HelpDesk and Support
843-538-5481/866-330-4630
Palmetto Rural Telephone Cooperative, Inc. Digital TV
Customer Agreement
THIS DOCUMENT DESCRIBES THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF YOUR RECEIPT AND PAYMENT OF Palmetto Rural Telephone Cooperative, Inc. (PRTC) Digital TV SERVICE. IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT THESE TERMS, PLEASE NOTIFY US IMMEDIATELY AND WE WILL CANCEL YOUR SERVICE. IF YOU DECIDE TO RECEIVE OUR SERVICE, IT WILL MEAN THAT YOU ACCEPT THESE TERMS AND THEY WILL BE LEGALLY BINDING.
CONTACTING Palmetto Rural:
You may contact us by any of the means listed below:
Palmetto Rural Telephone Cooperative, Inc.
E-mail address: sales@prtc.us
Website: www.prtc.us
Address: P.O. Drawer 1577, Walterboro, SC 29488
Customer Support Number: 843-538-2020
CUSTOMER AGREEMENT
1. OUR SERVICE & EQUIPMENT
These are the terms on which we will provide you Service
(a) Program Choices. You must subscribe to the Premier Package in order to receive additional Services such as premium movie services or sports subscriptions. All programming selections have their own rates, terms, and conditions. To receive any HD channels, customer must pay a HD access fee. Additionally, bundles with Unlimited Long Distance (ULD) include residential domestic voice calls outside of PRTC’s local service area, between two individuals. PRTC ULD is not for connecting to other services. If long distance usage exceeds normal monthly residential usage, customer may be switched, in PRTC’s sole discretion, to another PRTC plan including a per-minute usage plan.
(b) Your Programming Changes. You must subscribe to the Premier Package in order to receive additional Services such as premium movie services or sports subscriptions. All programming selections have their own rates, terms, and conditions. To receive any HD channels, customer must pay a HD access fee. Additionally, bundles with Unlimited Long Distance (ULD) include residential domestic voice calls outside of PRTC’s local service area, between two individuals. PRTC ULD is not for connecting to other services. If long distance usage exceeds normal monthly residential usage, customer may be switched, in PRTC’s sole discretion, to another PRTC plan including a per-minute usage plan.
(c) Our Programming Changes. Many changing considerations affect the availability, cost and quality of programming and customer demand for it. Accordingly, we must reserve the unrestricted right to change, re-arrange, add or delete our programming packages, the selections in those packages, our prices, and any other Service we offer, at any time. We will endeavor to notify you of any change that is within our reasonable control and its effective date. In most cases, this notice will be about one month in advance. You always have the right to cancel your Service, in whole or in part, if you do not accept the change (see Section 5). If you cancel your Service, a deactivation fee (described in Sections 2 and 5(b)) or other charges may apply. Credits, if any, to your account will be posted as described in Section 5. If you do not cancel, your continued receipt of our Service will constitute acceptance.
(d) Private Viewing. We provide Service only for your private non-commercial use, enjoyment, and home viewing. The programming may not be viewed in areas open to the public or in commercial establishments, designated commercial packages excepted. You may not rebroadcast, transmit, or perform the programming, charge admission for its viewing, or transmit or distribute running accounts of it. You may not use any of our trademarks. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 8, we or any programming provider may prosecute violations of the foregoing against you and other responsible parties in any court of competent jurisdiction, under the rules and regulations of the Federal Communications Commission, and other applicable laws.
(e) Blackouts. Certain programming, including sports events may be blacked out in your local reception area. Blackout restrictions are decided by the sports leagues and the other entities that own the local broadcast rights. If you circumvent or attempt to circumvent any of these blackouts, you may be subject to legal action.
(f) Loss of Receiving Equipment. You should notify us immediately if your receiver, remote control, modem or other equipment necessary to receive programming (referred to collectively as "Receiving Equipment") is lost or stolen. If you notify us within ten (10) days, we will not charge you for any unauthorized use. In any case, we will not charge you for unauthorized use occurring after we receive your notice. For leased Receiving Equipment, non-return fees apply.
