Travelfan1
RIP Analog Go Digital
join:2005-08-23
Iselin, NJ
 ·Comcast
|  NJ: Digital Economy Package - 12/01/08
Ad in the Star Ledger today
Effective on or about 12/01/08, Comcast will offer the Digital Economy Video Package in all of its service areas in NJ, except Jersey City.
Digital Economy Video Package includes Limited Basic Services, a digital converter and remote control(or CableCard) and the following channels:
A&E
AMC
Animal Planet
BET
Cartoon Network
CNN
Comedy Central
C-SPAN2
Discovery
Disney
E!
Food Network
Fox News
Hallmark
History
Lifetime
Spike TV
TV Land
TruTv
USA
WGN(where available)
Music Choice.
Price: 39.95/month plus tax and fees
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COMCAST of New Jersey II(Union) - Verizon DSL
You want more HD? Then e-mail Rick Germano - Go to Contact Us in the Comcast web site. And don't complain when analogs are removed! Digital isn't the future, it's the present! |
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Travelfan1
RIP Analog Go Digital
join:2005-08-23
Iselin, NJ
·Comcast
| my comments:
1- No MSNBC? That's strange, as CNN and Fox News are part of this package.
2- Interesting aspect of the package: A few of these channels are digital-only. And the package is cheaper than standard analog - granted, doesn't help if you have several tvs, as you'll need 1 box/cablecard per tv. I think Comcast is indeed cooking a larger analog-to-digital movement soon, maybe in early 2009 in NJ... I have my fingers crossed for that!
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COMCAST of New Jersey II(Union) - Verizon DSL
You want more HD? Then e-mail Rick Germano - Go to Contact Us in the Comcast web site. And don't complain when analogs are removed! Digital isn't the future, it's the present! |
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owine
Premium
join:2002-08-29
Salem, MA | reply to Travelfan1
No sports channels. |
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miscDude
| It makes sense that there are no sports channels, considering it's the sports channels that tend to cost the most and are responsible for a disproportionate part of your expanded basic bill. Considering it looks like they are trying to offer an option between the $20 limited basic, and the $60 expanded basic, The idea would end up being to find the best way to offer the most channels for the least cost. Knocking out the sports channels is one of the easiest ways to remove a lot of that cost.
What is really interesting to note, if you notice they aren't even including Comcast Sportsnet. Since they aren't even including their own sports channels, I wonder how this will go over with NFL's recent complaint that Comcast was unfairly giving it's own sports networks an advantage on their systems. Obviously, if they were trying to give themselves an unfair advantage, putting it into this new teir without any other competing sports networks would be one easy way to do that.
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cypherstream
Looking forward to the future of things.
Premium,MVM
join:2004-12-02
Reading, PA
clubs:
| reply to Travelfan1
Have fun surfing through tons of "NOT AUTHORIZED" messages.
Unless the channels are rearranged right next to each other (highly doubt it), or they let you view only subscribed channels in the guide (without a favorites hack), your gonna need a lineup card right by your remote, unless you have the patience to memorize what channels you get!
I mean with limited basic here and a box, people don't realize they get stuff like Fox News, Fox Soccer, some Spanish programming, all of music choice, MoviePlex, Weatherscan local and a few other oddities. |
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sansri88
Go digtal you analog laggards
Premium
join:2005-12-17
New York, NY
clubs: | reply to Travelfan1
Hopefully this is a sign of something to come...a larger digital transition hopefully.
I wonder why Jersey City was left out of this...why are they different than us? |
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CRP
Comcast of Ocean County
join:2005-12-26
Brick, NJ
·Comcast
| reply to Travelfan1
said by Travelfan1  :Ad in the Star Ledger today Effective on or about 12/01/08, Comcast will offer the Digital Economy Video Package in all of its service areas in NJ, except Jersey City. Digital Economy Video Package includes Limited Basic Services, a digital converter and remote control(or CableCard) and the following channels: A&E AMC Animal Planet BET (where available)Cartoon Network CNN Comedy Central C-SPAN2 Discovery Disney E! Food Network Fox News Hallmark History Lifetime Spike TV TV Land TruTv USA WGN(where available) Music Choice. Price: 39.95/month plus tax and fees Fixed it.  |
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luckystreich
join:2005-11-05
Hartford, CT
 ·NETPLEX
| My aunt went to the local Comcast center in Plainville, CT today. 06062 is the zip. The are offering this Economy Package in Connecticut, beginning last month.
