Comcast Raises Rates As Economy Stagnates

From The Press Democrat Santa Rosa, CA

Comcast is raising the price of watching cable TV again, boosting the average monthly bill by 5.2 percent, the company said Thursday.

However, the increases will impact less than half of the cable company’s customers, Comcast spokesman Andrew Johnson said.

“While we’ve worked hard to hold down price adjustments, the average customer bill will increase by 5.2 percent beginning with the July 2012 billing cycle because of the impact of higher programming costs and increased operating expenses,” Johnson said.

Comcast subscribers will get notice of the price changes with their June statements starting today, he said.

“These adjustments will not impact more than half of our customers because they currently receive services as part of a promotional offer,” Johnson said.

In Santa Rosa and unincorporated areas of Sonoma County, the monthly cost of Comcast’s entry-level cable TV service, called Limited Basic, will go from $21.61 to $23.66, an increase of almost 9.5 percent.

Many of Comcast’s California customers also will see higher rates for its digital video starter service, high-speed data and high-def DVR service.

The average monthly cost of Xfinity digital TV starter service will go from about $64.79 to $68.49.

Comcast’s high-def DVR service will increase from $15.95 to $16.95 per month.

But subscribers can get lower prices if they sign up for promotions and bundle the services, Johnson said.

Meanwhile, Comcast is raising prices starting in July for a variety of installation and service calls, with an in-home service visit increasing from $33.50 to $50. Prices also are going up for service upgrades or downgrades, new outlets, activation and other one-time items.

Subscribers can avoid the fees with special promotions or use free Comcast kits to perform the installation themselves, Johnson said.

“A lot of customers prefer taking the self-install kits,” he said.

Read More: Comcast raising cable TV rates again | PressDemocrat.com

Meanwhile back at Wallstreet

U.S. stocks plunged in morning trades on Friday after the government said the economy added far fewer jobs than expected, adding to concerns about a global slowdown.

The Labor Department said early Friday the economy added 69,000 jobs in May, well below the 150,000-plus jobs economists were expecting.
The private sector added 82,000 jobs, compared to market expectations of 164,000.
The unemployment rate ticked up to 8.2%. Economists were expecting the rate to remain steady at 8.1%.

Demand for safe-haven assets rose amid heightened risk aversion, pushing the yield on the 10-year Treasury note below 1.5% for the first time ever. Gold was rising amid renewed expectations for additional quantitative easing in the wake of the disappointing data.

"It's hard to get much worse than 69,000. Probably in the summer I would see the numbers going up a little bit, but if we're going to hover around 100,000 [jobs added], I definitely see a QE3 coming," said Frank Fantozzi CEO of Planned Financial Services.

Read More: Dow Goes Negative for 2012 - TheStreet



So, are you ready to ditch your cable subscription yet?

For those of you who don't know, quantitative easing is Federal Reserve double speak for "printing money." They don't actually print the money, they just do a wire transfer purchase of treasury bills from the federal government using an account that doesn't actually have any money in it. The end result is the same, the money supply increases, meaning the value of the money we have in our bank accounts is going down. That is the reason people are buying gold and other commodities that have real value. I could talk for hours about our monetary system and how it is essentially legalized theft by the banking industry, but enough said.

Meanwhile, the value of free over the air digital television for consummers is going up. Why would you pay 9.5% more than the already over inflated price for limited basic when you can get more channels and better picture quality free over the air? The money you save may keep you from becoming homeless!!!

Nope because a) my antenna is crap and I can't afford to fix it and b) I like the convenience of a one stop TV watching experience. I'm all for OTA, but I don't have time to learn all the nuances of new channels and what's on when. To get everything these days, it sounds like you need Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, plus the Roku. That still adds up per month. I know it's not equal, but convenience and simplicity is highly valued by someone like me.

Well, if you have three or more people sharing your cable connection, or even one S.O. who "really loves" cable, then I guess you can justify the cost. A couple things though...

Originally Posted by Orrymain

Nope because a) my antenna is crap and I can't afford to fix it

Scrap cable and you'll save enough in two months to fix anything.

Originally Posted by Orrymain

b) I like the convenience of a one stop TV watching experience.

It CAN BE DONE with WMC, a good PC and the right card. I will admit that when changes occur in the lineup, you'll be the one who has to make adjustments. But as more and more people go this route, it'll get easier and easier. In the long run, CATV is dead meat.

Originally Posted by Orrymain

I'm all for OTA, but I don't have time to learn all the nuances of new channels and what's on when.

No, no, no. When the cable co. slaps a new label on it, THAT'S the new channel.

Originally Posted by Orrymain

To get everything these days, it sounds like you need Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, plus the Roku.