(g) Transfer of Receiving Equipment. We consider you to be responsible for, and the recipient of our programming on, any Receiving Equipment you own or lease. You are liable for charges incurred in the use of your Receiving Equipment by others. Leased Receiving Equipment may not be transferred.
(h) Your Viewing Restrictions. It is your responsibility to impose any viewing restrictions on other family members or guests, as you think appropriate. We are not responsible to you or anyone else based on the content of our programming. For more information on parental controls, locks and limits, and password protection for your account, please contact PRTC at 843-538-2020 or sales@prtc.us.
(i) Additional set-top devices. To independently tune additional televisions within your home, a separate set-top device is required for each television. Depending upon distance from equipment and cable pair quality, the number of additional set-tops may be limited and will be determined on a case-by-case basis. Each additional set-top device would be authorized to receive the same Services as your initial set-top device. If you desire to receive Services at two different locations, you must open a separate account for each location. You agree that you will not directly or indirectly use a single account for the purpose of authorizing Services for multiple set-top devices that are not all located in the same residence and connected to the same local area network. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 8, if we later determine that you have used a single account in this manner, we may terminate the Services and in addition to all other applicable fees, you agree to pay us the difference between the prices actually paid for the Services and the full commercial rate for such Services. The payment of that amount and/or the termination of Service shall not prejudice our ability to exercise any other rights and remedies we may have under the Agreement, at law, in equity, or otherwise.
(j) Equipment. In order to receive the services, it will be necessary for you to lease certain equipment (ie. set-top Box, remote, residential gateway, and possible other equipment). Any tampering or other unauthorized modification to any of this equipment is strictly prohibited and may result in, and subject to, legal action. You agree to return the leased equipment to us upon request or termination of the lease. IF you report to the Customer Service Center that your equipment was defective, we will replace it, if there is no evidence of unauthorized tampering or modification. PRTC reserves the right to alter software in your leased equipment, and provide content to DVR products, through periodic downloads. PRTC will use commercially reasonable efforts to schedule these downloads in a manner that will result in the least amount of interference without interruption to your Service.
For proper operation of your leased equipment, PRTC requires that you connect each PRTC set-top device on your account to a network connection that is connected back to the residential gateway. For accounts containing multiple set-top devices, each set-top device must be connected to the residential gateway.
Leased equipment from PRTC shall always remain the sole and exclusive property of PRTC. PRTC reserves the right to replace it with new or reconditioned equipment and to remove the equipment upon termination of services. None of the equipment shall be deemed fixtures or part of your realty. Our ownership of the equipment may be displayed by notice containing the equipment. You shall have no right to pledge, sell, mortgage, give away or remove, relocate, alter or tamper with the equipment at any time. Any reinstallation, return of or change in location of the equipment shall be performed by us at the service rates in effect at the time of the service. You should not attach any electrical or other devices to or otherwise alter the equipment without our prior written consent. Upon termination of Services, you must notify our Customer Service Center to schedule return of PRTC’s equipment or be charged full cost for the non-returned equipment. All maintenance and repair of the equipment shall be performed by us or our designees. PRTC may charge you for any repairs to leased equipment based upon current time and materials rates if abuse or neglect of the equipment is determined.
(k) Service Calls. If you have an issue with your service, please call 843-538-5481. If your call is received before 4:00 P.M on a business day, PRTC will make every effort to restore your service that day and make a site visit if necessary. Calls received after 4:00 PM will be worked the next business day.
(l) Change of Address. You must notify us immediately of any change in your name, mailing address, residence address or telephone number.
2. PAYMENT
In return for receiving our Service, you promise to pay us as follows:
(a) Programming. You will pay in advance at our rates in effect at the time, for all Services ordered by you or anyone who uses your Receiving Equipment, with or without your permission, until the Service is canceled. The outstanding balance is due in full each month. We may, in our discretion, accept partial payments, which will be applied to the oldest outstanding statement. No "payment in full" notation or other restrictive endorsement written on your payments will restrict our ability to collect all amounts owing to us. We may reduce your Service to a minimum service level, at our rates in effect at the time, or deactivate your Service if you do not pay your statements on time, after any applicable grace period.
(b) Taxes. You will pay all taxes or other government fees and charges, if any, which are assessed.
