FCC: Why Are Cable Customers Paying The Same Amount For Fewer Channels?
The WSJ says that the FCC has sent letters of inquiry to 11 cable companies asking why their customers are paying the same amount each month, even as the companies move channels to digital cable.
The WSJ says:
Some consumers are complaining that they are getting fewer channels now on their analog cable service, as cable companies move channels to more-expensive, digital tiers. Once a channel is moved to a digital tier, it is unavailable to analog customers, who still make up about 40% of cable subscribers.
Agency officials said the investigation stems from concerns that cable companies could be trying to use the transition to digital-only television broadcasts in February to lure their subscribers to move to these more-expensive digital tiers.
Cable subscribers don't have to do anything to prepare for the digital transition, because that will affect only consumers who rely on TV sets using antennas. Cable subscribers aren't required to upgrade to digital tiers of service, either.
We can't wait for the explanation.
Reader Tim, who sent the article in, says:
I'm glad the FCC is finally investigating the questionable practices of cable companies, including RCN, who is now forcing converter boxes on their subscribers at a cost of $4 per TV per month and creating a new "digital tier" and essentially forcing consumers to subscribe to this new "premium" package just to get the same channels as before.
FCC Opens Investigation Into Cable-TV Pricing [WSJ]
(Photo: Getty)
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Comments:
I love how we're in denial about the monopolies that exist in the U.S.
As far as I know, Comcast no longer advertises it's non-digital services, although they are still available.
That said, it will be interesting to see what they have to say about it.
Cablevision a.k.a. Optimum just recently took a few basic channels off the analog and sent 'em to digital. Pissed my mom off enough to call them and complain, so they sent her another box to use free. Even though there are 3 other boxless TVs still in the house.
Then the bill went up anyways.
Cox cable recently raised our monthly fee substantially and cut the channels we get. So we're on DirecTV (satellite) now, getting more channels than with Cox for a lower price. Vote with your bank account!
But of course, prices will be lower when cable companies have monopolies.... /sarcasm
Dish Network FTW. We fired our cable company years ago. I never regretted it for a minute.
@Saboth:
Prices go up every year largely because the prices the cable companies pay to the channel owners go up every year - they're passing the cost on to you.
For the vast majority of Americans, there are at least three pay TV options - a significant number have four by now.
Or you could just ditch cable and go with over the air signals for the basic stations.
Do you really need all those stations you don't watch for an extra $40 per month?
Another question cable subscribers should be asking is why they pay for the most basic cable (all channels you can get over-the-air anyway) while the cable companies charge the small local channels on that service upwards of a million dollars to be on that service. They charge both parties to provide that one station...pretty interesting, huh?
Now if only they could get something related to ala carte cable services going . . . .
I was wondering about this too. I have Charter, and they've taken away several channels, while inundating me with tons of junk mail trying to get me to switch to digital. I refuse, and if push came to shove, I'd just pull the plug outright. I don't watch that much TV, I wouldn't even bother with cable except for the fact that I live next to an airport and wouldn't get any reception at all otherwise.
@JustThatGuy3: Not so sure about that "vast majority" bit. Most places have one cable company, and satellite is only available if you own your own home, or happen to have an understanding landlord and a balcony that faces south.
@ModernTenshi04: Most people would love ala carte services. I went through my channel lineup and figured I would end up with local channels plus about 20 others at the most. I wonder how many shopping channels would die overnight?
@BrandonOBrien: Unfortunately, the only digital over-the-air broadcasts I can get are religious stations. I can't even get the big 3 networks.
@BrandonOBrien: I went OTA + Netflix years ago and saved a ton of cash and get to watch what I want on my schedule.
Recently experienced this at my gym w/TWC. One day we had a regular slate of channels. The next day? Gone...imgaine that...a gym w/no ESPN. It's been about 2 months. My gym has finally decided to switch to the dish...just waiting for landlord approval.
@Orv:
About 75-80% of US households can get satellite - call it "vast," call it "substantial," whatever term, it's the large majority of US homes.
No, they don't actually charge. If you're on the air in your market, they have to carry you by law. The only people who get charged are QVC and HSN.
@JustThatGuy3: Tell me, sir, where exactly are these options? Millions of apartment owners have no such options. My parents in Bolingbrook, IL only have Comcast as a cable supplier, and satellite is too expensive. My grandparents in Rogers, AK, only have Cox as an option. I, an apartment dweller, luckily have the option of Comcast and WoW, of which I went to WoW; I can't get satellite or AT&T's Uverse or Verizon FIOS.
The real question to ask these companies is how can they justify the prices of the "digital" tiers, and the need for a set-top box, once that distinction is no longer applicable. Yes, the box serves another purpose of decrypting the higher-tier channels, but that just leads back to the ultimate question.
How can they really justify these prices?
@Canino:
Shopping channels wouldn't go anywhere - they'd be provided to everyone for free, since they pay the cable operators to be on the network. The religious channels would stay too. The smaller arts channels would go, as would a large portion of the ethnic or special interest programming. SciFi probably wouldn't make it. ESPN would do fine, as would TNT, TBS, USA, etc.
@JustThatGuy3: 75-80% of households, or 75-80% of homeowners? It makes a difference. I've never had an apartment where satellite was an option. All my leases have prohibited outside antennas, and anyway I was usually too low or on the wrong side of the building.
Comcast is out-right lying to its customers about its digital tiers and the analog-to-digital transition. We have a basic cable package, and upon making a service call a couple of weeks ago the representative told us she noticed we hadn't switched to their "digital starter package," and that we would need to do so before the 2009 deadline or we would no longer have service. Total B.S.
