Paul_Brookline
@harvard.edu
| reply to rcbrcb
Re: [CATV] Clear QAM channels slowly disappearing in Boston?
said by rcbrcb  :The FCC "In the Clear Rule" only requires that a provider leave either the SD or HD locals feeds in the clear so a QAM tuner can pull them in, not both. RCN is leaving the SD version of the local channels unencrypted so they are in compliance and they are under no obligation to notify residents that the HD versions of the local channels are going to be encrypted. It really sucks, but that the way it is.....IMO, RCN could have done a much better job with this! You're missing the point. Most of the OTA HD channels remain unencrypted (though they have, in violation of FCC rules, encrypted two local independents). We are objecting to the unannounced encryption of the expanded basic SD lineup.
RCN changed the service that they agreed to provide when I committed to a one year contract in March '08. As I said in my earlier post, I verified that the expanded basic channels, including HD versions, would be available using a clear QAM tuner, as well as available to my analog-only set without requiring an STB. I made it clear to the RCN rep. that I would not subscribe to their service if I was required to rent an STB for each TV.
It's obvious that the decision to encrypt all QAM channels had already been made when RCN was telling me that they would be available in clear QAM. It seems likely that analog service will be shut down in the near future, with the same failure to notify customers. |
|
dworsky
join:2004-10-29
Somerville, MA
2 edits | Paul...
I was told by RCN that they did send out notices to Mass, but you and I (and probably everyone else) didn't get them. Funny thing.
Their plan is to begin going all digital starting July 8 and finishing by January 27.
Here is info provided to certain RCN reps:
>>As of today May 6, 2008, we began encrypting some HD channels in the Massachusetts market and we will continue to do so until all channels are encrypted. This includes High Definition channels that weren't previously encrypted such as local stations. Note the schedule below:
On 05/06/08 we encrypted:
A&E HD Ch 184 , History Ch HD Ch 186, Animal Planet HD Ch 187, Travel Channel HD Ch 188 , FX HD Ch 189 , LMN HD Ch 190, TLC HD Ch 191 , CNN HD Ch 192 and Discovery HD Ch 193.
On 05/14/08 we will encrypt:
HGTV HD Ch182, Food Network HD Ch 181, TBS HD Ch 174 ,TNT HD Ch 173, Comcast Sp Net HD Ch 171,ESPN HD Ch 166 , ESPN 2 HD Ch 169 ,
WLVI HD Ch 156 and WSBK HD Ch 159
On 05/20/08 we will encrypt:
NESN HD Ch 170, ABC HD Ch 160, CBS HD Ch 161, NBC HD Ch 162, Fox HD Ch 163 and PBS HD Ch 164
How does this impact our customers?
* Anyone without an RCN cable box or CableCARD will no longer see these channels.
* Most RCN customers will not even notice a difference. If they have a digital converter or a CableCARD, they won't see any change.
* Customers that have QAM tuners that were picking up unencrypted digital channels without paying for them will no longer see the channels.
o QAM tuners allow the free reception of digital programming previously sent "in the clear" by RCN; however, most digital channels were always encoded because they are outside of the "basic cable" package.
o QAM tuners are only available on high-end HDTV's, and the customer had to know how to set up the tuner to receive these stations. Few people know how to do this, so the amount of customers impacted should be negligible.
o For now, this does not affect a cable ready TV receiving ANALOG cable signals. This is just HD channels. Analog channels will soon be eliminated as well, but that is a future phase; we will send out another notification when that occurs.
+ Beginning July 8, 2008 in Massachusetts; all analog channels except for a constant advertisement will be replaced by an all-digital line up enabling us to put together a great new channel lineup.
+ Customers must have a box on each television by their implementation date or they will lose programming.
+ For new customers, the first standard converter box is free. New customers will be charged $2.95 a month for additional standard converter boxes. Current customers with out any converter boxes, will receive the same pricing. The 1st box free and $2.95 for each additional box.
+ If current customers have a box (RDIGCNV), they will receive additional boxes at the price schedule they are on: $2.95/5.95 OR $4.95/7.95
+ Letters and voice-cast phone messages are directing customers to call a local number, 781-xxx-xxxx, for details.
