Frequently Asked Questions

BVtv, Rates, Lineups & More

Local Broadcast Retransmission Fees are set by your local broadcasters, such as WIBW, KTKA, KTMJ, etc. These fees are charged outside of the BVtv packages because they change every year. You can find the rules governing these fees in the 1992 Cable Act.

All Satellite and Cable providers are required to pay Content Providers a set fee for every household subscribed to the TV service – regardless of whether anyone in the household actually watches it. This is the industry standard as it is today.

Many customers would prefer to pay for only the most popular Networks and a select group of quality, special-interest ones that appeal to them. This is something we would love to offer, but unfortunately Content Providers will not allow it. Part of the negotiations process includes them directing companies like BVTC on how their networks are packaged.  

By registering at www.watchtveverywhere.com, you can access your favorite shows on channels   that coordinate with your BVtv package (see enclosed line-up for available channels). You will be able to access this content anywhere you have an Internet connection. When registering, be sure to select “Blue Valley Tele-Communications” as your provider. All channels with a green check in your line-up should come available over the next 60 days. (Note: If accessing TV Everywhere on a mobile device, we recommend connecting to a WiFi network to avoid data fees from your cellular provider.)

BVT belongs to the National Cable Television Cooperative (NCTC), who serves over 850 independent television operators across the United States. By belonging to this organization, BVT gains stronger negotiation power with Content Providers as NCTC members normally band together during negotiation processes. To learn more about this process click here.

When contracts come to an end, we diligently negotiate with Content Providers to secure the best    terms for our customers. By holding firm in our negotiations, we’ve held these programming price increases well below the high annual increases that many Content Providers demand; some asking for increases of 50%, 100%, or even higher. We actively negotiate every contract in the best interest of our viewers.

Occasionally decisions will be made to drop channels because network demands are unreasonably high or not in the best interest of the majority of our customers. Sometimes keeping those channels means viewers might face rate increases. It is important to emphasize that our pricing is ALWAYS carefully thought through and ALL steps taken are to ensure continued quality for our subscribers. Because no two homes have the same viewing habits, we do our best to ensure the most popular and highly requested channels remain on the BVtv lineup. 

The contract you signed was designed to waive any equipment installation fees normally charged and in some cases, offers you a monthly discount. Rarely does a contract lock you into a set price – as stated in all BVT contracts. Fortunately because you are in a contract with BVT, you will continue to receive your monthly discount. 

If you live in the following towns (Axtell, Beattie, Centralia, Home, Linn, Oketo, Onaga, Palmer, Summerfield, Vermillion, Westmoreland or Wheaton) you probably just got a new remote. To program your remote, follow these instructions:

  1. Press & hold  the 1 & 3 buttons at the same time for approximately 3 seconds until the TV standby button remains lit, then release both buttons.
  2. Point remote at the TV. Press & hold the TV Standby button or the Mute button on the remote control.
  3. When the TV turns off or brings up the Mute symbol on screen, then release that button.  This may take up to 5 minutes to happen.
  4. Press & hold the Text & STOP buttons to finish.  The TV Standby button will go out.  The TV control function is now programmed into the remote.

For a complete list of instructions and functions of the buttons on your remote, please view our Remote Functions and Instructions page. For a remote code, please call our office at 877.876.1228.

To only view the channels you are subscribed to, simply press the guide button twice. The first time you press the guide button, it will show all of the channels BVtv has to offer. Press one more time and you are able to view only the channels to which you are subscribed.

Content Providers are the owners of the television networks you enjoy watching. A few of these include ESPN, Viacom, Turner Networks, and Scripps – all of whom provide programming aka TV channels you receive on BVtv. In order for companies like BVT to have permission to air these channels, we must comply with and pay their programming fees – all of which are renegotiated every few years.  You can find more information about this here.

The majority of your BVtv charges are passed on to cable network and broadcast station owners. Each service provider such as BVT, is under contract with these Content Providers and thus are charged a fee per channel, per month, per customer for the right to provide that station or network to you.

These fees have increased dramatically over the past several years and typically are renegotiated every two to five years.  You can find more information about that here.

General

Please contact our office and ask for Isaac Murphy. To view which networks are available to advertise with, click here.

These batteries located within your home run your telecommunications services and need replaced every four to five years. Once you hear the beep, call our office and we will schedule a technician to replace the battery free of charge. There is a silence button you can hold down for two seconds to mute the beep.

In response to consumer concerns about unwelcome telemarketing calls, the FCC and the Federal Trade Commission established the national Do-Not-Call Registry. The registry applies to all telemarketers (with the exception of certain non-profit and political organizations) and covers both interstate and intrastate telemarketing calls. Commercial telemarketers are not allowed to call you if your number is listed on the registry.

