PIKEVILLE, Ky. — As expected, the city of Pikeville has filed suit against cable provider Suddenlink, alleging the company has failed to pay penalties it owes due to violations of its franchise agreement with the city.
Last month, the city commission voted to sue Suddenlink and its parent companies, after the cable provider failed to pay penalties for being in violation.
In the complaint filed in federal court on Monday, the city alleges Suddenlink owes $1.2 million for a list of 15 violations of the franchise agreement. The city alleges that Suddenlink’s service has deteriorated since its purchase by Altice. The complaint claims that Altice’s strategy of aggressively cutting costs has caused service to suffer.
“Altice’s strategy is to purchase providers, like Suddenlink, that serve areas like Pikeville, where few if any viable alternatives exist for phone, cable and internet service, and then engage in severe cost-cutting that significantly reduces the quality of services offered,” the complaint says. “Because of the dearth of alternatives, Altice also raises rates on its captive customers even as the service quality declines.”
The city is asking the court to force Suddenlink to pay the penalties and its legal costs, as well as for an injunction forcing the company to comply with the terms of the franchise agreement.
Suddenlink has denied that it is in violation.
A full copy of the complaint can be found below:
