Reading this story, I imagine that on September 1st, the Comcast worker was standing there on the lawn, looking at the cable he had just installed for the two octogenarians. The cable went from the cable box to the house. It lay on the yard like a large, immobile black anaconda. He crossed his arms and said, “Yep, that looks about right,” and drove away to go eat a sandwich. The cable has now been lying out there for almost 2 months. [More]
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AT&T Relinquishes Vicegrip On Ex-Customer's $500
By 10.20.10
Consumerist reader Teighlor and her boyfriend tried to sign up for AT&T U-verse but after 20 days of missed appointments and it never getting installed, they returned the equipment and canceled the service. AT&T then deducted $500 from their account for unreturned equipment. [More]
I Refuse To Bow To The Altar Of Holy Envelopes
By 10.20.10
Lani is doing what it takes to guard as much as possible against identity-swiping mail thieves. Time Warner Cable sends Lani return envelopes with unprotected holes to show the address, but this is one customer who refuses to play the game, modifying the envelopes until they’re secure enough to send: [More]
Fox Blacked Out Hulu For Cablevision Subscribers
By 10.20.10
A small skirmish in the pissing match between Fox and Cablevision could have major repercussions. [More]
Why U.S. Broadband Sucks
By 10.6.10
The US is falling way behind other countries in the speed and cost of broadband access because of a lack of competition. Elsewhere in the world, the company that owns the physical internet backbone must sell access to a range of independent ISPs on the wholesale market. The result is a panoply of companies competing on service, quality, and price. But, a recent Scientific American article argues, back in 2002, the FCC reclassified broadband as “information service” instead of “telecommunications service,” and Mr. Local Monopoly has been partying it up ever since. [More]
Worst Company In America Trophy Mailed To Comcast
By 10.5.10
We are super-duper late in mailing out Comcast’s Worst Company In America trophy so we decided to spice it up with a disco lightshow for the award and a nice congratulatory letter. [More]
Fox Plays Hardball With DISH Network, Pulls 19 Regional Sports Channels and FX
By 10.1.10
We — just like you — have had it with stories about squabbling between cable/satellite providers and various networks. And yet, these nasty spats go on, and they always seem to come to a head at importune times. The latest: Fox has decided to pull 19 regional sports channels, FX and the National Geographic Channel from DISH Network subscribers while the two parties dicker over carriage fees. [More]
Tell The FCC To Nix The NBC Comcast Deal
By 9.28.10
If you don’t want Comcast to own NBC, you can use this handy dandy online petition Consumers Union put together for you to tell the FCC. As the agency continue to mull over the deal, perhaps your opinion may help sway theirs. But why might Kabletown owning the peacock be bad for consumers? [More]
Time Warner Cable Says It's Deprogramming My DVR From Afar
By 9.23.10
Seth gets the pleasure of rescheduling all his DVR settings thanks to an update Time Warner Cable is rolling out. [More]
Charter To Customer With Five Failed Service Calls: "You Haven't Bugged Us Enough To Resolve Your Problem"
By 9.21.10
Charter tells it like it is: the problem with Eric’s incorrectly installed Internet service is that he hasn’t been trying hard enough to fix it. Here’s a copy of an email that Eric tried to send to Charter’s CEO last week, but it bounced back. Maybe someone at Charter can read it here? [More]
Cable Companies Agree To Pay NY Customers For Late Service Calls
By 9.16.10
In a joyous-for-customers agreement straight out of a Seinfeld episode, Cablevision and Time Warner Cable cut a deal with New York’s City Hall that requires the companies to give customers a free month of service if a technician arrives late to an appointment. [More]
Man Gets Time Warner Bill Lowered More Than He Even Thought He Could
By 9.7.10
Nathan was paying $48.99 for Time Warner Cable internet and saw they were advertising the same service at $43.99. It wasn’t very hard to find, they put it right on his bill! When he called up to ask to get the same rate, they told him he could only get it if he bundled it with cable TV. So he hung up and called back again, using a different Time Warner Cable number. [More]
Strings Attached: Charities Comcast Donated To Send FCC Pro-Merger Letters
By 9.3.10
There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Comcast has donated over $1.8 billion to local charities and now that its merger with NBC is on the table, it’s time to call in the chits. Charities that received contributions from Comcast are pouring out their epistolary support for the merger, and they appear to be less than spontaneous. [More]
Time Warner Cable Reaches Deal With Disney, Customers To Get ESPN 3 Access
By 9.3.10
On the last day of the NFL pre-season, football fans are rejoicing — or at least the ones who subscribe to Time Warner Cable. The company has finally reached an agreement with Walt Disney Co. that will keep Disney-owned channels like ESPN from being blacked out during the first week of the the NCAA and NFL seasons. And TWC customers will now have access to ESPN’s online video portal ESPN3. [More]
Save $420 On Your Comcast Bill By Being A Pain In The Butt
By 9.1.10
Jeff in Seattle saves $420 a year on his Comcast bill by calling the company once every 6 months and demanding they keep him at the lowest competitive rate of $29.99. He threatens to go to Qwest if they don’t give him that rate. He’s been doing this for several years now, and it keeps working. [More]
FiOS Demands $500 Deposit For Transferring Service, $500 To Cancel Transfer
By 8.24.10
Consumerist reader Beth is a telecommuter who needs something more than the standard residential internet connection. So she decided to spring for the business-grade line for the apartment she shares with her boyfriend. However, since their TV has nothing to do with her business, they opted to keep the cable service on their residential account. I probably don’t need to tell you that trouble ensued. [More]
"Up To" Broadband Speeds Are BS, FCC Study Shows
By 8.18.10
Just like you’ve suspected/known all along, the “up to” broadband speeds providers offer – “up to 10 mbs!” – are nigh unattainable. A new FCC report finds that broadband users are, on average, only getting half of the advertised “up to” speeds. [More]
My Cable Provider Won't Let Me Have TiVo Without $50 Installation
By 8.6.10
Mike wanted to renew his suspended love affair with TiVo and inquired about ordering a box through his cable provider. He reconsidered when he was told the only way he could get a TiVo through the company is if he paid an unnecessary $50 “installation fee” to plug the box into his TV and wall. [More]
