My cable bill is going from $57.95 to $61.30. I also rent an HD set top box for HD channels that is going from $9.80. A $5.65 increase, and I am not getting ANY additional services. It seems anymore like Comcast is jacking up prices every 3 months. I've seen the price increase brochure in the envelope with my bill so often now that I recognize the brochure from the cover. They try to fool you by making the cover of the brochure very positive. I think it says something to the effect of "Great new changes are in store" or something like that. Then you open up that brochure and wham-O, another price increase from the crooks at comcast.

The squeeze from big companies continues. I guess they don't care too much about a recession when they own a monopoly. I detest Comcast. I hope one day the feds find some serious corruption in senior management to lock away the crooks over there. I switched long ago to DirecTV. Better service, better programming and quite frankly, easier to work with.

DD: I switched to DirecTV years ago, too. I gotta say, to be fair to Comcast, which I toured recently, they have made some major innovative changes with customer service in mind... I'm going to post something on my visit there next week. But yes, I do have to agree with the majority of commenters here that it does seem like cable rates go up for more often (my mom has Comcast) than my satellite service rates do.

Comcast uses whatever excuse is convenient in light of jacking up rates arbitrarily, the last time they did it it was for "enhancing cutsomer service (HA!)." This time it just happened to be the economy.

Just once I'd like to see a brochure stating "The economy is in good shape, gas is cheap, so we're passing the savings on to YOU! 5 bucks less for everyone!"

I would then mount my unicorn and ride to work on a rainbow.

DD: Evan wins, for officially making me snort while laughing!

I agree that their rates seem to go up every three months. Do they fall under any form of regulation such as the PSC? Also, can someone explain why when cable was first introduced the benefit of paying for it was there would be no commercials during the programming. Now, the bulk of the time period for a show is commercials and still the monthly subscription cost goes up and up.

DD: Comcast Customer, you make a terrific point. I gotta tell you, I'm watching most TV shows (cable channels or regular) online because there aren't as many commercials. I don't get to watch them the day of, but that doesn't really bother me much since I can watch them when I have free time.

Does anyone know when Verizon's FIOS tv service will be available in Baltimore City? I will fire comcast on day one of that deal!

DD: Jimmy, I'm sorry to tell you that it's not coming any time soon. Verizon told me recently that they have no time table set for when FiOS will be offered to the city.

I have service with Broadstripe (formerly Millenium Digital) in Anne Arundel County. Comcast is also available in my area. I also just received a notice from Broadstripe of an increase in cable tv prices. So competition does not matter. Seems when one cable provider decides to raise prices, the other one coincidentalyy also decides to raise prices.

Being a believer in the goodness of capitalism, I know that there is no collusion in pricing but only coincidence. Oh, and I believe in Santa Claus.

DD: Ok, Ted. That totally made me chuckle. Thanks!

Since we have no choice in Baltimore City, why isn't this before the Utility commision? I am so looking forward to FIOS in my area! Some competion might be good for the consumer. NO MORE RATE INCREASES!

DD: Mike, I talked to Verizon recently about FiOS and there's no time table set for when it will come to Baltimore City. You might be waiting awhile.

Since we have no choice in Baltimore City, why isn't this before the Utility commision? I am so looking forward to FIOS in my area! Some competion might be good for the consumer. NO MORE RATE INCREASES!

DD: Mike, I don't believe the PSC has any authority over Comcast TV rates. Cable is regulated by the cable boards in each jurisdiction and I don't believe they have much control over rates either... just on the franchising license.

Comcast is the worst. Do they have a rival company out here? Who is it?

DD: anonymous, you can get satellite TV. There's also Verizon FiOS, but that depends on where you live. I believe there's also a rival cable company in Anne Arundel County.

Bye, Comcast. Verizon now has my internet and cable business to go along with my wireless. Guess those commercials are pretty accurate, huh?

I can't tell you how much I dislike Comcast. But I did a spreadsheet and switching to Verizon is more expensive especially because you need to rent a box for every TV. I thought competition was supposed to bring prices down. hah.

DD: Susan, if you search for Comcast posts on the blog, you'll find that as they move more channels to digital, you'll also have to get a box for every TV set to get all the digital channels.

Have Comcast remove the cable and you will start to see the price drop.
Just like opec, they depend on you not being able to function without there service. We can take control if we pull together.

DD: you've got a good point, me. I'm not with Comcast, but I've been seriously thinking about just getting a digital converter box and canceling my Satellite service. I'm not sure I see the need for it anymore what with being able to watch a lot of TV shows on the Internet.

I'm watching my favorite shows more and more online these days with less commericial breaks either at the networks websites or on hulu.com

Comcast is a evil company i won't give money to. Their product will eventually die out.

DD: double b, just to be fair, one of the Web sites I recommend to watch TV shows online is fancast.com, which is owned by Comcast. It works very much like hulu.com.

Make me doubly happy I fired Comcast a couple years ago. It is a shame that Baltimore City won't be getting FIOS anytime soon to provide any more direct competition to Comcast. It is also a shame that the officials in Baltimore City (and pretty much every other jurisdiction) continually rubber stamp any rate increases as well as renewing their franchises.

When cable was first introduced to the state, it was to have rates that were affordable. The service is lousy, the channels break up and some of them do not even come thru. I have digital service and I am amazed that for such poor quality they can raise the rates thru the roof. What happened to competition that would give us more than one choice?

DD: Good question, Martha. I don't have an answer, unfortunately.

While I commend everyone for taking full advantage of watching their TV shows online in lieu of cable service (I'm doing the same thing), the only thing that's going to come of it is bandwidth caps (already happened) and a tier-based pay scale for internet usage.

(At that point I would just split the cost with a couple of neighbors)

DD: I think you're right, Evan. Bandwidth caps are already an issue, and will become even bigger soon as more people migrate to doing more things online.

Sounds like I'm actually lucky that Comcast doesn't service my address (in Pigtown).

I just have rabbit ears and I get the networks in HD. And now I have XOHM for home internet!

HDTV and broadband internet for a combined $25/month!

DD: awesome. How are you liking XOHM, ericb? Give me a little mini-review if you don't mind.

I just got excited that I could save $19.50 and get rid of HBO but Entourage is not on hulu or fancast. And why do we pay a franchise fee for $5? Shouldn't Comcast be paying the County? argh.

DD: Carrie, they do. But as with any business, that cost is passed on to consumers. Deadwood's not on hulu or fancast, either. I don't think most HBO shows are on either. (sigh) I just wait for those to come out on DVD.

Does anyone know if Fios will be available in Harford County anytime soon?

DD: Sean, I'm not sure. I can ask Verizon for you. Where do you live in Harford County (which is where I grew up, by the way)?

Where's the cable competition?
I don't want a dish. What I want is cable competition for Comcast.
Comcast's Basic TV package is channels 1-100. If you find anything worth watching on channels 1-100 please let me know!
Also please let me know when FIOS comes to our street in Annapolis as that will be the last day for Comcast in my house!

DD: Mike, I'm not sure about Annapolis, but I will put it on the list of questions I'll send to Verizon.

I called Comcast prior to moving into my new home (1 month in advance) to schedule installation. That day I was outside for 10 minutes, came back in and noticed Comcast called. I missed their call, so no installation. I am cancelling service to rate hike.

DD: That's interesting, Dave. I'm really curious how Comcast service calls are going for consumers. Has it improved? Gotten worse? I'm planning on blogging on this next week, but Comcast has implemented a number of new programs to improve customer service calls.

I got so fed up with Comcast, their ever-increasing rates, glitches in their cable service and rude customer service folks, that I made the switch to FiOS. I am SOOOO glad that I did. Comcast advertised that they had fiber optic installed to provide better picture quality...what they didn't tell you was that, unless it came into the house, you wouldn't see any difference. FiOS - 100% fiber optic. The picture is great, On Demand services easier and instantaneous and I can watch programs I recorded on any tv. The internet service is pretty good too!

DD: Lori, you're going to get a bunch of people jealous here...! especially those who don't live in an area with competition yet.

FIOS has just come to my Perry Hall neighborhood, and I’ve been researching making the switch. Currently I have no bundles with Comcast, but will consider the Verizon bundle of phone/internet/FIOS, $99 for 1 year with free DVR.
My current Comcast bill is:

Digital Preferred 86.25
Includes:
Limited Service @ $9.95
Expanded Service @ $48.00
Digital Plus Service@$15.95
HD DVR Converter, Remote Control, & DVR service @ $12.35.
Additionally…
Dig Sports Pckg $4.99
Digital A/O $6.95 (charge for cable card)

For a total of $98.19 plus the usual taxes and fees

Compared to Verizon FIOS:
Extreme HD Channel Package: $57.99
(Includes same sports channels as Comcasts Dig Sports Pckg )
HD DVR Converter, Remote Control, & DVR service: $15.99
Cable Card: $6.95

For a total of $80.93 plus the usual taxes and fees

Looks like over $17 in savings per month, with Comcast fees increasing, it looks like a no-brainer.

DD: Wow, switching to FiOS soon, thanks for that breakdown. That was really helpful for anyone thinking about switching, too.

I hate Comcast, but there are no decent competitors in our area. My husband needs high-speed Internet and I really can't complaint about this with Comcast. We have practically no interruptions, speed is great and price is not changing as much as for TV part or equipment rent.

But TV is another story - I watch probably 7 channels out of 500. They keep adding stuff, but I don't need any of that - sports, Asian TV, HD... We had very poor picture quality on some channels and constant problems with "on-demand" service. I've complained, but they didn't find anything on their end. Right... Somehow the issue miraculously disappeared after 2 price increases.

What we really need is a la carte pricing for TV channels. If I could stop paying for 20 sports, 20 news and 10 kids channels, I would actually be a happy camper.

DD: I wish I could choose my channels, too. I only watch about a half dozen of them.

Another rate increase?! This is ridiculous. Maybe if they'd quit sending me an advertisement via snail mail every week trying to entice me to buy/use more of their products, they'd save themselves some money and wouldn't have to increase their rates (just a thought). Seriously, do you really have to advertise heavily when you're the only cable company in town and everyone knows it? Anybody know the breakdown of costs for Direct TV (how much for dish, installation, converter box, service, etc.) per month and how it compares to Comcast? I've been tempted to switch but the stuff I get in the mail always seems to come out as a wash......As for viewing the HBO shows, I don't subscribe to HBO but I just go to the library and borrow the DVDs for FREE. I've seen all of Deadwood, The Wire, Extras, Big Love, Entourage, and the original version of The Office this way. I'll admit it's not the same as seeing them when they first air, but at least I still get to see the shows. I'm also a big fan of watchng tv episodes on the internet when it's convenient for me; I hope it remains free (that is, after the $40 some dollars/month I pay for high speed internet).

In Carroll County, I have digital cable, 1 premium channel (HBO), and Internet and I'm paying $127 per month. Is it worth it? I don't know.

DD: Former Baltimore Resident, I think a lot of consumers are going to be asking themselves this very question... especially if the economy continues its nosedive.

Satellite and FIOS are both better alternatives than Comcast. I now have FIOS - it's GREAT! And costs less than Comcast. With strong competition now in the market, you'd think Comcast would be lowering prices, wouldn't you? I guess the Comcast business model is based on the idea that Comcast has to make more money per customer as others leave for FIOS, DISH, DirecTV, etc.

I don't think Verizon Fios is coming to Baltimore City. The price to dig underground wires under city concrete is very expensive. It's expensive to put them in air too. Comcast lines are in air and were put there decades ago. I used to work for Comcast and that's what we were told. I have great service with Comcast, no technical complaints, however their customer service needs a lot of work. The price is ridiculous also but I do feel it's a great product. A luxury.

DD: Randy, is your customer service observation based on recent experience or past experience? I'm asking because Comcast has implemented a number of new programs to improve customer service. I want to know if customers are seeing a difference.

CavTel is very fast - and not capped or blocked. Comcast slows down during peak hours and they also block bittorrent plus you only get 1GB newgroup access. They also watch and log your Internet activity - I know this becasue they emailed me and said I couldn't download torrent files. haha! Comcast/Verizon econo package upload is also much slower but costs more than Cavtel, which has 700K u/l and 3MB d/l. I cancelled Comcast and Verizon last year, but should have done it sooner. Now I pay total w/taxes $75 for unlimited Inet and unlimited Phone. I get HD over air and watch stuff online, if I'm that desperate. I don't understand why people use these jokers. They are crooks.

DD: Thanks for the useful comparison info, oz.

I've been cable/internet free for a few days now and not missing it. Then, I'm a single guy who was paying $140 per month to watch an hour or so of TV each night. It just wasn't worth the cost. What really got me was the added costs to watch the same content at a higher resolution. You pay for the basic version of the channels, then you pay more for "digital" service, then you pay more for the HD service. In the end, you are paying substantially more for a prettier version of the same content.

I disconnected everything but, again, I'm a single guy who spends little time in front of the TV, sits in front of a computer at work all day (little desire to do more at home), and I can borrow some bandwidth from friends in the neighborhood with my Wi-Fi on my laptop for computer "emergencies". I've discovered that most times I really don't miss TV and it was just something that I had on in the background while doing other things anyway.

