Picking Up Where the Wright Bros. Left Off

Cable World, Sept 8, 2003

Byline: SHIRLEY BRADY

A century after Dayton, Ohio-based bicycle shop owners Wilbur and Orville Wright put the city on the map as the birthplace of aviation, Time Warner Cable is giving its residents new wings to make history in this century.

With technological advances including faster-than-ever high-speed Internet, movies-on-demand, digital video recording and wireless home networking, residents in the nation's 58th largest DMA now have the cable-delivered technology to fly even when they're firmly on the ground.

Time Warner Cable spent an estimated $200 million to upgrade its Western Ohio division, where Dayton is the largest metro among the 379 communities that make up its 430,000-customer base. With the city's upgrade from 450 to 750 MHz completed early this year, Western Ohio division president Jerry DeGrazia and his staff have been busy making the most out of their hybrid fiber/coax network.

The team continues to focus on three areas: delivering innovative products and services through cutting-edge digital technology; backing it up with exceptional customer care whether on the phone, online or in person at 26 local customer service centers; and demonstrating its commitment to improving customers' lives through public affairs and community involvement.

"The major priority here is very much education," says Dick Hutchinson, who as VP of government and public affairs handles everything from system franchise renewals to statewide regulatory matters such as helping convince Ohio's general assembly to vote in June against Governor Bob Taft's proposed state sales tax on cable TV services.

But the most rewarding part of his job, he says, is managing the division's many education-enhancing initiatives such as its Crystal Apple award, a local offshoot of a Time Warner Cable corporate program that recognizes innovative educators who creatively use cable technology or programming to support their teaching goals.

"We try to be strategic and weigh up each program to ask if it addresses any educational aspect or need of the community," he says. "It also has to be scalable [across the division], which is why we got on board with Court TV's Choices and Consequences to address student violence, which is an issue wherever you go."

Besides its longstanding partnership with Court TV and being an ardent supporter of Cable in the Classroom - with nearly 700 schools throughout the division receiving complimentary cable drops or service - Hutchinson and his team, including public affairs director Karen Baxter, administer grants and manage other programs including establishing Time Warner Cable ArtZones across Western Ohio to provide youths with free creative workshops and art exhibitions.

That commitment comes from the top, where DeGrazia, a former teacher himself, frees up funds and his staff to support the goals and growth of the communities TWC Western Ohio serves.

"When we were building this division we purposely went a little bit heavy on public and government affairs," DeGrazia explains. "We had over 200 miles north to south of geography to cover, including a lot of schools and universities. So education was a natural and great fit for us, and it continues to be a very key and important area for us to concentrate on. The habits that students are forming, the information that they're taking in and processing...all that informs their value system and helps form future study habits and their potential. So I'm really proud of the way Dick and Karen keep our commitment to education thriving in our communities."

DeGrazia himself works closely with local organizations including the Dayton Development Coalition, the K-12 Gallery for Young People, Miami Valley Reads, Dayton Society of Natural History, the Better Business Bureau and the Dayton Area Chamber of Commerce.

That latter organization provides a snapshot of the tough economic environment facing Time Warner Cable and other businesses servicing metro Dayton, which is located in Montgomery, the region's largest county.

The chamber estimates that Dayton's median household income in 2002 was $25,517, which was less than the Montgomery County median of $36,664 last year. The greatest percentage of Dayton's households (27%) earned between $20,000 and $34,999 last year, while the bulk of the county's homes (31.5%) fell in the $50,000 and higher income bracket.

The local economy has felt the impact of layoffs at NCR and Wright Patterson Air Force Base, among other major employers, last year. While the chamber projects "there will be some improvements" across the metroplex by the end of this year, it is guardedly optimistic in its outlook for 2003.

Those factors may make Dayton residents more fiscally cautious than their suburban counterparts, particularly when it comes to investing in new technologies. Residents might also be more grateful for TWC's commitment to local volunteerism and partnering with schools and colleges, including the University of Dayton, to bring valuable support such as broadband to libraries and community centers.