+ Direct customers calling Customer Service to request a new converter or to swap a converter to the Local Office first
Edgar |
|
billymac
join:2008-05-16
01802 | Awesome! I'm negligible! |
|
Paul_Brookline
@harvard.edu
| reply to dworsky
said by dworsky :Paul... o QAM tuners are only available on high-end HDTV's, and the customer had to know how to set up the tuner to receive these stations. Few people know how to do this, so the amount of customers impacted should be negligible. I had no idea that pushing the "Program" button on the remote was such a high-end skill. I guess my Engineering MS didn't go to waste. This reads like an excerpt from that Dish TV commercial showing Cable execs as scheming buffoons.
I'd think that such obvious contempt for your customers would not be a productive business strategy. |
|
nycityny
Premium
join:2005-08-09
New York, NY
 ·PHONE POWER
·VoicePulse
 ·RCN CABLE
·ViaTalk
| reply to dworsky
Wow! It is kind of scary looking behind the curtain and seeing how contemptuous RCN is of its customers. I mean, writing things like "negligible" and "Few people know how to do this" is really disheartening to read.
I'm in New York and will have to reconfigure my entire set-up when these changes occur here. Meantime, our local government just voted yesterday to allow Verizon FIOS into our city. I'm looking forward to the additional competition. After 11 years with RCN my time with them may be running out. |
|
JimF
join:2003-06-15
Allentown, PA
| reply to Paul_Brookline
said by Paul_Brookline :
I made it clear to the RCN rep. that I would not subscribe to their service if I was required to rent an STB for each TV.
Lots of luck. It looks like you are relying on an oral agreement with the "RCN rep", whoever that is. Take a look at your contract or whatever terms they provided you. Chances are, there will be a provision that it supersedes all other agreements, oral or otherwise. |
|
dworsky
join:2004-10-29
Somerville, MA
2 edits | reply to Paul_Brookline
5/29 update: In Somerville, all HD and major networks are gone via QAM as of this morning.
I am fiddling with rabbit ears on my Sony 46" Bravia to get back HD. How crazy is that in 2008.
Grrr. |
|
foofoo2
@rcn.com
| reply to Paul_Brookline
I recieved brochure in the mail with some info about the change. But heard there was more info on the way. Im sure RCN does not want people stealing HD channels, which they probably pay more for to provide to customers.I doubt that rcn gets discovery HD free just for having discovery sd. Alot of people will be upset im sure when they lose the HD channels they got as a "bonus" for so long. It wont be long before every company does the same thing. That is why OTA is such a great idea. I also heard the fcc liked the fact that rcn was taking the innitiative to go all digital. The fcc itself wants everything to be digital. Thats just my take....who knows. |
|
E512N
join:2007-05-22
Chicago, IL
| What's irked me with this whole conversion is the overall lack of communication. There were these nebulous "digital is coming" commercials from time to time (with the expected "get a box or you'll lose everything" language - probably could have been a bit more upsell and a little less threatening...). Other than that, though, I didn't get diddly as far as real info.
* My building management was apparently not informed until the cutover happened. That justifiably freaked them out to the point of demanding a suspension of the rollout and conversion _back_ to the older lineup. "Irate" barely describes how irked they are right now.
* I received no mailings - at all. Honestly, I was really surprised by the lack of communication. Historically, RCN has been pretty good about that thing in my neighborhood.
* No formal timeline was published
The whole approach has mad it damn hard for people to actually get boxes and continue service. Had it not been for this board and the RCN guys who kindly post, there's no way I'd have had a clue what was going on. |
|
rcnman
Jason Nealis
Premium,VIP
join:2003-05-02
Herndon, VA
| reply to foofoo2
said by foofoo2 :
I doubt that rcn gets discovery HD free just for having discovery sd. Alot of people will be upset im sure when they lose the HD channels they got as a "bonus" for so long. It wont be long before every company does the same thing.
Indeed, typically with most if not all MSO's the cable premiums come with a price or license fee, thus why certain channels get placed in certain tiers to hopefully drive take rates within that tier.
I fully understand many of your concerns and issues with the encryption, but many of the changes are necessary and unavoidable in order for us to implement the new lineups and channel additions. In the end, the product as a whole will be much more attractive, and as a consumer you will have many more choices then before.