(c) Administrative Fees. In order to control the basic charges, which apply to all customers, we charge fees that arise in specific circumstances only to those customers responsible for them. This list is not exclusive, and PRTC reserves the right to modify these fees or charge additional fees. Accordingly, you will pay the following fees when they are applicable:
(1) Account Activation Fee. We may charge you a fee of: (i) up to $75.00; or (ii) the maximum amount permitted under applicable law prior to or upon activation of your Service account, whichever is less.
(2) Equipment Lease Fee. If you meet the qualifications described in Section 1(f), we may charge you a monthly fee of up to $30.00 as an Equipment Lease Fee per equipment unit.
(3) Administrative Late Fee. If we do not receive your payment by the due date on your bill, we may charge you an administrative late fee (i) of up to $7.00 or (ii) the maximum amount permitted under and subject to applicable law per month or partial month until the delinquent amount is paid in full. This late fee is not an interest charge, finance charge, time price differential or other such charge or payment of a similar nature. You acknowledge that this fee is reasonably related to the actual expense we incur due to late payment and may be subject to limitations set forth by law in your state.
(4) Change of Service Fee. If you change your Service package to a lower-priced package, we may charge you a fee the lesser of (i) up to $27.25 or (ii) the maximum amount permitted by applicable law.
(5) Deposits. We may require that you provide a deposit prior to or after activation of your Service, which we may apply against any unpaid amounts at any time. Deposits will not earn interest.
(6) Order Assistance Fee. If you order a pay per view Service by calling and speaking with a CSR, we may charge you a fee of up to $10.00, for each separate movie, event or other program so ordered, even if it is later canceled.
(7) Early Cancellation Fee. If you cancel your Service or we deactivate your Service because of your failure to pay or for some other breach on your part, we may charge you a fee the lesser of (i) up to $400.00; or (ii) the maximum amount permitted by applicable law.
(8) Duplicate Statement Fee. If you request a duplicate statement, we may charge you a fee the lesser of (i) up to $5.00; or (ii) the maximum amount permitted by applicable law for each statement copy.
(9) Ledger Request Fee. If you request a payment ledger itemizing past payments on your account, we may charge you a fee the lesser of (i) up to $20.00; or (ii) the maximum amount permitted by applicable law.
(10) Returned Payment Fee. If any bank or other financial institution refuses to honor any payment, draft or instrument submitted for payment to your account, we may charge you a fee the lesser of (i) up to $30.00; or (ii) the maximum amount permitted by applicable law. You acknowledge that this fee is not an interest charge, finance charge, time price differential or other such charge or payment of a similar nature and it is reasonably related to the actual expense we incur due to unsatisfied payment.
(d) Billing Statements. We will send you a statement for each billing cycle (usually once every 30 days) unless you have a zero or nominal balance due, or a nominal credit balance, on your account at the end of a billing cycle. Statements will show: (1) payments, credits, purchases, and any other charges to your account (2) the amount you owe us and (3) the payment due date. If you elect to make automatic credit or debit card payments, you might not receive monthly statements unless you request that they be sent.
(e) Questions About Your Statement. If you think your statement is incorrect or if you need more information about it, contact us immediately. We will try to resolve any complaints you have as promptly as we can.
Undisputed portions of the statement must be paid by the due date to avoid a late fee and possible reduction or deactivation of Service.
(f) Consents Regarding Credit. In order to establish an account with us, you authorize us to inquire into your creditworthiness (subject to Section 6), by checking with credit reporting agencies. If you are delinquent in any payment to us, you also authorize us to report any late payment or nonpayment to credit reporting agencies. Due to the subjective nature of creditworthiness, we reserve the right to require a deposit before account activation for any Service via cashier's check, money order, or credit card, notwithstanding your credit rating, history or practice.
(g) Collection Costs. To the extent permitted by law, you will pay us any costs and fees we reasonably incur to collect the amounts you owe us.
3. CUSTOMER INFORMATION
(a) Representations. You represent that you are at least 18 years of age and a resident of the United States.
(b) Contact Information. You agree to provide true, accurate, current and complete contact information about yourself, and maintain and promptly update your contact information to keep it true, accurate, and complete.
