§ 5.36.530. Privacy.

Subject to federal and state law, each licensee shall operate in such a manner as to protect the privacy of its customers, including, but not limited to, the following:

(1)

Neither the licensee nor any other person, agency, or entity shall tap, or arrange for the tapping or monitoring of any cable, line, signal input device, or customer outlet or receiver for any purpose whatsoever, except that the licensee may conduct tests of the functioning of the system where necessary in order to ensure proper maintenance of the system and to collect performance data for agencies regulating the quality of signals, and the licensee may conduct system-wide or individually addressed "sweeps" for the sole purpose of verifying system integrity (including individual security system integrity), controlling return path transmissions, billing for pay services, or collecting aggregate data on viewing patterns by channel.

"Tapping" means observing a communications signal exchange where the observer is neither of the communicating parties, whether the exchange is observed by visual, aural or electronic means, for any purpose whatsoever. The provision of interactive service shall not be construed to be "tapping" or "monitoring" under this section.

(2)

The licensee shall not place in any dwelling unit or other facility any equipment capable of two-way communications without the written consent of the customer, and shall not utilize the two-way communications capability of the system for customer surveillance of any kind without the written consent of the customer specifying how the data collected will be used and by whom. Tenants who occupy premises connected by the CATV system shall be deemed to be customers within the meaning of this section regardless of who actually pays for the service. The written consents shall be, and shall show on their face that they are, revocable by the customer at any time by written communication mailed by the customer to the licensee. No penalty shall be invoked for a customer's failure to provide a written consent or for his or her revocation thereof, and all written consents shall so state on their face. The licensee shall not make such written consent a condition precedent to receipt by a customer of noninteractive service. The provisions of this section shall not be deemed to require consent as a condition precedent to system-wide or individually addressed "sweeps" for the sole purpose of verifying system integrity, controlling return-path transmissions, billing for pay services, or collecting aggregate data on viewing patterns by channel.

(3)

No cable, line, wire, amplifier, converter, or other piece of equipment associated with CATV services shall be attached to any residence or other private property without first securing the written permission of the owner or tenant of the property. If such permission is later lawfully revoked, whether by the original or subsequent owner or tenant, the licensee shall remove forthwith all of the equipment and promptly restore the property to its original condition. The licensee shall perform all installations in a workmanlike manner and shall be responsible for any damage to residences or other property caused by the installation.

(4)

No licensee or officer, agent or employee thereof shall sell, or otherwise make available, lists of the names and addresses of its customers, or any list which identifies, by name or otherwise individual subscriber viewing habits, to any person, agency, or entity for any purpose whatsoever except that the licensee shall, upon request, provide lists of names and addresses of its customers to authorized representatives of the city so that the city may enforce the conditions of any license or the provisions of this chapter. Names and addresses of customers within the possession of the city shall not be subject to public inspection or review.

(5)

A licensee may release the number of customers, but only as a total number and as a percentage of the potential customers within the city or any given area within the city. When indicating the number of customers viewing a particular channel, a licensee shall indicate only the total number of customers viewing during the relevant time and, the percentage of all customers which they represent, but not the identity of any customer.

(6)

No polls or other two-way responses of customers shall be conducted whether for commercial purposes, in connection with community use, or otherwise unless the program of which the poll is a part contains an explicit disclosure of the nature, purpose, and prospective use of the results of the poll. The licensee shall supervise and monitor all polls in which responses are received through the CATV system, and shall adopt and enforce measures which ensure that personally identifiable information concerning a customer, including his or her viewing habits and response or responses to the inquiry or inquiries, is not received by any third party, including the party sponsoring the poll.

(7)

A licensee shall not tabulate any test results, nor permit the use of the system of such tabulation, which would reveal the commercial product preferences or opinions of individual customers, members of their families or their invitees, licensees or employees, without advance written authorization by the customers.

(Ord. 747B §3(part), 2003)