DD: mjlaxnmd, I gotta say that when I lived that way four or five years ago, I really enjoyed it. I cut the cable, had no computer at home, and no land line. It was beautiful and I miss living life that way. If it weren't for this blog and all the work I take home with me, I'd go back to that life.

Received my Comcast bill with rate hike Monday. Called Comcast and cancelled. Enough is enough.

I just fired comcast a week ago, it was the single greatest day ever. I switched to Fios. I even ate $150 early termination to leave them. Its only been a week but we like our new service. Verizon can nickle and dime you with some of the add ons. Time will tell on the customer service area, but the quality of the tv, phone and excellent internet makes me happy.

Has anyone looked at the recent ad mailer - Direct TV offers a service equal to Comcast Basic expanded- Comcast is $68.00 and the Direct is $29.99 - 12 month contract - same programming - if you don't want to leave Comcast just call and they will switch you the HD Digital package which is $43.00 a month and if you politely complain they even add in HBO(all 10 channels) for 6 months for no charge ----Comcast is a monoploy and you can't win as there is no true competition

I got the notice and made the change to Verizon. My estimated savings will be about 50 a month. I will be returning the comcast equipment within the week.
It's gonna' be fun :)

I've been wanting to ditch them for years. Paying $50 per month for broadband is simply too much. It should be $20.

I switched to FIOS last week. Goodby Comcast! They can shove their rate hike and lousy 25 HD channels.

I'm always getting mail and flyers soliciting subscribing to FiOS. But the service isn't even available! No info as to whether FiOS will ever come to fairfield, NJ. Customer service reps don't even knoiw why. So they pepper us with print and TV ads, but don't even offer the service. I'd give anything to be able to leave Comcast behind.

DD: film11, it seems a lot of people commenting on this site agree with you. And, I agree that it's odd that FiOS flyers are being mailed to you when it's not even available in your area. I wonder which marketing genius thought that one up?

I have Comcast and just renewed my "BUNDLED SERVICE". $157 a month for the works. Phone, Internet, 2 Digital Boxes with one HD DVR, HBO, SHOWTIME and STARZ.

I could get DIRECTV and VERIZON INTERNET AND PHONE but they don't have on demand do they? I like all the movies and kids shows Comcast offers any time I want...for free. Still a lot of $$ though...

I just got my comcast bill and my cable tv portion is actually up 10%, from $123.60 (just the cable part) to $135.63! That's for exactly the same service as last month -- no movies, etc. I would love to ditch the HD stuff, but I spent all that money for the high def big screen ... I just can't seem to do it. I would kill for some FIOS, but here in Harford Co. we don't have it available. DD, if you could ask Verizon for me, I'm in Long Bar Harbor in Abingdon. Where in Harford did you grow up?

DD: In good ol' Edgewood, kimiata. My family's been there for 30-plus years. I will shoot a message to Verizon and ask about FiOS up your way.

Do I feel sorry for those folks who have Comcast. ABSOLUTELY NOT!!! Unlike you, I don't have a money tree growing in my backyard that keeps dropping $100 bills when necessary like most people do. If you are soo tired of the increase in your Comcast bill do what I did over 8 years ago. DROP COMCAST and go with a Satellite service. In 8 years, my DirecTV bill has only gone up 8 dollars. When was the last time you can say that about Comcast????

And for all you sports fans out there, you have the option of getting a sports package if you chose. I will NEVER go back to Comcast and am a dedicated subscriber of DirecTV. Being from Philly, I'm tried of hearing the announcers moan and cry because of a bad call or penalty, so I really don't miss watching the local sports. Instead I watch hockey games from around the league.

DD: Nick, I agree with you that my DirecTV bill has only gone up ever so slightly... But some people don't live in areas that make it conducive to signing up for satellite service. Too many trees, etc. Plus, some save more money getting a bundled package from their provider.

Gotta say I can't stand the customer service from Comcast, but I have always been satisfied with the actual service. They are okay until you have a problem, then you're in trouble. I also have to complain bitterly about the miserable equipment and software used in Harford County-- Baltimore has much better interface and hardware, and for the same money, which is ridiculous. I have priced DirecTv and for my level of service (digital, HD, dvr, basic sports) it comes out to the same each month after all of DirecTv's promotions expire. Even Tivo is barely worth the trouble of trying to get a cablecard from them to work properly as Comcast doesn't care. If you want to lower your internet charges you can scale back your service to a lower bandwidth and pay less-- for the average person you will prob never notice the difference in speed. I am anxious to Fios to get to Abingdon.

