Terms Used In Minnesota Statutes > Chapter 238 - Cable Communications

• Access: means entrance onto the premises of the property owner and an easement for purposes of surveying, designing, installing, inspecting, maintaining, operating, repairing, replacing, or removing equipment used in the construction and operation of a cable communications system. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Affidavit: A written statement of facts confirmed by the oath of the party making it, before a notary or officer having authority to administer oaths.
• Affiliated company: means a person, company, corporation, or other entity in which the utility has an affiliated interest as defined under section 216B. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Alternative providers: means other providers of television programming or cable communications services. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Amendment: A proposal to alter the text of a pending bill or other measure by striking out some of it, by inserting new language, or both. Before an amendment becomes part of the measure, thelegislature must agree to it.
• Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
• Assets: (1) The property comprising the estate of a deceased person, or (2) the property in a trust account.
• Association member: means an individual owner of a cooperatively owned multiple dwelling complex. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Cable communications system: means a system that (1) provides the service of receiving and amplifying (i) programs broadcast by one or more television or radio stations and (ii) other programs originated by a person operating a cable communications system or by another person, and (2) distributes those programs by wire, cable, microwave, or other means, regardless of whether the means are owned or leased, to persons who subscribe to the service. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
• Conduit system: means a reinforced passage or opening in, on, under, or through the ground capable of containing communications facilities and includes the following: main conduit; underground dips and short sections of conduit under roadways, driveways, parking lots, and similar conduit installations; laterals to poles and into buildings; ducts; and manholes. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
• Core service unit: means the municipality, or, in the case of a joint powers agreement, municipalities, in which a cable communications system first provides service under a lawful franchise and from which the cable communications system extends service into additional areas which are included in the boundaries of a cable service territory. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Corporation: A legal entity owned by the holders of shares of stock that have been issued, and that can own, receive, and transfer property, and carry on business in its own name.
• court administrator: means the court administrator of the court in which the action or proceeding is pending, and "court administrator's office" means that court administrator's office. See Minnesota Statutes 645.44
• Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
• Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
• Dismissal: The dropping of a case by the judge without further consideration or hearing. ^Source:
• Dwelling unit: means a single unit providing complete, independent, living facilities for one or more persons, including permanent provisions for living, sleeping, eating, cooking, and sanitation. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• entity: means an independent, nonprofit corporation to govern the operation of the regional channel. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
• Extension area: means a municipality or municipalities located outside the franchise boundaries of the core service unit. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Extension permit: means any authorization granted by an extension area in the form of a franchise, privilege, permit, license or other municipal authorization to construct, operate, maintain, or manage a cable communications system within the boundaries of the extension area. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Fair market value: The price at which an asset would change hands in a transaction between a willing, informed buyer and a willing, informed seller.
• Franchise: means any authorization granted by a municipality in the form of a franchise, privilege, permit, license or other municipal authorization to construct, operate, maintain, or manage a cable communications system in any municipality. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
• Guardian: A person legally empowered and charged with the duty of taking care of and managing the property of another person who because of age, intellect, or health, is incapable of managing his (her) own affairs.
• Head end: means the electronic control center of a cable communications system, which includes antennas, preamplifiers, frequency converters, demodulators, modulators and other related equipment which receives, amplifies, filters and converts incoming signals to cable system channels. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Indemnification: In general, a collateral contract or assurance under which one person agrees to secure another person against either anticipated financial losses or potential adverse legal consequences. ^{Source: FDIC}
• Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
• Lease: A contract transferring the use of property or occupancy of land, space, structures, or equipment in consideration of a payment (e.g., rent). ^{Source: OCC}
• Liabilities: The aggregate of all debts and other legal obligations of a particular person or legal entity.
• Majority: means with respect to an individual the period of time after the individual reaches the age of 18. See Minnesota Statutes 645.451
• Master antenna television system: means any system which serves only the residents of one or more apartment dwellings under common ownership, control or management and any commercial establishment located on the premises of such apartment house and which transmits only signals broadcast over the air by stations which may be normally viewed or heard locally without objectionable interference, and which does not provide any additional service over its facilities other than closed-circuit security viewing services. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Minor: means an individual under the age of 18. See Minnesota Statutes 645.451
• Multiple dwelling complex: means a site, lot, field, or tract of land or water, other than a common interest community or mobile home park, whether occupied or under construction, containing more than four dwelling units. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Municipality: means any organized town, city, or county with respect to the unorganized territory within its boundaries. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
• Other providers of television programming or cable communications services: means operators of master antenna television systems (MATV), satellite master antenna television systems (SMATV), multipoint distributions systems (MDS), and direct broadcast satellite systems (DBS). See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Partnership: A voluntary contract between two or more persons to pool some or all of their assets into a business, with the agreement that there will be a proportional sharing of profits and losses.
• Person: means any individual, trustee, partnership, municipality, association, corporation or other legal entity. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Person: may extend and be applied to bodies politic and corporate, and to partnerships and other unincorporated associations. See Minnesota Statutes 645.44
• Program: means any broadcast-type program, signal, message, graphics, data, or communication content service. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Property owner: means any person with a recorded interest in a multiple dwelling complex, or person known to the person operating a cable communications system to be an owner, or the authorized agent of the person. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• Real property: Land, and all immovable fixtures erected on, growing on, or affixed to the land.
• Remainder: An interest in property that takes effect in the future at a specified time or after the occurrence of some event, such as the death of a life tenant.
• Resident: means a person or entity paying rent to a property owner. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• State: means the state of Minnesota. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02
• state: extends to and includes the District of Columbia and the several territories. See Minnesota Statutes 645.44
• Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
• Summons: Another word for subpoena used by the criminal justice system.
• Tax: means any fee, charge, exaction, or assessment imposed by a governmental entity on an individual, person, entity, transaction, good, service, or other thing. See Minnesota Statutes 645.44
• Trustee: A person or institution holding and administering property in trust.
• Utility: means a person, corporation, or other entity that operates, maintains, or controls equipment or facilities in this state for furnishing at retail electric service to the public. See Minnesota Statutes 238.02