4. CHANGES IN CONTRACT TERMS
We reserve the right to change the terms and conditions on which we offer Service. If we make any such changes, we will send you a copy of your new Customer Agreement containing its effective date. You always have the right to cancel your Service, in whole or in part at any time, and you may do so if you do not accept any such changed terms or conditions. If you do cancel, you may be charged an early cancellation fee if you entered into a separate programming commitment or a deactivation fee. You will be issued credit, if any, in accordance with Section 5. If you elect not to cancel your Service after receiving a new Customer Agreement, your continued receipt of Service from us will constitute acceptance of the changed terms and conditions. If you notify us that you do not accept such terms and conditions, then we may cancel your Service as provided in Section 5, as we cannot offer Service to different customers on different terms, among other reasons.
5. CANCELLATION
(a) Term. The term of this Agreement is a minimum of two years and Service will continue until canceled as provided herein. UNLESS YOU NOTIFY US THAT YOU WISH TO CANCEL IT, WE WILL AUTOMATICALLY RENEW SERVICE THAT YOU SUBSCRIBE TO ON A PERIODIC BASIS, INCLUDING ANY MONTHLY OR ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTIONS AND SEASONAL SPORTS SUBSCRIPTIONS, AS LONG AS WE CONTINUE TO CARRY THE SERVICE.
(b) Your Cancellation. You may cancel Service by notifying us. You may be charged a deactivation fee as described in Section 2. Your notice is effective on the day we receive it. You will still be responsible for payment of all outstanding balances accrued through that effective date and the end of the month for monthly subscriptions. In addition to any deactivation or change of service fees provided in Section 2, if you cancel Service or change your Service package, you may be subject to an early cancellation fee if you entered into a separate programming commitment with PRTC in connection with obtaining Receiving Equipment and have failed to maintain the required programming package for the required period of time.
For Services sold only in blocks of one month or multiples of one month, if you cancel such Service, we will credit you only for full months not used. For example, if you subscribe for a year of such Service from January through December but cancel on March 10, we will credit you for the subscription fees for April through December. However, we will not credit any fees for January through March. Additionally, we will not credit seasonal sports subscriptions after the season starts.
(c) Your Cancellation. We may cancel your Service at any time if you fail to pay amounts owing to us when due, subject to any grace periods, or breach any other material provision of this Agreement, or act abusively toward our staff. In such case, you will still be responsible for payment of all outstanding balances accrued through that effective date, including the deactivation fee described in Section 2. In addition, we may cancel your Service if you elect not to accept any changed terms described to you, as provided in Section 4.
(d) Your Cancellation. If you have a credit balance after the closure of your account and issuance of the final bill, we will automatically issue you a refund. However, if your credit balance is less than $9.99, we will not issue you a refund unless you make a written request for the refund. If you do not make such a written request for the refund within sixty (60) days of the closure of your account, you forfeit any credit balance remaining on your account and your account balance will be reset to zero.
(e) Your Cancellation. You acknowledge that you have provided your credit, debit card, or bank account information to us. You understand that you will incur fees and charges as a result of your receipt and use of Service and/or Receiving Equipment and may incur early cancellation fees and/or equipment non-return fees (as specified in any lease, programming or other service commitment agreement you entered into in connection with obtaining Receiving Equipment). By giving us your credit, debit card, or bank account information, you authorize us to apply this method of payment, in accordance with applicable law, to satisfy any and all amounts due upon cancellation. You further acknowledge that you are required to maintain current credit, debit card, or bank account information with us and agree to notify us whenever there is a change in such information, such as a change in the card number, expiration date, routing number or account number.
6. PERSONAL DATA
We collect personally identifiable information about our customers ("Personal Data"). The use and disclosure of this Personal Data is governed by Policies of the Industry and, to the extent not consistent with the Industry Policies, by this Agreement.
