Cable subscribers in Grand Bahama are set to receive five new channels on basic cable, Cable Bahamas announced today. The company also stated that there will be several channel movements, all part of the cable operatorﾴs efforts to standardise their channel offerings among the various cable systems. The changes, due to come into effect on September 15th, will impact the basic cable service and premium channel packages. The new basic cable channels will be:
ﾕ SV Guide (ch. 6): SelectVISION Home Theatre pay-per-view movie previews, schedules, and local news and information
ﾕ Oxygen (ch. 18): a 24-hour television network that ﾓputs a fresh spin on television for womenﾔ
ﾕ ESPN International (ch. 35): global sports news, games, and information coverage
ﾕ The Parliamentary Channel (ch. 53): live video feeds of parliamentary proceedings from Parliament House, Nassau
ﾕ The Word Network (ch. 56): commercial-free religious programming geared towards the African-American church community ESPN and ESPN2 will become part of the SportsPAK premium cable package and will be available individually for as little as nine cents per day.
ﾓSpikeﾔ (formerly TNN) will move from channel 87 to channel 108, remaining part of SportsPAK, which is available by monthly subscription for $7.70.
Premium channels require a set-top box with a monthly subscription to the service. Premium channels are available individually, as a package of six to nine channels, or as a ﾓBonus Bundleﾔ which is a combination of subscription packages. The premium set-top box includes an onscreen interactive guide with advanced parental control and viewing features. Several other channels will move to new positions in the channel line-up:
CHANNEL OLD NEW
CBS 6 11
Lifetime 34 15
CMT 11 34
Health Network 59 55
3ABN 53 57
The company noted that all changes should come into effect on Monday, September 15th, and that on that day there may be brief periods of interruption as the services are migrated to their new location. The company also stated that since acquiring the Grand Bahama cable TV system in 1995 the basic cable channel selection has increased by 93%.
Cable Bahamas Ltd. is majority owned by 2,800 Bahamians and the Government of the Bahamas. The companyﾴs 270 employees provide world-class cable television service on 16 Bahamian islands; high-speed Internet access services in Grand Bahama, Abaco, Eleuthera and New Providence; connectivity between the Bahamas and the rest of the world with a 600-kilometre, submarine, fibre-optic system owned and operated by wholly owned subsidiary Caribbean Crossings Ltd; and Web-hosting, data centre, and disaster recovery services through wholly owned subsidiary Maxil Communications Ltd. Cable Bahamasﾴ ordinary shares trade on the Bahamas International Stock Exchange (symbol: CAB).
