§ 6.08.150. Discrimination prohibited.

A.

Discriminatory Practices Prohibited.

1.

A franchisee shall not deny service, deny access, or otherwise discriminate against subscribers, programmers, or residents of Metropolitan Nashville on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, or age.

2.

A franchisee shall not discriminate among persons or take any retaliatory action against a person because of that person's exercise of any right it may have under federal, state, or local law, nor may the franchisee require a person to waive such rights as a condition of taking service.

3.

A franchisee shall not deny access or levy different rates and charges on any group of potential residential cable subscribers because of the income of the residents of the local area in which such group resides.

4.

A franchisee is prohibited from discriminating in its rates or charges or from granting undue preferences to any subscriber, potential subscriber, or group of subscribers or potential subscribers; provided, however, that subject to subsection D of this section, a franchisee may offer temporary, bona fide promotional discounts in order to attract or maintain subscribers, so long as such discounts are offered on a nondiscriminatory basis to similar classes of subscribers throughout Metropolitan Nashville; and a franchisee may offer discounts for the elderly, the handicapped, or the economically disadvantaged, and such other discounts as it is expressly entitled to provide under federal law, if such discounts are applied in a uniform and consistent manner. A franchisee shall comply at all times with all applicable federal, state, and city laws, and all executive and administrative orders relating to nondiscrimination.

B.

Equal Employment Opportunity. A franchisee shall not refuse to employ, discharge from employment, or discriminate against any person in compensation or in terms, conditions, or privileges of employment because of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, or age. A franchisee shall comply with all federal, state, and local laws and regulations governing equal employment opportunities, as the same may be from time to time amended.

C.

Subscriber Privacy.

1.

A franchisee shall at all times protect the privacy of all subscribers pursuant to the provisions of Section 631 of the Cable Act, 47 U.S.C. Section 551. A franchisee shall not condition subscriber service on the subscriber's grant of permission to disclose information which, pursuant to federal or state law, cannot be disclosed without the subscriber's explicit consent.

2.

Except to the extent permitted by the Cable Act, neither a franchisee nor its agents or employees shall, without the prior and specific written authorization of the subscriber involved, sell or otherwise make available for commercial purposes the names, addresses, or telephone numbers of any subscriber or subscribers, or any information that identifies the individual viewing habits of any subscriber or subscribers.

3.

Neither the franchisee nor any other person, agency or entity shall tap or arrange for the tapping of any cable, line, signal input device, or subscriber outlet or receiver that is part of a cable system for any purpose whatsoever.

4.

No subliminal transmission shall be utilized at any time, for any purpose whatsoever.

5.

A franchisee shall not utilize any two-way communications capability of the system for unauthorized subscriber surveillance of any kind.

D.

Uniform Rates. A franchisee shall have a rate structure for the provision of cable services that is uniform throughout the geographic area in which it provides cable service over its cable system. Notwithstanding the foregoing, a franchisee may conduct experimental services and service offerings to particular regions of its franchise area without making such experimental services available throughout its franchise area; provided, that such experimental service offerings are offered on a nondiscriminatory basis to similar classes of subscribers.

(Ord. 95-1368 § 2 (part), 1995)