She got a the run around from two reps. One kept arguing that the 39.95 price did not include limited basic channels. (It does.) The other kept arguing that she needed a box and could could not use her CableCard. They finally agreed that she could use her CableCard, but then a 3rd rep came over and insisted she needed a box.
They were not able to make up their minds about whether Limited Basic channels were included. My 75 year old aunt was so frustrated, she walked out.
I told her I would look into this further for her. |
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Brad Bishop
Premium
join:2002-09-27
Atlanta, GA
| If they offer this in Atlanta I may just switch.
It's pretty rare (extremely) when I'll watch any of the sports channels and I really don't need/want most of the other gunk that gets tossed into Digital Starter. I do like most of what's in this package, though.
The $53/month for Digital Starter just kills me. It just seems expensive for the amount of TV viewing I do and, if I skimp back to Limited Digital Basic (the locals-only deal) then I do miss a few shows on Food, Discovery, etc. |
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ak3883
join:2005-08-20
Bensalem, PA
| reply to Travelfan1
Now here is a good question:
Obviously you need a digital box to watch these channels on this new "digital economy" package. Will they still offer it in areas that have gone to all digital? We've learned that they plan to send regular cable channels in digital format, unencrypted. So, what's to stop you from getting this cheaper service and picking up the rest of the cable channels, incl ESPN and ESPN2, on QAM in the clear?
They would have to rebundle their packing of SD cable channels on each slot, so that packages with these channels are in the untrapped frequencies, and make sure the rest of the cable channels are in the trapped frequency range, since they would be unencrypted.
Not too hard to do, will they have the foresight to do this? Or will they not care since they also said they feel that the channels being availible in only digital format(albeit unencrypted) will satisfy content owners and be enough protection from people watching what they don't subscribe to? |
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The Q
join:2008-06-26
Collegeville, PA | reply to cypherstream
You can easiliy set up a Favorite Channels list on the guide so that only those channels appear in your TV listings grid. From the Main menu select Setup, then favorite Lists Setup. Not sure about SA though. |
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luckystreich
join:2005-11-05
Hartford, CT
·NETPLEX
| reply to ak3883
said by ak3883 :Not too hard to do, will they have the foresight to do this? Or will they not care since they also said they feel that the channels being availible in only digital format(albeit unencrypted) will satisfy content owners and be enough protection from people watching what they don't subscribe to? I may not be using the correct vocabulary here, but in many/most markets the expanded channels are digitally simulcast in addition analog. Even in ALL DIGITAL markets the basic or limited basic channels (1st 20 #'s or so) are still analog and they will continue to be.
With this economy package, an expanded trap is put on the line. Only the expanded channels the customer is supposed to get reach them....digitally of course + Music Choice, etc. |
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rody_44
Premium
join:2004-02-20
Quakertown, PA
·Comcast
4 edits | a trap doesnt block any digital signal. if its sent in the clear than its going to be available to people with qam tuners. i doubt thats a biggie in comcasts eyes. they will probably encrypt most of the digital channels. not the local networks tho. since its a digital only package i wouldnt be surprised if they just dont install a video trap and knock out all the analog stations. that would be the most logical way of implementing it. |
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cypherstream
Looking forward to the future of things.
Premium,MVM
join:2004-12-02
Reading, PA
clubs:
1 edit | reply to Travelfan1
Saw this on PA Public Notices. Published in the Reading Eagle:
Effective on or about 12/8/2008, Comcast will offer the Digital Economy Video package in the area served by our Reading/ Hamburg channel lineup. Digital Economy includes Limited Basic Service, a digital converter and remote control (or CableCARD) and the following channels: A&E, AMC, Animal Planet, Cartoon, CNN, Comedy Central, Discovery, Disney, E!, Food Network, Fox News, Hallmark, History, Lifetime, Spike TV, TV Land, USA, and Music Choice. The price for this package is $39.95 per month. Price excludes taxes and fees. If you are interested in the Digital Economy package and would like complete details about service, prices and equipment availability, please contact us at 1-800-COMCAST. Other restrictions apply. All rights reserved. Comcast ©2008
I love those "on or about". It's a service package. No new channels. Either the package starts that day or it doesn't! No more, "on or about"! |
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