Cable television will soon no longer be offered in dorm rooms; however, lounges in residence halls will be “up-graded” according to Information of Technology Services (ITS).
In April, students can expect no more cable in their dorm rooms, but more cable channels in lounges.
ITS plan to use the $50,000 annually saved from cable television for increasing the on-campus Internet speed by 25 percent as well as upgrading television channels.
Director of Infrastructure Services Curtis Crockett said Cox, PLNU’s cable television provider, notified PLNU in 2009 that a switch in cable services would happen in several years. Crockett said that last November,
Cox followed up with ITS about the cable switch and said it would take place in April. However, Cox started to disconnect channels in February.
Crockett added that ITS was un- aware of this switch until students began to contact ITS telling them that certain channels weren’t working.
ITS decided to not continue cable television because it would cost an extra $50,000. Also each room would need a digital receiver and it would cost a rental fee.
“In order to have digital cable, you need have [cable] boxes,” said Molly Petersen, assistant director of student housing. “Imagine every room all over campus have a box and a remote.”
Crockett said that ITS and Student Development partnered in order to see what would be best for students.
He added that a lot of students have switched to online streaming applications like Netflix and Hulu making the use of cable in residential halls significantly lower in the past couple of years.
Crockett wants to make sure that the wireless connection all over campus is stable before ITS continues enhancing the speed of Internet.
“We just finished a Young Hall Wi- Fi upgrade over the Christmas break and plan to complete all the Flex units this summer,” Crockett said. ”
Bandwidth is an important part of the equation, but if students do not have a stable and consistent wireless network experience, all the bandwidth in the world will not help.
PLNU sophomore and applied health science major, Aaron Monton, said that he doesn’t like the change in cable television, but he does see the good in it.
“I am very disappointed because I am regular watcher of television, however, I do feel like other students use Netflix and other things to watch television,” Monton said.
PLNU senior and managerial and organizational communication major, Alexandra Winkler, said that she doesn’t care about the switch in cable television.
“It’s so irrelevant to me, I don’t even have a TV in my apartment,” Winkler said. “I’m just thankful ‘The Bachelor’ is over.”
ITS said it plans to continue trying to upgrade internet coverage all around campus to better the Internet experience everywhere on-campus.
“This is why ITS has spent a great deal of energy focused on improving wireless in residence halls and across the entire campus,” Crockett said. “We are not done, but have made big steps in the right direction to address the needs of the entire PLNU community.”
Petersen said that she is sure there are mixed reviews about the switch in cable television, but that change takes time for adjusting.
“Changes in anything—changes in policies, changes in benefits like cable, there’s a few years of transition,” Petersen said. “And then it’s like ‘oh this is the way it is.’”
photo by en.wikipedia.org
Grace Barrera 
Grace Chaves 
Charis Johnston