topic Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV in Home

OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

pdlinda — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 20:07:03 GMT

I live in Phoenix and am getting ready to retire.

My cable bundle from COX is sky high!!--$180.00/month! I just called their CS to see alternatives and rep told me my bill would be going UP as of March, 2015 OMG!!!

I enjoy my cable TV/hi-speed internet but rarely use landline. However, from what rep mentioned they use that landline to transmit hi-speed signal to internet.

Any suggestions regarding alternatives would be greatly welcomed!! I want to reduce my expenses, not add to them!!

Thanks so much!!

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

kittymomNC — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 20:47:29 GMT

I'm wondering about what they told you regarding using the phone land line to transmit high speed Internet signals. I have the same cable bundle from Time Warner Cable here in NC, and there have been times when my digital phone went out completely, but my TV and Internet were still fine. Mine is cheaper than yours, which could be due to company, geographical area, etc., but I do have to call and negotiate a new price whenever my so-called "promotional" price runs out. I have to threaten to have all of the services taken out of two houses if they don't give me a better price. If I didn't do that every time, my bill would be the same as yours, but I pay $120/month.

If I were you, I would pin them down about using the phone line to transmit your Internet signal. Also, see if you can negotiate a better price.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

151949 — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 20:59:21 GMT

When we lived in Pa we had everything bundled with Verizon FIOS and the prices were reasonable. Now we get comcast cable in with our HOA fee - we have our landline phone and our internet with verizon and we use tracfones for cell service. By the end of it all I am sure we pay more than if it was all bundled with Verizon - plus we would have much much much better cable TV than we are getting from Comcast.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

pdlinda — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 21:14:49 GMT

I might have to try that "negotiating" route as I am not about to give up the excellent service I get from Cox that is steady and reliable.

I called a competitor, Dish Network, and they could only offer me cable service that would have to be supplemented by Cox for Hi-Speed Internet, and the price was only a bit less expensive than the whole bundle from Cox.

Also, the Dish offer was also a Promotional rate, so as we all know, that would be subject to change in a year.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

58Meezer — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 21:33:26 GMT

I went the DISH route to save money, I didn't save much toward the end probably paid more. With DISH/Direct TV satellite dishes reception can go out or be very poor during heavy rain/snow/sleet. We have VTEL with no HBO, cinemax, etc with internet, tv and phone including taxes $130.00 a month. I think ours will go up this spring. Comcast is the other choice other than DISH/Direct TV

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

58Meezer — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 21:35:49 GMT

Abour $12 or more is taxes and universal fees on our cable/tvinternet bill. My husband has a better memory than I and he says its closer tob $15 in fees and taxes

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

geezerette — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 21:39:12 GMT

I don't think your bill is outrageous. We live in the country and have limited choices for everything, so we have our landline and satellite in a bundle and those alone average $130 per month now. My internet is a separate local Wi-Fi service which is marginal at best and it's another $80 per month.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

luvmyteddy4 — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 21:51:32 GMT

I called on my bill last summer to get a better price, said I was thinking about switching companies. They reduced my bill about 35.00 a month as long as I signed a contract for 2 years. Lower price and no changes on my bundle coverage. You need competition in the area.

I did the same thing on my trash company bill and got a great lower price. No one ever tells you about signing a contract which I had not known about before.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

kittymomNC — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 22:56:37 GMT

I have not been that happy with Time Warner Cable since I had to go digital. I never had any problems with regular cable, but now I have problems I never had before. Plus they now have customer service located in the Philippines, and the last time I had a problem, I wound up having to get a supervisor on the line by threatening to discontinue everything, again.

They are supposed to help you get problems resolved over the phone, and after talking to three different reps including a supervisor one night (on my cell phone), they could not resolve a problem with my phone. They told me it would be five or more days before they could get someone out, and meantime I had no phone service! I got a manager on the phone and "raised cain", and a technician came out the next day. All he did was unplug the battery in my modem and it resolved the problem. He said the battery backups for the phone service never worked anyway, and the CS people on the phone should have told me to do that. That's the kind of customer service they have now. Even the cable service man who came out (finally got one that knew what he was doing) confided in me that a lot of the technicians are very unhappy, since TWC has gotten so big and now the Philippines CS is apparently not working very well from their point of view.

We need some competition here, because Time Warner has had a monopoly on cable service for a long time. I use all the problems in my "price negotiations" for my rates - their CS leaves a lot to be desired. The only good thing I can say is that they don't make you go under "contracts" any more - it's just a promotional rate and you can change it if you want to.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

pdlinda — Fri, 02 Jan 2015 23:49:07 GMT

That's why I post on these boards...definitely, the best, most well-informed people around!!

OK, I'm getting the picture that if I want to continue my present "lifestyle" that includes reliable, high-quality service with US-based customer reps, I better plan on making some modifications in other areas of my budget!!

My service plan expires on 1/25/15 so maybe I can get some accommodation from Cox between now and then, and, yes, a bit competition wouldn't hurt!!

