Lincoln City Councilman Jonathan Cook is introducing a resolution today calling for a performance evaluation of and a legal investigation into Time Warner Cable’s new Navigator program guide and DVR software.

“There are serious problems here,” Cook said Wednesday afternoon. “I think Lincoln customers deserve better. They are not getting what they have paid for.”

A public hearing on the resolution is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. March 5.

Time Warner asked Cook to wait a week before introducing his resolution to see if its latest software upgrade, scheduled to be finished by Friday, takes care of the problems, said Ann Shrewsbury, director of public affairs for the cable company’s Nebraska division.

“This is a top priority for this division and our company,” Shrewsbury said. “It’s very important for us to make the changes needed to create a great product that will have incredible opportunities in the future.”

According to Cook, the city’s franchise agreement with Time Warner, approved in November 2005, gives the city the authority to order a performance evaluation.

Cook’s resolution calls for the Cable Television Advisory Board to conduct the evaluation. It also calls for city attorneys to review any franchise agreement violations, Federal Communications Commission violations or other regulatory infractions.

Last fall, Time Warner dropped the contracted Passport channel guide in favor of the company-created Navigator.

Time Warner changed the guide to make it compatible with other software programs coming down the line, such as TV caller ID for those who have the company’s phone and digital cable service.

The change affected 46,000 digital cable subscribers. Time Warner has 110,000 television subscribers in Southeast Nebraska.

Time Warner is the nation’s second largest cable company with more than 18 million subscribers. The Nebraska division was the first to introduce Navigator to its customers.

The new guide has been beset with problems since its introduction. Complaints have ranged from the guide itself — ugly graphics, incomplete information, etc. — to problems with slow-reacting cable boxes and DVRs after the software was loaded into them, causing some subscribers to reboot one or more times a day.

Cook said he is a Time Warner subscriber and DVR user. As the council’s liaison to the Cable Television Advisory Board, he said he received his upgrade with Time Warner employees before it was introduced to the public.

“I didn’t think it was ready,” he said. “I thought it needed more work before it was released.”

Shrewsbury said Time Warner will comply with an evaluation. She also said the company has kept city officials abreast of the situation.

“The timing of this is unfortunate because we believe this latest (upgrade) will solve the most important issues affecting customers,” she said.

Residents unable to attend the hearing can e-mail their comments to council@lincoln.ne.gov.

Reach Jeff Korbelik at 473-7213 or jkorbelik@journalstar.com.