--
Jason Nealis,
Sr. Director, Video Product and Network Operations |
|
rcnman
Jason Nealis
Premium,VIP
join:2003-05-02
Herndon, VA
| reply to Paul_Brookline
said by Paul_Brookline :said by dworsky :Paul... o QAM tuners are only available on high-end HDTV's, and the customer had to know how to set up the tuner to receive these stations. Few people know how to do this, so the amount of customers impacted should be negligible. I had no idea that pushing the "Program" button on the remote was such a high-end skill. I guess my Engineering MS didn't go to waste. This reads like an excerpt from that Dish TV commercial showing Cable execs as scheming buffoons. I'd think that such obvious contempt for your customers would not be a productive business strategy. I'm hopeful that myself and Joe's assistance in this forum would show otherwise. I do apologize for the context / wording of that statement and I assure you it couldn't be further from the truth.
--
Jason Nealis,
Sr. Director, Video Product and Network Operations |
|
moulder3
join:2007-05-21
Boston, MA
| reply to rcnman
said by rcnman :said by foofoo2 :
I doubt that rcn gets discovery HD free just for having discovery sd. Alot of people will be upset im sure when they lose the HD channels they got as a "bonus" for so long. It wont be long before every company does the same thing.
Indeed, typically with most if not all MSO's the cable premiums come with a price or license fee, thus why certain channels get placed in certain tiers to hopefully drive take rates within that tier. I fully understand many of your concerns and issues with the encryption, but many of the changes are necessary and unavoidable in order for us to implement the new lineups and channel additions. In the end, the product as a whole will be much more attractive, and as a consumer you will have many more choices then before. I 100% understand where you're coming from, but why can't you just filter the frequencies that we receive. For instance, I pay for enchanced digital, ALL HD channels & several premium channels. Why can't you allow me (via QAM) to receive all the channels that I pay for?
I understand the need to encrypt so that people don't receive channels they don't pay for, but what about those of us who pay (a lot of $!) to receive premium content. Now we need a STB to receive everything...and your STB's are siginficantly more expensive than Dish's or DirecTv's boxes! |
|
tigrzeye
Control4 Certified Installer
join:2007-07-18
LHV, PA
| reply to rcnman
Jason and Joe we appreciate all your help. I don't think we are upset with either of you. BUT since you are available to us through this forum, you are getting it both barrels.
I just added an HD STB and am charged $11.99 per month and already have HD programming with an existing DVR/HD STB. That is incredibly high for a box rental fee as compared to DirecTV where is is $4.99 per month. That is 2.5 times more. |
|
rcnman
Jason Nealis
Premium,VIP
join:2003-05-02
Herndon, VA
| reply to rcnman
Looking back over the thread of postings and after checking this out internally at RCN, I think what we have here is failure to communicate well. RCN in no way views any of its customers as ‘negligible’ – we are spending millions of dollars to go all digital throughout our markets in order to give our customers double the programming for about the same price as before. One of the aspects of that effort is that we are encrypting digital programming outside of the basic tier, so our internal communications discussing the change, which were later posted in this forum, were meant to address the fact that customers using QAM tuners would be impacted by that change. The internal information also noted that the number of such customers is expected to be small given that most TVs don’t have QAM tuners and even if they do, very few people are using them today.
Should we have used the word “negligible” instead of “small”? Probably not. The same goes for the phrase “Few people know how to do this” – it probably would have been better to say that “Only our most technically savvy customers are currently using the QAM tuners in their TVs.” All I can say again is that RCN in no way views its customers as negligible or not smart enough to figure out how to use a QAM tuner – and apologize for any other impression that was obviously engendered by RCN’s poor choice of words.
--
Jason Nealis,
Sr. Director, Video Product and Network Operations |
|
billymac
join:2008-05-16
01802
| said by rcnman :.... One of the aspects of that effort is that we are encrypting digital programming outside of the basic tier, .... Jason, my question is regarding the above statement. Are local HD broadcasts not part of the basic tier? Although I would love that it remain the way it is, and I've bragged about RCN's clear QAM, I've resolved myself to losing the majority of clearQAM.
