Goodbye IFC

I can't give you a link on this, but I remember reading that cable companies are required to allow their customers to purchase channels a la carte if they request it--in other words, to get the channels that you want without purchasing a package that includes the channels that you do not want. They won't advertise this feature, of course, but you should try doing some research.

(I have not tried this myself, but only because I am pretty satisfied with the channel package I get.)

Thank you Beth - a Google search turned up this interesting article I'll be following through with to see what happens.

Cable a la carte

The recent move of IFC to the same "tier" as Sundance has me wondering if Comcast is following the line of logic from this ->

"Bundles of different channels in the same genre sold together, such as kids' channels, do not count as a per-channel offering under the FCC rule, so the cable operator can require you to buy expanded basic service to get the package."

Original article: Get your cable a la Carte

I bitched about Comcast to anyone who listened (and I'm still bitching about their cable internet service), but all my television problems disappeared when I got DirecTV. The lineup is great, the picture quality is better, and the price is much less than I was paying for Comcast digital cable.

Get DirecTV with TiVo, and you're leaving in television nirvana.

I'm not sure what Comcast has changed in Chattanooga, but they've jacked up the price more. And we especially get yanked because in the 80's they were allowed to have a monopoly thank to our wonderful city council. they have an agreement with the city to be the only cable co for about 20 years. while we have others, they don't have a chance.

t,

mathew here. that really stinks, manzo. we were in that same kinda boat here in the great white north.

then, we moved and dropped cable. we get 1 channel, which allows us to watch buffy. hehe.

what more do you need? i always commented that if we were to get a dish or sommat, we'd only get cbc newsworld, bbc news, discovery, history, and that's it. trouble is, it's hard to justify the cost of setup for only 5 channels. :)

-mathew

Why not just say “Goodbye Comcast”? They don’t deserve your money. Drop TV, watch the Web instead.

What Sunil said. DirecTV is the way to go -- in my area (TX) satellite costs less than cable and I get more channels (and more of what I like to watch anyway). Plus, I can administer my account online and I don't get junk email or stupid calls trying to sell me other crap.

As for the initial setup, look for sales and rebates for new sign-ups. That's what I did and I basically got the system free. It's definitely worth a look.

Comcast represents everything that is evil and profane in the universe. But they have my money for the NHL Center Ice package, and will have my business until the end of the season.

it's a good thing I don't have cable.

whow. i had no idea cable was that much money.
Do you have to sit through commercials? Or is dependent on the network? (sorry, i have not had cable since the 70s when i was toddler.)

The only reason I don't have DirecTV is because I'm satisified with Time Warner here in Cincinnati. About three years ago, however, TW here had pitiful channel selection, and I had DSS.

I loved it, great picture, every channel known to man (No NASA TV at the time though!) and really rather cost effective. Heck now you can even get your local affiliates.

si, screw cable, get dish.

downside: no same wire internet (you, of course, have DSL, right?) AND, most troublingly, it's exempt from common carrier and local oversight, so kiss your local PBS staion and local stations in general goodbye but for broadcast reception (again, if you're close enoght to downtown to qualify for DSL, your reception may be tolerable).

What I miss most is cable's version of the blogosphere (a registered trademark of Bill Quick): local access cable. Ranters, preachers, stoned people inventing the porno mashup, documentaries shot in the streets of seattle during WTO and the streets of New York on 9-11: local access cable is where the best and worst stuff on TV is.

Oh My god.. Get DirecTV..

Also a Comcast customer, I can sympathize. Comcast is the devil, and I intend to organize a raiding party to bust into their HQ in Philly, SMGs blazing, screaming battle cries in the name of democracy.

Cablevision not only took back the HBO channel, (which it would return only if we rented cable boxes at 3 bucks a pop), then they had the balls to replace it with THE HOME SHOPPING NETWORK.

TV why do you mock me so?

Todd, don't know about DirecTV here in Atlanta, but I know that my parents have it. They can't get local stations even though they live out in the boonies of south Georgia, where even with a twenty-foot tall antennae, they can't pick up "local" stations worth a flip.

We live in Gwinnett, have Dish Network, and receive all the local Atlanta stations via our dish. They may have changed the rules now, but a year ago when we ordered the locals to add to our existing dish, it wasn't a problem.

As for Comcast... feh... it's AT&T Broadband all over again. (Didn't Comcast buy AT&TB?) Who the hell needs that many damn sports channels, anyway? Sheesh.

Out in Kansas City we too were paying $80 a month for all of our services and that was with 50% off cable internet and some movie channels. Then the white knight of compitition arrived and bam! We said we were going to switch and they dropped us down to $40 for every thing we had before. Wow. This makes me wonder just how cable is priced.

I live in Columbus, Ohio and have Time Warner cable and Internet access with RoadRunner. Both services are nearly flawless and well worth the $70 or so that I spend each month.

I also have the luxury of writing off my high-speed access for my little side business.

We have some friends that have DirecTV. One of them hates it, and wants to move to digital cable. The other one only has it because of NFL Sunday Ticket, which, I speculate, is the case with a lot of people. I say this because DirecTV just plunked down something like $2 BILLION to renew the contract with the NFL.

Here's the answer to the MacWorld Expo mystery *and* this thread... Apple will launch a satellite co-operated with Akamai...to put .Mac in space...and anyone with a .Mac account can then broadcast video from their Mac...iBroadcast, anyone? It's the next logical step after iMovie and Final Cut Pro... forget commercial TV, this is the Internet, we'll build out own network and roll our own program(ming)

Oui, oui. DirecTV.

ridiculous what people do these days. sometimes makes you want to wish in the 18th century..but then you think about the guillotines and change your mind and go back to sitting on the couch that now bears stains from breakfasts, fast lunches, and late night snacks. hmm..

First time visitor...

My immediate reaction was to chime in with some choice comments about the anti-customer nature of Comcast. Then I noticed this damned pop-up window that my pop-up killer rightly assassinated. Normally the killing not a problem because my friendly little helper is smart enough to let me launch new windows on my own (right click menu). Not so with this web site because you use evil javascript to cripple basic browser functions. BOOOOOO!

...last time visitor signing out.

I read something recently that cable copanies are scrambling to retain their customer base because of the hits they are taking from dish tv/direct tv. So instead of rethinking offerings, they are raising their prices for cable.

I'm super glad I have Dish. I order up all my local Kansas City channels and then all the other channels that I want without any tier forced upon me. It's a service economy - you hold the dollar, you hold the power. Take your biz elsewhere. It's probably cheaper.

Three words: Follow the money :(

hmm.... just when AT&T Digital Cable ADDED sundance channel to my cable channel selection. still waiting for TLC and Animal Planet to show up though.

RE: Rotwang

Since the email address you left was bogus, and in case you do grace us with your lovely presence again, the comment links have been changed to a more user friendly encoding. Enjoy.

COMCAST IS THE DEVIL! I LIVE IN THE SF BAY AREA AND I JUST CAN'T BELIEVE THEIR PRICES! THEIR COSTUMER SERVICE IS SOOO BAD! I JUST HUNG UP THE PHONE AFTER 28 MIN. OF BEING ON HOLD! DIRECT TV HERE I COME!