Comcast, Michigan Towns Bury PEG Hatchet

Comcast's Michigan division has officially settled a lawsuit with four communities in the state that had sued the cable operator over its plans to deliver public, education and government channels in digital-only format.

Under the settlement with three of the communities -- Dearborn, Bloomfield Township and Meridian Township -- Comcast will continue to deliver existing PEG channels in an analog format on the limited basic cable tier in Michigan until the company digitizes its entire lineup or until a community voluntarily agrees to the digitization of the PEG channels. In addition, Comcast agreed to pay Meridian Township a one-time grant of $250,000 to be distributed proportionately among the three communities. Comcast has also reached a separate agreement with the city of Warren (MI), which will be joining in the filing of the consent judgment and order of dismissal.