Norman meetings to be streamed on Web
norman adopts new agenda management software for $48,044

BY JANE GLENN CANNON Comments 1
Published: October 7, 2009

NORMAN — Residents will be able to watch city council meetings live via the Internet once new software is installed for the city’s Web site, officials said.

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What’s next?

Online broadcasting will start in in January.

City Clerk Brenda Hall said the software should be operable by January, allowing for both live viewing and viewing on demand of council and planning commission meetings.

Council members earlier this month approved a Webcasting/video streaming contract with Granicas Inc. for $49,568 to provide the software. The city will pay an additional $1,676 a month to Granicas for hosting and management services.

The council also approved spending $48,044 for an automated agenda management program through MCCi, which is compatible with the Granicas software, for city council and planning commission online agendas.

The new services will increase public access to information, Hall said. Many rural residents don’t have connections that allow them to view council meetings on Cox Cable Channel 20. Those residents will be able to watch the meetings on their personal computers, she said.

The new services will mean less paper, which translates to lower costs.

The contract with Granicas also will give the city about 200 hours of free programming per month, Hall said.