7. LIMITS ON OUR RESPONSIBILITY
(a) Service Interruptions. Service may be interrupted from time to time for a variety of reasons. We are not responsible for any interruptions of Service that occur due to acts of God, power failure or any other cause beyond our reasonable control. However, because we value our customers, for an interruption of a significant length of time that is within our reasonable control, upon your request we will provide what we reasonably determine to be a fair and equitable adjustment to your account to make up for such Service interruption. NOTWITHSTANDING THE PROVISIONS OF SECTION 8, THIS WILL BE YOUR SOLE REMEDY AND OUR SOLE DUTY IN CASE OF SERVICE INTERRUPTION THAT IS WITHIN OUR CONTROL.
(b) Disclaimers. EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY PROVIDED HEREIN, WE MAKE NO WARRANTY OR REPRESENTATION, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, REGARDING ANY SERVICE OR YOUR RECEIVING EQUIPMENT. ALL SUCH WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, TITLE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT ARE DISCLAIMED.
(c) Limitations of Liability. WE ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES OR LOSSES RELATING TO THE RECEIVING EQUIPMENT OR ANY SERVICE, WHETHER BASED ON NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE. REGARDLESS OF THE CAUSE, OUR TOTAL LIABILITY FOR DAMAGES OR LOSSES TO YOU AND ANY OTHER PERSONS RECEIVING OUR SERVICE, WILL IN NO EVENT EXCEED THE AMOUNT THAT YOU HAVE PAID TO US FOR THE SERVICE THAT YOU RECEIVED DURING THE SIX (6) MONTHS PERIOD IMMEDIATELY PRIOR TO THE SPECIFIC EVENT THAT GAVE RISE TO THE APPLICABLE DAMAGE OR LOSS. THIS ALLOCATION OF RISK IS REFLECTED IN OUR PRICES. Please consult your state’s laws for any other rights that you may have other than those described above.
(d) Warranty Services. You agree that this Agreement does not provide for, and the Service does not include, any warranty services or other services that we might provide separately, including, without limitation, any fee-based or other warranty programs.
(e) Standard Video Installation. Standard installation includes installing the wiring necessary to serve up to 3 HD/SD receivers and installing one surge protector if not provided by the customer. Programming up to 3 corresponding remotes and connecting one customer peripheral is included. Connecting additional peripherals or receivers will be billable at $20 per instance.
Customer Peripherals:
DVD/Blue-ray players
VCRs
TiVo/PVR
Sling boxes
Home Theater Systems*
Gaming Consoles
Other: ____________
*PRTC will connect our video receiver to the customer’s existing home theater system. We do not install home theater systems, speakers, etc.
Gaming consoles, DVD players, Blue-ray players and other peripherals that interface directly with the customer’s TV should not be impacted by PRTC’s digital TV service.
(f) Standard Broadband Installation. Standard broadband installation includes connecting a residential gateway and verifying Internet connectivity on the customer’s primary PC (desktop or laptop) either wired or via a Wi-Fi connection. All additional peripherals (gaming consoles, tablets, laptops, etc.) can be connected to your PRTC broadband connection either wired or via a Wi-Fi connection and technical support can be obtained by calling 1-888-836-2900.
8. RESOLVING DISPUTES
To expedite and control the cost of disputes, you and we agree that any legal or equitable claim relating to this Agreement, any addendum, or your Service (referred to as a "Claim") will be resolved as follows:
(a) Informal Resolution. We will first try to resolve any Claim informally. Accordingly, neither of us may start a formal proceeding (except for Claims described in Section 8(f) below) for at least SIX (6) MONTHS after one of us notifies the other of a Claim in writing. You will send your notice to the address on the first page of this Agreement, and we will send our notice to your billing address.
(b) Formal Resolution. Except as provided in Section 8(f) and as specifically provided elsewhere in this Agreement, if we cannot resolve a Claim informally, any Claim either of us asserts will be resolved only by binding arbitration. The arbitration will be conducted under the rules of JAMS that are in effect at the time the arbitration is initiated (referred to as the "JAMS Rules") and under the rules set forth in this Agreement. If there is a conflict between JAMS Rules and the rules set forth in this Agreement, the rules set forth in this Agreement will govern. ARBITRATION MEANS THAT YOU WAIVE YOUR RIGHT TO A JURY TRIAL. You may, in arbitration, seek any and all remedies otherwise available to you pursuant to your state's law. If you decide to initiate arbitration, you agree to tell us in writing the amount that you would pay to file a lawsuit against us in the appropriate court of law in your state. Unless we agree to pay your fee for you, you only need to pay an arbitration initiation fee equal to such a court filing fee, not to exceed $125; we agree to pay any additional fee or deposit required by JAMS to initiate your arbitration. We also agree to pay the costs of the arbitration proceeding. Other fees, such as attorney's fees and expenses of travel to the arbitration will be paid in accordance with JAMS Rules. The arbitration will be held at a location in Colleton County unless you and we both agree to another location or telephonic arbitration.