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

Lynnj — Sat, 03 Jan 2015 00:00:13 GMT

Hmmm, typically with the cable bundle packages, Internet is not connected through the landline. But I have Comcast, so can't say for sure how COX operates. With Comcast, we have bundle packages, like double play and triple play. Double would be TV and Internet, triple would be TV, Phone, and Internet. I can have Internet without phone, which i actually had with Comcast for many years. I only added phone recently a few years ago because they offered a very nice deal if I bundled all 3 services instead of just 2. That deal, by the way, is long gone, and now my monthly bill is about $250, which includes equipment charges, taxes, and all the other "hidden" bee ess that they charge. I have all premium channels,and sports channels too, so the top tier triple play account. If I were you, I would call again to speak to a different CS person, ask about the rate for only 2 of three services. I think the last person you spoke with is incorrect about a landline required for Internet. Also, sometimes with Comcast, when I call to negotiate rate I may get CS person who won't budge on price reduction. I wait about 1-2 weeks and then call again to speak to someone else. It sometimes takes a few calls, but I can usually find someone who will work with me to reduce rates. Which....I need to do again, as the $250 bill is due to a $30 or $50 increase applied recently. Technically I don't personally pay that total, as I work from home, and my company lets me expense monthly the Internet and phone charges. So I only personally pay about $80 month to cover the TV portion of the bill. Personally, I would stay with cable if I were you. I think dish and direct tv are unreliable, and it sounds like you like your TV and don't want to be bothered with service interruptions. Good luck, and keep us posted with your final decision.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

pdlinda — Sat, 03 Jan 2015 00:06:13 GMT

I agree with you and am going to take your advice!

I am retiring from a long career in the legal profession so I should know how to "negotiate!!!" We'll see how I do and will keep you posted. However, I'm quickly dismissing any thoughts of alternative services...there are some things money CAN buy and one is having uninterrupted cable/internet service that's reliable!! Thanks, again!

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

Lynnj — Sat, 03 Jan 2015 00:09:24 GMT

On 1/2/2015 kittymomNC said:
I have not been that happy with Time Warner Cable since I had to go digital. I never had any problems with regular cable, but now I have problems I never had before. Plus they now have customer service located in the Philippines, and the last time I had a problem, I wound up having to get a supervisor on the line by threatening to discontinue everything, again.

They are supposed to help you get problems resolved over the phone, and after talking to three different reps including a supervisor one night (on my cell phone), they could not resolve a problem with my phone. They told me it would be five or more days before they could get someone out, and meantime I had no phone service! I got a manager on the phone and "raised cain", and a technician came out the next day. All he did was unplug the battery in my modem and it resolved the problem. He said the battery backups for the phone service never worked anyway, and the CS people on the phone should have told me to do that. That's the kind of customer service they have now. Even the cable service man who came out (finally got one that knew what he was doing) confided in me that a lot of the technicians are very unhappy, since TWC has gotten so big and now the Philippines CS is apparently not working very well from their point of view.

We need some competition here, because Time Warner has had a monopoly on cable service for a long time. I use all the problems in my "price negotiations" for my rates - their CS leaves a lot to be desired. The only good thing I can say is that they don't make you go under "contracts" any more - it's just a promotional rate and you can change it if you want to.

I agree that we need competition. For cable I only have access to Comcast where I live. Verizon and others haven't wired in this area yet. I really, really want to try FIOS with Verizon. I've heard good things about FIOS (not necessarily with Verizon) and I'd like to see how that is different from how cable is wired and working. FIOS is fiber optic wiring, so still wiring like cable, but at least it's not some sort of dish that transmits the signal. I will say that the moment that FIOS is wired in my area, Comcast better look out. But, at this point, I would even be happy if my area had options for a different cable company. At least then, to your point, there would be competition, and Comcast wouldn't be so greedy with their rates because they know I have no other choice but them.

Re: OT/ ALTERNATIVES TO CABLE BUNDLE (HISPEEDINTERNET/PHONE/TV

Lynnj — Sat, 03 Jan 2015 00:16:08 GMT

On 1/2/2015 pdlinda said:
I agree with you and am going to take your advice!

I am retiring from a long career in the legal profession so I should know how to "negotiate!!!" We'll see how I do and will keep you posted. However, I'm quickly dismissing any thoughts of alternative services...there are some things money CAN buy and one is having uninterrupted cable/internet service that's reliable!! Thanks, again!

I agree with your way of thinking. Can't you tell...with my top tier channel selection, lol. I too, love my TV and don't ever want to be without. Like you, I would make other financial adjustments in my life, so that I could accommodate my TV habit. Especially during retirement, I would want good uninterrupted tv available. You worked hard all your life, and deserve to relax and watch what you want when you want. okay, I admit it...my name is Lynnj and I am a TV addict lol. Sadly...Comcast knows that about me, and that's how they rake me over the coals with their ridiculous rates. Again...good luck to you.