HomeMy WebLinkAboutStaff Report 209-07City of Palo Alto
City Manager’s Report
TO:HONORABLE CITY COUNCIL
FROM:CITY MANAGER DEPARTMENT: ADMINISTRATIVE
SERVICES
DATE: APRIL 23, 2007 CMR: 209:07
SUBJECT: INTERNET BROADCASTING AND ARCHIVING OF CITY MEETINGS
This is an informational report and no Council action is required.
BACKGROUND
On April 21, 2003, a CMR was presented to Council outlining the options available for the
internet broadcasting, known as webcasting, of City Council meetings. The costs ranged from a
low of $38,000 to outsource the service to a high of $89,000 to perform the service in-house.
With funds made available by a Cable Co-op grant, the Community Media Center was able to
purchase the equipment necessary to begin offering this service to its customers.
DISCUSSION
Beginning on April 2, 2007, the Community Media Center will provide live webcasting and
webcast archives of all City meetings. Meetings that are broadcast live will be simultaneously
webcast and the archive webcast will be available within 72 hours of the live broadcast.
Meetings that are not broadcast but recorded on tape will also be available via the webcast
archive within 72 hours of the meeting date. Links to the webcasts will be available on the
City’s internet site and the Community Media Center site.
A high-speed connection (cable or DSL) will support audio and video play (and replay) while a
dial up connection will only support audio play (and replay).
Meeting webcasts will be indexed for ease of reference. An archive of meeting webcasts will be
maintained online for a period of 12 months. Periodically, a DVD will be created and turned
over to the City Clerk’s Office. The City Clerk will maintain these DVDs as a historical record.
The cost of the service is $32,000 per year and includes the indexing, webcasting and archiving
of 167 meetings. This service will be included in the current contract for services budget with
the Community Media Center with no additional funds required.
CMR:209:07 Page 1 of 2
PREPARED BY:
GLENN E. LO0
-"Chief Information Officer
APPROVED BY:
CITY MANAGER APPROVAL:
Director/Administrative Services
Assistant City Manager
CMR:209:07 Page 2 of 2