(c) Since it is likely that any claim brought by a party under this section will not exceed $250,000, the parties shall resolve any such disputes under the JAMS Streamlined Arbitration Rules and Procedures, provided that any dispute for a claim in excess of $250,000 will be resolved under the JAMS Comprehensive Arbitration Rules and Procedures.
(d) To start an arbitration, you or we must do the following things:
(1) Write a Demand for Arbitration. The demand must include a description of the Claim, and the amount of damages sought to be recovered. You can find a copy of a Demand for Arbitration at jamsadr.com.
(2) Send three copies of the Demand for Arbitration, plus the appropriate filing fee to:
JAMS
1201 West Peachtree St, NW
Suite 2650
Atlanta, GA 30309
Phone: 404-588-0900
Email: info@jamsatlanta.com
(3) Send one copy of the Demand for Arbitration to the other party.
(e) Special Rules. (i) In the arbitration proceedings, the arbitrator has no authority to make errors of law, and any award may be challenged if the arbitrator does so. Otherwise, the arbitrator's decision is final and binding on all parties and may be enforced in any federal or state court that has jurisdiction. (ii) Neither you nor we shall be entitled to join or consolidate claims in arbitration by or against other individuals or entities or arbitrate any claim as a representative member of a class or in a private attorney general capacity. Accordingly, you and we agree that the JAMS Class Action Procedures do not apply to our arbitration. If, however, the law of your state would find this agreement to dispense with class arbitration procedures unenforceable, then this entire Section 8 is unenforceable.
(f) Exceptions. Notwithstanding the foregoing: (i) any Claim based on Section 1(i) above may be resolved by in accordance with any remedies we may have under this Agreement, at law, in equity, or otherwise , and (ii) any dispute involving a violation of the Communications Act of 1934, 47 U.S.C. §§ 605, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, 17 U.S.C. § 1201, the Electronic Communications Privacy Act, 18 U.S.C. §§ 2510-2521, or any other statement or law governing theft of service, may be decided only by a court of competent jurisdiction.
9. MISCELLANEOUS
(a) Notice. Notices to you will be deemed given when personally delivered, addressed to you at your last known address and deposited in the U.S. Mail (which may include inclusion in your billing statement), or sent via Internet to the email address you provided us, or sent via satellite to your receiver, or delivered when a voice message is left at the telephone number on your account. Your notices to us will be deemed given when we receive them at the address or telephone number on the first page of this Agreement.
(b) Applicable Law. The interpretation and enforcement of this Agreement shall be governed by the rules and regulations of the Federal Communications Commission, other applicable federal laws, and the laws of South Carolina and Colleton County where Service is provided to you. This Agreement is subject to modification if required by such laws. Notwithstanding the foregoing, Section 8 shall be governed by the Federal Arbitration Act.
(c) Assignment of Account. We may assign your account or this Agreement and all rights and/or obligations hereunder to any third party without notice for any purpose, including, without limitation, collection of unpaid amounts, or in the event of an acquisition, corporate reorganization, merger or sale of substantially all the party's assets to another entity. You hereby consent to such an assignment. You must continue making all required payments to us in accordance with your billing statement, unless notified otherwise.
(d) Other. This Agreement and any lease, activation, programming, or other service commitment agreement that you entered in connection with obtaining Receiving Equipment constitute our entire agreement. No salesperson or other representative is authorized to change it. If any provision is declared by a competent authority to be invalid, that provision will be deleted or modified to the extent necessary, and the rest of the Agreement will remain enforceable. The terms of this Agreement that expressly or by their nature survive termination shall continue thereafter until fully performed.