The local HD's not being in clear QAM, that is the issue that is driving me to switch. Your competitors have the locals in the clear, and advertise as such, so by not providing that you are losing the customers that care about that feature, but gaining very little. None of the encryption changes are necessary for the the analog crushed and enhanced HD that you are rolling out. I'll be spending more for cable but I'll be able to use my HD QAM DVR with them.
I do feel that all cable companies should provide their extended basic in clearQAM like RCN has for many years, but I guess that is a battle that has been lost.
I appreciate your support for the few months I was with RCN and wish you all the best.
Billy |
|
jondar9
join:2002-02-22
Easton, PA
| reply to rcnman
said by rcnman :...as a consumer you will have many more choices then before. So when do we get the "choice" to use customer owned STBs to avoid the ridiculous rental fees that will be forced upon us? (Yes, I'm already planning on 1 or 2 TiVoHD's to replace the existing 3 SD models. It still won't cover the several other occasional use TVs.) |
|
Paul_Brookline
@rcn.com
 from:
tigrzeye
| reply to rcnman
said by rcnman :we are spending millions of dollars to go all digital throughout our markets in order to give our customers double the programming for about the same price as before. "about the same price" !?!? Really? ...I will have to pay almost $40.00/month over and above what I am now charged, simply to regain the programming I've been receiving on my existing TVs with no box, as promised by your sales representative.
said by rcnman :One of the aspects of that effort is that we are encrypting digital programming outside of the basic tier. You are encrypting all the channels, both Standard Definition and HD I am currently receiving as part of my expanded basic service, including local broadcast stations.
said by rcnman : .....the fact that customers using QAM tuners would be impacted by that change. The internal information also noted that the number of such customers is expected to be small given that most TVs don’t have QAM tuners and even if they do, very few people are using them today. EVERY television manufactured for the past two years has contained an ATSC/QAM tuner, including the 15" Toshiba I have in my kitchen, in a space with no room for a cable box. When my each of my TVs was first powered on, it presented a setup screen asking if I wanted to program the channel selection. One button press is all that's required.
Look - we all know why RCN is now encrypting all programming: forcing customers to rent boxes generates revenue. Cable TV is not a competitive market - it is, at best, a duopoly, and the industry has successfully killed the FCC's effort to make STBs an open market.
Please do not insult our intelligence by conflating encryption with digital conversion or bandwidth reclamation - we know that they are unrelated. We also know that encrypting basic programming is not related to protecting premium content (that has always been encrypted).
Many of your customers chose RCN BECAUSE you provided content in Clear QAM. I have recommended RCN to friends and colleagues because they would be able to avoid renting an STB. That has now changed - I am warning them to avoid RCN, particularly because RCN reneges on commitments without even bothering to notify customers. That is contempt, by anyone's definition. |
|
tigrzeye
Control4 Certified Installer
join:2007-07-18
LHV, PA
| reply to Paul_Brookline
Re: [CATV] Clear QAM channels slowly disappearing in Boston?
Thank you Paul_Brookline for your post, concise and to the point.
A couple additional considerations:
1/ My RCN bill now exceeds my budget plan electric bill. A utility that provides me with heat, hot water, and power for every appliance and gadget in my household.
2/ I can't switch to another cable company. RCN is a monopoly in my area, it's the only choice, no competition, no competition pricing to have to beat.
3/ Okay we have already lost the battle, RCN is encrypting their signals, period !! So at least lesson the blow a bit RCN and make your STB rentals reasonable. I recently added an HD STB and it is $11.99 per month. Same thing on DirecTV satellite, is $4.99 per month per box/TV connected. $12.00 for a box to just sit there, used or unused. OUCH!! |
|
tubby17
join:2007-09-15
Easton, PA
| tigrzeye--another thing that troubles me is that in the Lehigh Valley, we can't even get OTA broadcasts because of our geography. If I'm not mistaken, this was the impetus for the first cable company in the country to start operations here (Service Electric). That's another option that we simply don't have if we want to get major networks (NBC, CBS, ABC, etc.) in HD.
So for those of us in the Lehigh Valley, correct me if I'm wrong, but as I understand it, we rely on cable to get ANY signal since there is no OTA alternative. Just another example of how our options will really be limited by all of this. |
|
