Scranton might get a second cable television franchise serving the city, Mayor Paige Gebhardt Cognetti announced Tuesday.
In a news release, the mayor said the city aims to enter into a nonexclusive agreement with RCN Telecom Services (Lehigh) LLC, doing business as Astound Broadband, “to construct, operate and maintain a cable system” serving all residences in the city.
The city currently has one cable television system, Comcast, and Astound would be a second provider, the mayor said.
“Local competition helps drive down the price of services for our residents, which is why we’re pleased to welcome Astound to Scranton,” Cognetti said in a statement. “A new cable provider offers new opportunities for citizens to stay informed and entertained.”
According to its website, Astound Broadband is the sixth largest telecommunications provider, serving eight of the top 10 metro markets in the United States, and offering residential, business and enterprise class broadband internet, telephone and cable TV services using its own fiber-powered network. Astound Broadband serves over 1 million customers in California, Illinois, Massachusetts, Oregon, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas, the Washington, D.C., metro area, and Washington state.
In Pennsylvania, Astound serves Luzerne County, the Lehigh Valley and Philadelphia.
Details of Scranton’s proposed franchise agreement with Astound include:
• Astound would develop its cable network in Scranton within three years at no cost to the city.
• The system would have no fewer than 300 channels of “consistent, high-quality reception.”
• Astound would provide to the city educational access broadcasting, including “one Educational Channel and one Governmental (“EG”) Access Channel.” An annual EG capital grant, funded by $1.40 in annual subscriber fees, will support “the production of local EG Channel programming.”
• Astound also will provide to the city quarterly payments equal to 5% of its gross revenue generated in the city.
On Tuesday night, Scranton City Council introduced an ordinance from the Cognetti administration authorizing the city to enter into a cable franchise agreement with RCN Telecom Services/Astound, according to an Electric City Television simulcast and video of the council meeting posted on YouTube.
Council voted 5-0 to introduce the ordinance, with council President Gerald Smurl, Bill King, Tom Schuster, Mark McAndrew and Jessica Rothchild all in favor.
This ordinance likely would come back before council for a vote on advancement on second reading March 11 and, if advanced that night, return for a vote on adoption on third reading March 18.
Meanwhile, Comcast recently completed an expansion project that connected more than 18,500 homes and businesses across Lackawanna, Luzerne and Columbia counties to reliable, high-speed internet, Comcast said in a recent news release.
This network expansion brings internet, mobile, entertainment and security services from Xfinity and Comcast Business to Carbondale, Carbondale Twp. and Fell Twp. in Lackawanna County; Conyngham Twp., Hunlock Twp., Newport Twp., Plymouth Twp., Salem Twp., Shickshinny and Union Twp. in Luzerne County; and Berwick, Briar Creek and Briar Creek Twp. in Columbia County for the first time, officials said.
The latest project follows other recently completed Comcast network expansions to more than 28,000 homes and businesses in Jermyn and Mayfield in Lackawanna County and Wilkes-Barre in Luzerne County.
Staff Writer Robert Tomkavage contributed to this article.
Originally Published: March 5, 2025 at 11:50 AM EST