Though Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) has rapidly expanded its FiOS TV service area in Greater Boston, Comcast Corp. (CMCSA) has decided to increase its rates for virtually everything TV-related starting Dec. 1 or Feb. 1, and has stopped selling Standard Cable.
The nearly across-the-board increases cover everything from subscription TV monthly rates and equipment installations to customer trouble calls and the cost per hour of technician time. To be fair, a very few items are reduced a minimal amount.
Claiming in its most recent monthly bill to its customers, Comcast claims “it’s investing more than any other time in our 45 year history to hire, train and give our employees the tools they need to serve you better.”
Comcast’s CEO acknowledged the need to improve customer service in a conference keynote speech at the Consumer Electronics Show this past January, but made no mention of associated costs for it, nor its customers in any region.
The cable giant added: “While we continue to make these investments, Comcast, like many other companies, is experiencing increased business and operational costs from today’s challenging economic environment,” said Peter D’Arcangelo, vice president of Comcast Metro Boston Region. “As a result, certain price for cable services and equipment will change starting Dec. 1.
Neither Comcast, nor their exec, mentioned if these changes were being implemented outside the metro Boston region.
The most recent Comcast news in this specific market came when the cableco colossus announced its was rolling out new bandwidth tiers and higher speeds for current customers thanks to DOCSIS 3.0 channel bonding technology.
The memo from the Comcast exec in the monthly bill did not say whether the increase in rates and other items were related to the DOCSIS 3.0 deployment.
The latest Comcast increases come at a challenging time for the cableco in greater Boston as rival Verizon has had the pedal to the metal in its FiOS TV deployment, especially in affluent suburbs. The telco is also pushing bundles that include DIRECTV in areas where it will not, or does not yet have, fiber to the home.
The timing on the increases is tough given the rough economic times that face consumers (as D’Arcaneglo cited), along with an expected cut in holiday spending. Many Comcast customers are unhappy that the firm charges extra for the valued NFL Network, a move made over a year ago that the league itself is against.
Specifically, standard cable climbs from $54.54 a month to $58.30 next month, while Digital Starter goes from $58.49 to $62.25 per month in December. Higher packages, Digital Classic and Digital Preferred, go from $10.95 and $12.95 a month respectively, to $13.95 each next month.
The installation of additional outlets, whether done at the time of installation, or later, both increase. And while the cost of a basic digital cable box drops two dollars a month, the cost for a high-definition box for economy video or digital start customers jumps $1 per month.
Also, HD and SD-DVR services jump $2 and $1 respectively. The biggest increase seems to be for a customer trouble call which goes from $24.95 now to $29.50 in February.
Worthy of note is Comcast’s elimination of Standard Cable from its menu. “However,” Comcast said, “if you currently subscribe to Standard Cable, you will continue to receive the service until further notice, unless you choose to make a change to your service or cable package.”
Interestingly, the company says in a brief question & answers segment on the bill that it spends about $6 billion per year on programming and said “we expect continued increases in costs we pay for programming, especially sports.”
That’s a tad ironic, given that, unlike telco rivals Verizon and AT&T Inc. (T), Comcast and other large cable firms actually own regional sports networks, and in many cases the venues in which teams play.
In further irony, Comcast’s decision to go against the National Football League and charge extra each month for a so-called premium sports package including the valued NFL Network, has started a battle pitting the cable giant against its customers and lawmakers that continues to this day.
It remains unclear how these latest changes will impact current and prospective customers. With the transition to digital TV coming in mid-February, customers on analog TV will have to decide whether to add a converter or sign up for a digital TV service.