DD: That could happen in the near future, noble, since Verizon said it is in the process of negotiating with Harford County for a license now.

Some may read this as a sob story; those who are elderly or disabled, and live solely on a low or fixed income likely won't.

My disability leaves me with no family and friends to speak of (or with). I sometimes don't hear my own voice for days. So, my TV is an absolute necessity to help maintain my sanity.

Comcast has no regard for their low-income customerrs. And these customers probably make up a good portion of their customer base.

I have Comcast's basic analog service at $56.95/mo. I live on $650/mo., and this cost of cable is a hardship. But again, a necessary one. Of course, I've had to consider limited basic, and even antenna TV, but I could not live with the limited choice of channels. As it is, the number of channels worth watching on my basic cable service is shamefully few.

Cable TV should not be a 'luxury' when the alternatives are often not satisfactory.

I did begin the process of switching to DirecTV, but cancelled the installation when I was charged $149 for equipment before the installers were even due to arrive at my apartment. Why would they charge for equipment when it isn't yet determined if I could receive a good signal at my location? And, I've since read way too many horror stories online about the poor business practices of the two satellite dish companies to risk monetary loss, or poor installation or service.

No other options such as FiOS or XOHM seem to be available in my area, not that I could afford those services either.

So, as a monopoly would happily have it, I am stuck with Comcast, and their unconsciable prices which they plan to increase yet again.

I do take some pleasure in thinking that Comcast's rate increases are manifest of the company scrambling to save themselves because people are fed up, and they are losing customers left and right. It seems that must be a viscious cycle in their battle that they will likely lose.

DD: TeaRowz, I wish I had a solution for you... but you're right, even with the limited competition, the prices aren't really that different between providers. Hang in there.

Thank you for your kind words, Dan.

COMCAST DIDNT CARE ABOUT POOR OR DISABILITY PEOPLE,
MY HUSBAND BECAME BLIND
WITH 43 YEARS OLD AND now he is 55 years old.
HE LIKES TO LISTEN TO THE HISTORY CHANNEL BUT COMCAST TOOK
OUR PREVIOUS BASIC THAT WAS 27,99+TAXES=33,00) AND TOLD MY POOR HUSBAND THAT HE DIDNT GET HISTORY CHANNEL NO MORE AND HE HAD TO PAY MORE FOR CABLE TO GET HISTORY CHANNEL..
MY HUSBAND SPEAKS ENGLISH
AND WRITE ENGLISH VERY WELL
BUT THE CUSTOMER SERVICE
TOLD HIM THAT PRICE NOW IS GOING UP!!!I IF HE WANTED HISTORY CHANNEL BACK...
OUR BILL IS TOO HIGH AND THE SERVICE FROM COMCAST IS THE WORST ONE.(80,00 AND YOU PAID ONLY 40,00 FOR NOV EMBER22,2008)
OUR TELEVISION HAVE 8 YEARS,
PEOPLE FROM COMCAST
CAME TO OUR HOUSE AND SAW OUR TELEVISION.
I HAVE NO COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE PEOPLE
THAT CAME TO MY HOUSE TOFIX OUR CABLE BUT I HAVE COMPLAINTS ABOUT A CUSTOMER SERVICE OF COMCAST.
THIS MONTH A BILL FOR NOVEMBER22,2008 IS 80,00!!!
MY HUSBAND GAVE ONLY 40,00.
I THINK THIS IS DISCRIMINATION
FROM COMCAST AGAINST POOR AND DISABILITY PEOPLE.
I THINK IS HARASSMENT EITHER.
SORRY ABOUT MY ENGLISH.

Notice that if you take away the letters, 'c', 'o', and 't' from the word Comcast, what remains are the letters that make up the word "scam"...

Keep in mind that the definitions of "scam" are: A fraudulent business scheme; a stratagem for gain; a swindle.

Comcast's buisness practices often fit that definition. Their 'scam' would seem to be cleverly disguised by adding three letters to their name.

My name is Rob and I work for Verizon in the Fios new construction department. I can give you availability and also answer questions about the process. I also have a personal notification list that I monitor daily. I can be reached by email at robert.j.mezzadra@verizon.com I look forward to helping anyone interested.