Consumers may register their residential telephone number, including wireless numbers, on the national Do-Not-Call Registry at no cost by telephone or on the Internet. To register by telephone, you should call 888-382-1222. For TTY, call 866-290-4236. You must call from the phone number you wish to register. You may also register by Internet at www.donotcall.gov. Inclusion of your telephone number on the national Do-Not-Call Registry will be effective 31 days after registration.

Dial *57 immediately after you receive the phone call. This traps the number of the caller. Then, immediately call your local law enforcement office. Service charges for this service may apply and will vary depending on the phone company.

  4GB 8GB 16GB 32GB
Songs 480 960 1920 3840
Pictures 310 620 1240 2480
Videos 40 min. 80 min. 2.75 hours 5.3 hours

This chart gives you an idea of how many songs, pictures and videos you can store with different sizes. This information is an approximate guess and differs from device to device. (Source: Amazon.com)

Internet, Broadband & Email

VoIP service refers to Voice over Internet Protocol, which means using Internet technology to transmit and deliver voice communications. Rather than using the traditional analog telephone network, VoIP digitizes the voice signal into information packets that are sent over the Internet or computer network. The packets are reassembled at the other end of the connection to produce the voice signal. Until recently, IP network-delivered voice service has been constrained by very poor quality and limited reliability. Recent advancements in IP technology have improved the quality of digitized voice service, and IP networks are becoming more and more capable of carrying voice communications on par with the traditional network.

From a technical starting point, users must have a broadband connection to take advantage of VoIP and other IP-enabled services. Since VoIP is Internet-based, it was developed independent of the policy and regulatory realm that has governed the national telephone network. There remain serious misgivings about the IP networks current lack of E-911 capabilities and the inability of law enforcement officials to track and "tap" packet-based voice signals. Congress, the FCC, and state lawmakers are currently investigating how to promote the roll-out of VoIP and other IP-enabled services at the same time as they safeguard the universal service, emergency, law enforcement, consumer privacy and other social policy objectives attained and promoted through the national switched telephone network for almost a century.

An ONT contains the electronics that convert a signal of light into usable voice, data and video services. This box will be located on the outside of your home/business. There will be an additional box installed inside your home/business which will power the unit. This power supply unit will also contain a back-up battery in case of a power outage.

Attention all bluevalley.net email users!

Here are instructions on how to install the certificate for your Blue Valley email. There are three sets of instructions; Windows desktop, Apple devices, and Android devices. Please go to the appropriate instructions and follow all prompts when the pop-up asks you to install your new certificate. Just follow the prompts with ease and this can be done from the comfort of your own home.

The term broadband commonly refers to high-speed Internet access that is always on and faster than traditional dial-up access. Broadband includes several high-speed transmission technologies such as: Digital Subscriber Line (DSL), Cable Modem, Fiber, Wireless, Satellite, and Broadband over Powerlines (BPL).
Source: www.fcc.gov

FTTH is a new technology that uses fiber optic cable instead of copper cable to deliver telephone, data (Internet, etc.) and video services. BVTC was one of the first in the nation to deploy fiber optics, which has the capacity for an indefinite amount of data and is a necessity in today’s world. We offer FTTH to all households in the following exchanges: Axtell, Beattie, Centralia, Home, Linn, Oketo, Onaga, Palmer, Summerfield, Vermillion, Westmoreland, and Wheaton.

  1. Open Outlook
  2. Click Tools
  3. Click Accounts
  4. Click the Mail tab
  5. Double click on the account
  6. Change the email address
  7. Verify that the following data is inserted:
  8. My incoming mail server is a POP3
  9. Incoming mail address: mail.bluevalley.net
  10. Outgoing mail address: mail.bluevalley.net
  11. Account name: test
  12. Click Apply
  13. Click OK
  14. Click Close

You can send a test message to yourself to see if the account is working correctly. Be sure to click send and receive to force Outlook to check for new messages.

Click here for additional information.