I too wish the satellite services would go to alacarte. Wife and I watch maybe 5 channels and it costs me $57 a month. One thing I did do though is cancel my XM subscription for my garage. I get the same music on the TV.. just pipe it outside while I'm working on the GTO...
@snoop-blog: Even when consumers do have the option of multiple choices, we don't see the "free market" acting like free market advocates claim it should. Comcast, AT&T / Dish, Time Warner, Verizon / Direct TV, etc... all have terrible customer service and are all raising their rates. If in actuality this is not a monopoly, their corporate behavior is pretty much the same as if it was, and all of these companies manage to survive due to mutually assured incompetence.
Dear Mr. Fcc
Because we can.
Thank You
Comcast
@zigziggityzoo: In my area, there are 2 Comcast analog options. A non advertised $15 package which gives locals and 4 cable channels or a $55 one that havs most the basics. The funny thing is that they advertise digital cable for $56 so this is their way of getting analog people off the ship.
@BrandonOBrien: That's the problem :( There are maybe 3 or 4 stations that I regularly watch not available OTA. I really wish I could purchase them a-la-carte for $3 or $4 each per month rather than having to pay $59 a month for several hundred stations I do not watch. It REALLY pisses me off that I'm paying for religious cable stations like Daystar.
Now that many networks are putting their shows online, and the rest I can watch from DVD, cable is pretty much obsolete for me.
What nobody tells you is that if you have an HDTV with a QAM tuner, you can get many of the cable company's digital stations for free. I get Charter's complete digital cable package, and several of my local stations in HD just by hooking my cable up to my HDTV and letting it search for stations. I only pay for basic cable. The cable companies have done an EXCELLENT job making you think that you need a cable box to receive HD or digital stations, but you don't necessarily.
Even more troubling is the fact they're trying to push out set-top boxes with Switched Digital Video. My Tivo's CableCards dont even have a chance of accessing those since SDV requires two way communication. Sure, a solution has been in the works" for a while but it should already be here as it isn't THAT hard! Thankfully Time Warner has been fined and I hope they get fined even more.
Bidirectional communications for everyone please. Tru2Way, etc... make it snappy!
@snoop-blog: I'm not in denial of any monopolies that exist. Hell, I live in Monroe County, IL. I have just ONE phone company to pick for local telco service. I can't just choose AT&T, Charter, etc. No, I just have Harrisonville Telephone Company.
I've only lived out this way for going on a decade, but people that have lived here for thirty years can't tell me why that is the way it is. I asked The Consumerist to look into it but I have gotten a lot of dead air after what seemed like an auto reply to the tipster e-mail I sent.
@ModernTenshi04: I would give my left ear for a la carte cable service. I even have a list read of all the channels I'd want if a la carte ever happens
It wouldn't bother me to get rid of cable altogether though either. I use hulu or netflix for most of what I want, but the hubby has to have his sports channels *sigh*
Comcast rolled up more channels into HD service and then upped my bill, but I get fewer digital, non-HD, channels.
To get those channels back... $10/mo per box.
>:O
That might seem so, but the OTA stations are not broadcasting with enough strength for many to get them. I lost 4 channels going to DTV from Analog. It is all a money game being co-oped by tech/cable/wireless industries with Gov giving them a hands up. The rural American areas are getting screwed, no cable, no broadband. satellite is a poor solution and I do not consider them equal competition. either way, the Gov decided you WILL pay one way or another whether it be high cable service, high satellite service, new expensive outdoor antennas, etc... you will NOT go into the next year without opening that wallet.
What most disturbing is that these cable companies are taking advantage of the confusion over the digital switch over, which only affects people who get their TV with an antenna anyway.
This really depends on your cable provider. The cable companies are only required to send OTA channels via ClearQAM which the tuner in your TV can see. Any non-OTA HD channel is encrypted by my provider.
I have a HD-DVR leased from them and I can see a lot of HD channels that they provide for free; however, I cannot tune these extra channels on my computer which has a QAM tuner in it.
God what I wouldn't give to see the collective "Oh shit!" faces on the executives when this letter landed on their desk.
Comcast removed all of the non-network channels from my basic cable a few months ago. Now all I get extra is WGN and TBS (as opposed to the dozen extra channels as I had before.) I'm still paying the same price. (Not for long, wink wink.)
I have Verizon FiOS and I have been paying for the HD package along with all the movie channels. They just added a lot of HD channels, but some of the new channels offered in HD (ABC Family, ESPN News, FX HD etc.) I do not get, even though I get them in the Standard Def. When I asked about them, they said I need the "Extream" HD package, at $10 more a month, to get those channels. Huh??? Let's see... I'm paying for the HD package, but I don't get all of the standard HD channels? BTW, I have the "triple play" and I'm paying around $210 (after taxes and fees) a month already.
@arkangel: Yep my parents have charter and they have noticed the slow channel drain as well. Charter is clearly trying to get their customers annoyed enough to just make the switch, for extra cost of course.
@ModernTenshi04: A l cart would be great! Until our favorite channels start getting cut because not enough people are subscribing to them. Then that would suck. No thanks. I hope cable companies never go a la cart. I love the Science Channel.
Doesn't surprise me... my comcast just went up another 5% per month, because they are "expanding". Strangely, their expansion didn't include any more channels or tiers of service for myself. Apparently I am paying for them to expand to other areas without the services I have?