from the trunk line to the service area. The subscriber taps are
				  attached to the feeder cable.
"Headend" means the control center of the cable system,
				  where incoming signals are amplified, converted, processed, and combined into a
				  common cable for transmission to subscribers. The headend includes antennas,
				  preamplifiers, frequency converters, demodulators, modulators, processors, and
				  other related equipment.
"Headend facilities" means all equipment and property used
				  by a cable operator to receive, process, originate, or retransmit signals into
				  its cable distribution network.
"Installation charge" means a nonrecurring charge for the
				  installation of cable facilities.
"Line extension" means any extension of a trunk or feeder
				  cable over public rights-of way.
"Major systems fault" means an interruption of cable
				  communications services to fifty or more individual subscribers.
"Minor systems fault" means an interruption of cable
				  communications services due to failure of the distribution system of one or
				  more broadcast or satellite channels to less than fifty individual
				  subscribers.
"Move and change charges" means nonrecurring charges made in
				  connection with changes in location or type of facilities on a subscriber's
				  premises at the request of the subscriber, where there is no interruption of
				  service, other than that incident to the work involved, and where the changes
				  are not required for the proper maintenance of the equipment or service.
"Person" means an individual, partnership, association,
				  joint stock company, trust, corporation, or governmental agency.
"Reconnection charge" means a nonrecurring charge made to
				  cover expenses incident to the re-establishment and re-connection of service
				  with the cable system when cable or wire facilities, or both, are in place on
				  the subscriber's premises.
"Service area" means the geographic area for which a cable
				  operator has been issued a cable franchise.
"Service drop" means any cable from the subscriber tap to
				  each subscriber terminal that extends over private property.
"Special service facility" means all nonstandard
				  installations on private property performed by the cable operator at the
				  request of the subscriber. These shall include but not be limited to trenching
				  and the installation of ducts or molding not normally required by state or
				  federal law.
"Subscriber" means the person to whom service is furnished
				  as evidenced by the signature on the application or contract for that service,
				  or in the absence of a signed instrument, by the receipt and payment of bills
				  regularly issued in the subscriber's name regardless of identity of the actual
				  user of the service.
"Subscriber contribution-in-aid-of-construction" means
				  amounts paid by subscribers to the cable operators to pay for construction of
				  line extensions or service drops.
"Subscriber terminal" means the point of interfacing the
				  cable system's facilities with the subscriber's equipment.
"Tariffs" mean the entire body of effective rates, charges,
				  classifications, and rules which has been adopted by the cable operator and
				  approved by the director.
"Termination agreement" means an agreement between the cable
				  operator and a subscriber to guarantee recovery of the cable operator's
				  nonrecurring costs for specialized installation over a specified period.
"Trenching costs" includes costs of excavating, backfilling,
				  compaction, breaking and repair of pavement and, if necessary, the restoration
				  of landscaping which exceed the established cost to provide a service
				  connection through aerial installation.
"Trunk" means the main distribution lines leading from the
				  headend of the cable system to the feeder cable.