Cable TV System in 6 Cities to Be Sold

Starting in the spring, cable television subscribers in Downey, Santa Fe Springs, Lynwood, Bell Gardens, Paramount and La Mirada will be served by a new company, officials from American Cablesystems of California announced last week.

Rogers Cablesystems of California, which has been serving the cities since 1982, will sell its franchises in the six cities and concentrate on serving Orange County exclusively, according to Steve Merritt, executive vice president.

The two companies are coming up with a sales agreement, which will have to be approved by each of the cities, said Terry Soley, assistant vice president of development for American Cablesystems.

American Cablesystems already serves South-Central Los Angeles, Culver City, Inglewood, Carson and Pomona. In August, the company purchased CommuniCom Cable TV, which serves Bellflower and Maywood, Soley said.

According to Soley, American Cablesystems will mail surveys to Rogers’ 22,000 Southeast subscribers to determine monthly rates and programming.

“I don’t think subscribers will notice a big change,” Soley said. “We will be doing a lot of research to determine their needs and we’ll go from there.”