If you want "everything you still need all that! How does cable (satellite, whatever) change that? Nobody, but nobody, needs all that stuff. I'd say right off the bat, OTA + Internet TV + Netflix MORE than makes up for CATV.

Originally Posted by Orrymain

That still adds up per month. I know it's not equal, but convenience and simplicity is highly valued by someone like me.

OK.

Rick

I agree that the convenience factor is there.

Yes, I'm fully aware of WMC... but I still use cable. Why? It's just the convenience of having it all in one place.

I do have an OTA antenna for backup of course. When power goes out cable is out within 10 minutes.


Part of the reason rates are going up is exactly because of the economy.

Remember that TV is an advertising medium. Their purpose is not to entertain you, their purpose is to show you advertising with TV shows as the enticement. However, the economy is so bad that ad revenue has fallen a great deal. Where do the networks make it up? They charge the cable companies more for retransmission.

So that's (partially) why your cable bill is going up.

The other reason really is just devaluation and the rising cost of everything.

I used to get ticked at Time Warner even though I never had them. They always seem to be battling some conglomerate of networks and their customers lose because they don't get the shows. However, from a different perspective, maybe my view has been misplaced. Maybe they aren't the greedy ones; maybe they are the ones trying to keep those license fees in check. I don't know, but it's just a thought.

I don't even know what WMC is, and I am not able to do a lot of technical stuff, so can't even really comment on that. I also do not want to watch TV on my computer as a mainstay. I don't have an internet TV and don't want one. At this point, I do not believe they are smart or safe (heard a lot of hacking stories there).

Originally Posted by Orrymain

I don't have an internet TV and don't want one. At this point, I do not believe they are smart or safe (heard a lot of hacking stories there).

What is the danger of an internet TV??? It isn't like you're keeping sensitive information on your TV?!?

Originally Posted by Orrymain

I used to get ticked at Time Warner even though I never had them. They always seem to be battling some conglomerate of networks and their customers lose because they don't get the shows. However, from a different perspective, maybe my view has been misplaced. Maybe they aren't the greedy ones; maybe they are the ones trying to keep those license fees in check. I don't know, but it's just a thought.

Nah, the cable companies would raise rates anyway. They're using the networks as justification now.

I don't even know what WMC is, and I am not able to do a lot of technical stuff, so can't even really comment on that. I also do not want to watch TV on my computer as a mainstay. I don't have an internet TV and don't want one. At this point, I do not believe they are smart or safe (heard a lot of hacking stories there).

Windows Media Center. It comes with Windows Home Premium and higher. I use it for my whole home DVR setup along with a 4 tuner CableCARD tuner and XBOX 360s as extenders.

Originally Posted by Orrymain

I don't have an internet TV and don't want one. At this point, I do not believe they are smart or safe (heard a lot of hacking stories there).

I don't have an internet TV either -- just too cheap to buy the cable -- but I watch internet TV all the time. It's no more complicated than clicking on a link.

Geez, do you ever surf the internet? Dangerous stuff, boy.

R.

Originally Posted by dkreichen1968

What is the danger of an internet TV??? It isn't like you're keeping sensitive information on your TV?!?

Hackers. Time flies but wasn't it just last year when the first internet TVs came out? The new TVs were hacked right away by some college students. People had their personal information available on the TV connection without any protection. I don't recall the specifics now, but the news media here did several stories on it, warning people with internet TVs to be cautious. I actually think I posted here about it. I'll bet if you searched for internet TVs being hacked, you could find the original situation.

Originally Posted by n2rj

Windows Media Center. It comes with Windows Home Premium and higher. I use it for my whole home DVR setup along with a 4 tuner CableCARD tuner and XBOX 360s as extenders.

OH! LOL OKay, I have WMC. I seriously, in all the years of computer use, have never used WMC or heard it referred to that way. It used to be standard and now Microsoft is making it an add on extra with the newest computers. I've never been able to set the thing up for TV. It's beyond my brain cells. :}

Originally Posted by Rickideemus

I don't have an internet TV either -- just too cheap to buy the cable -- but I watch internet TV all the time. It's no more complicated than clicking on a link.

Geez, do you ever surf the internet? Dangerous stuff, boy.

R.

I'm pretty cautious but I do a lot of surfing. I do watch internet streaming of TV etc. I just do not have an internet TV and at this point don't need the added risk. It's still internet and still subject to the woes of the internet. And, just for the heck of it, not a boy. :}

Originally Posted by Orrymain

I'm pretty cautious but I do a lot of surfing. I do watch internet streaming of TV etc. I just do not have an internet TV and at this point don't need the added risk. It's still internet and still subject to the woes of the internet. And, just for the heck of it, not a boy. :}

Internet streaming of TV is internet TV. That's what it is. Having a separate TV just for internet viewing is no more safe or unsafe than swapping in a new monitor. A few new "internet TVs" might have been vulnerable in the sense they could be turned on and off so rapidly you could harm the TV itself -- just as a few cheap monitors waaaaaaaaaaay back in the 80's had that vulnerability. Some black hats might have done that, or more likely got CREDIT for doing it when they were just fooling around.