To set up your Blue Valley email on an iPhone, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Settings > Mail, Contacts, Calendars > Add New Account > Other
  2. Enter first, last name
  3. Email address
  4. Password
  5. Description will Auto Populate
  6. Select Next
  7. Select IMAP
  8. Incoming Host Name > mail.bluevalley.net
  9. Username (please use your full bluevalley.net email address)
  10. Password
  11. Outgoing Host Name > mail.bluevalley.net
  12. Username (even though it says optional, enter it anyway)
  13. Password (same as above)
  14. Select Next > Save > Save Again

Tip: SSL must be ON!  Your email will not work if SSL is off. To ensure SSL is indeed off, go to:

  • Settings
  • Mail, Contacts, Calendars
  • Blue Valley Account > Click on the Account
  • Advanced Settings (make sure the SSL option is on)

To set up your Blue Valley email on an Android smartphone, follow these steps:

  1. Go to Email App > Select Other > Enter email address & password > Select Manual Setup > Select IMAP Account
  2. Username (please use your full bluevalley.net email address)
  3. Password
  4. Incoming IMAP Server > mail.bluevalley.net
  5. Port 993
  6. Security Type > None
  7. Select Next
  8. Outgoing SMTP Server > mail.bluevalley.net
  9. Port 587 or 465
  10. Security Type > SSL
  11. Require Sign in > Yes
  12. Select Next > Give the Account a Name > Select Done

Landline Phone & Billing

KUSF was mandated by the Kansas Corporation Commission (KCC) to ensure all customers in rural high-cost areas of the state have access to affordable service. This charge also supports the Lifeline program, Kansas Relay Services, and Telecommunications Access Program, as well as network enhancements and upgrades in rural areas.

SLC is a flat monthly charge, established by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), assessed directly to customers to help local telephone companies recover some of their costs in construction and maintaining the local network. Current monthly charges are $6.50 for residential single-line, multi-line and business single-line; and $9.20 for business multi-line and hunt group.

Your bill includes the 3% federal excise tax levied by the federal government that applies to all telecom services, not just local service. In addition, many state, local and/or municipal governments impose taxes on telecom services and, if applicable, these taxes are listed on your bill. In some states, these charges may appear as a "gross receipts" or "franchise" tax.

If there is an unauthorized or fraudulent charge on your bill, you do not have to pay it. If you find an unauthorized charge on your bill, call us during office hours at 877-876-1228. We will be happy to fix it for you.

CPNI stands for Customer Proprietary Network Information. The FCC has implemented new rules to protect the privacy of your information contained in your BVTC account. The new rules allow us to discuss account information only with the person(s) listed on the account. Also, we must be able to authenticate authorized individuals by asking for a password or by asking a specific question.

To view a list of our calling features and operation instructions, click here.

If you have a battery back-up, your landline phone will work for up to 6-8 hours, depending on the type of battery back-up you have. Things to remember if your power goes out: 

  • You must have a corded phone to use when the power goes out.
  • If you are using a generator during power outages, make sure the battery back-up is hooked up to the generator.
  • If you are a special needs customer with critical healthcare issues, be sure to call 877.876.1228 as soon as possible.
  • If your battery back-up ever beeps, you need to call the office for a replacement. 

If you do not have a battery back-up, please contact Blue Valley to purchase one. 

Federal and state lawmakers believe every person in America should have access to quality, affordable telecommunications service. If you participate in programs such as food stamps, Medicaid, the national school free-lunch program, supplemental security income, or if your household income is below a certain threshold level, you may qualify for a discount on your telephone bill. The Universal Service Administrative Company lists full details and state-specific Lifeline contact information, at www.lifelinesupport.org. If you have questions about Lifeline, Link-Up and TLS discounts, call 888-641-8722.

If you are a new customer or if you are getting a new service hooked up, your bill will be pro-rated for the remainder of the month you signed up in, plus include fees for the following month’s services. Communication services are billed one month in advance.

For example, if you sign up for a $20 service on the 15th of the month, your pro-rated portion for that month is $10, plus you will be paying $20 for the following month, which makes your first bill $30.

The E-911 surcharge is a state/local government charge to fund emergency 911 services, such as fire and rescue.

FUSC assists with the costs of providing affordable services to low-income residents in rural, high-cost areas. FUSC also helps schools, libraries and rural healthcare providers obtain services like Internet. All providers of telecommunications services contribute to the support of these programs. The amount on your bill depends on the services you order and the number of telephone lines you have.

Capital Credits

Capital credits are allocated to members of the cooperative, which includes those living within one of our 12 original exchanges that subscribe to our tariffed telecommunications services. These exchanges include Axtell, Beattie, Centralia, Home, Linn, Oketo, Onaga, Palmer, Summerfield, Vermillion, Westmoreland, and Wheaton.

The allocation amount is based on the dollars you spent throughout the year with us. The check amount is based on the percentage voted upon by the Blue Valley Board of Directors in October.

Checks are disbursed every November, usually around Thanksgiving. In order to receive your check in a timely manner, please keep us updated on your current address. Also, please be sure to keep your bill paid or your check cannot be cut.

TechHome

TechHome is unlimited on demand technical support on multiple Wi-Fi connected devices for less than $13/month. 

Support is available Monday - Saturday from 7 a.m. - 8 p.m. Central Standart Time.