CETV returns to Channel 3 this month

Beginning on or around July 29, 2020, Cape Elizabeth's public access station CETV will again be available on cable Channel 3.

Charter Communications, operating under the Spectrum brand, has announced that the public-access channels broadcasting in the 1300 range since November 2018 will also be available at their previous, single-digit channel locations by the end of this month. CETV, currently available on Channel 1302 on the Spectrum set-top box, will also be visible on Channel 3.

"Additionally, on or around July 29, 2020, WPXT 2 MyTV will be relocated from channel 3 to channel 7," said Shelley Winchenbach, director of Government Affairs for Charter Communications, in a news release.

South Portland public access will also again be visible on Channel 2, and broadcasts from the Portland Media Center community access will again be visible on Channel 5. 

Restoration of the single-digit location is part of legislation enacted in 2019 to ensure nondiscriminatory treatment of public, educational and governmental access channels by cable system operators.

The law was challenged by the cable industry, but was upheld in a March 11, 2020 ruling from U.S. District Judge Nancy Torresen. The industry has appealed the decision, but Torresen later ruled that cable operators must comply with the law during the appeal period. 

CETV had been on cable Channel 3 since 1993, when it was moved from Channel 38 on the former Public Cable system. CETV programming can also be seen live and on-demand at cetv.capeelizabeth.org.

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