But it's very, very remote, even if you have old, cheap equipment. Naturally, the news story is going to say "be cautious! Run for your lives!!" They only care about getting people to read the story, not about any kind of common sense.

Here's what *I* think. I think that story was ghost written by some cable co. executive. It's a lot easier to hack around in people's heads than with electronic hardware. Hah!

Rick

Not the one I was talking about. The hackers were "testing" the service. This was the TV news with the hackers actually demonstrating how easy it was and how owners needed to make sure they were keeping their information safe. It makes sense, if you think about it. Anything can be hacked in my opinion. These guys were sending a warning to people who might keep their desktop or laptop safe but who weren't thinking about the fact that they needed to keep their internet TV protected too.

Look, I AM a hacker -- hopefully, in the good sense, though one Japanese company would disagree (long story).

This is all rubbish. I googled "internet TV" AND hack, and came up with many stories from a couple years ago. I probably read them at the time and just dismissed them as the idiocy they are.

Look, it's no different than this story:

"People installing NEW WINDOWS in their homes MAY NOT BE AWARE they
are vulnerable to burglars! In some cases the XYZ buglar outfit was ABLE
TO GAIN ACCESS TO THE ENTIRE HOME through these new windows!!!"

What are they going to get from your TV? Your channel lineup? The model number of the TV? The MAC number of the TV? Every computer and every device you have hooked up to the internet has a MAC number. Your IP number is immediately visible to every site you visit.

You are right. Everything hooked up to the internet can be hacked. Every home can be burgled. Should we board up ALL WINDOWS IN EVERY HOME?? Or ban the installation of all NEW windows? There literally is no difference between my "new window" story and the internet TV stories. Complete horse manure (excuse my French).

I support everyone's right to stay away from the internet 1000%, if that's their desire. I even support their right to say "Oooooh ... DANgerous stuff!" But for the record, there's nothing more dangerous to an internet TV than to attaching a mouse, or a USB drive, or anything else to your computer.

Rick

Originally Posted by Orrymain

Not the one I was talking about. The hackers were "testing" the service. This was the TV news with the hackers actually demonstrating how easy it was and how owners needed to make sure they were keeping their information safe. It makes sense, if you think about it. Anything can be hacked in my opinion. These guys were sending a warning to people who might keep their desktop or laptop safe but who weren't thinking about the fact that they needed to keep their internet TV protected too.

Hey, I'm not telling anyone not to get internet TV. I'm just saying it's not a risk I need in my home right now. It's not that important to me. If you and millions of others want it, fine. Have fun ... surf on your big screen. I just don't want that additional risk, for me, right now. I clearly remember seeing the story of the three men who did the hacking. It was national news at the time. Perhaps they made their point and people have listened. All I'm saying, is that there is a risk. I didn't say it was more than being online here right now, only that there is a risk. It's all degrees. Just like with your home analogy. I have always said that if a burglar wants your home, he'll get there no matter what, but if he's just searching for the next opportunity, the more you can do to prevent entry, the better. The same holds true for what you do on the web and where you do it.

Originally Posted by Orrymain

Hey, I'm not telling anyone not to get internet TV. I'm just saying it's not a risk I need in my home right now. It's not that important to me. If you and millions of others want it, fine. Have fun ... surf on your big screen. I just don't want that additional risk, for me, right now. I clearly remember seeing the story of the three men who did the hacking. It was national news at the time. Perhaps they made their point and people have listened. All I'm saying, is that there is a risk. I didn't say it was more than being online here right now, only that there is a risk. It's all degrees. Just like with your home analogy. I have always said that if a burglar wants your home, he'll get there no matter what, but if he's just searching for the next opportunity, the more you can do to prevent entry, the better. The same holds true for what you do on the web and where you do it.

Hackers can be classified as Grey hat hackers, Elite hackers, Script kiddie, Neophyte, Blue hat hackers, Hacktivist, Organized Criminal Gangs and Bots. Since you are planning to have internet connection at home, organized criminal gangs are the type of hackers you have to worry about.
But preventing your computer from this kind of hacker is not difficult either. If you follow some simple steps given below you can prevent them from hacking your computer.
1. Do not click on buttons on the site which activates malicious scripts, including Scare ware windows.
2. Trojans, virus or spyware are hidden in the software cracks, or keygen. Avoid downloading keygen sites. Download keygen from trusted sites.
3. Trojans, virus, or spyware are hidden in attachments of emails, and this includes pictures. Avoid emails or attachments unknown to you.