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Charter Informs Users of Price Hikes
For Both TV and Internet Services

zed261 writes in to note that Charter Communications is just the latest in a long line of companies informing users of price hikes for the new year. A thread in our Charter forum details the notice Charter is sending out to customers, which alerts users that most hikes will range from $2 to $5, depending on the service. "Like other businesses, Charter has experienced a rise in our overall cost of doing business, in particularly relating to an increase in the cost we pay for programming as well as equipment," a Charter spokesperson insists.

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While not always necessarily the culprit, programming is usually an easy and believable excuse for constant TV rate hikes. However, the cost to prove landline bandwidth is usually either fixed or declining, yet Charter is also informing users they're raising rates for all of their broadband service tiers.

On the positive side, it's the first Internet price hike for most Charter users in roughly half a decade, Charter did boost speeds significantly last December, and they haven't started charging per-byte overages (yet). The changes:

Internet Express (15 Mbps): Current price $44.99 -- New price $47.99

Internet Plus (30 Mbps): Current price $54.99 -- New price $57.99

Internet Max (Being discontinued): Current price $69.99 -- New price $72.99

Internet Ultra (100 Mbps): Current price $84.99 -- New price $87.99.

Happy cable rate hike season everyone!
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andyross
MVM
join:2003-05-04
Aurora, IL

andyross

MVM

Blame ESPN3!

You can thank ESPN3 and similar for the HSI rate hikes...
rradina
join:2000-08-08
Chesterfield, MO

rradina

Member

Re: Blame ESPN3!

How does ESPN3 affect HSI? Is there an ESPN "walled garden" website I can access as a Charter HSI customer that links the HSI rates to increased ESPN charges?

nightshade74
Yet another genxer
Premium Member
join:2004-11-06
Prattville, AL

nightshade74

Premium Member

Re: Blame ESPN3!

Here's wikipedia's description.

»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ESPN3
--
ESPN3 (formerly ESPN360) is an online streaming service provided by ESPN that delivers both live streams and replays of global sports events to sports fans in North America, Australia, Brazil, Chile, Middle East, New Zealand, and Europe (except Italy). In the U.S., the network is available to individuals who receive their high-speed Internet connection or cable TV subscription from an affiliated service provider. Since 2008, ESPN3 has also been available to approximately 21 million U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers with college/university (.edu) and U.S. military (.mil) IP addresses. ESPN3 is only available to Internet providers who pay fees to ESPN. ESPN3 is not carried by traditional cable and satellite providers, as it is not a single channel but can be streaming multiple live events at the same time.
--

So yes it could be somewhat blamed for the hike.
rradina
join:2000-08-08
Chesterfield, MO

rradina

Member

Re: Blame ESPN3!

OK-- got it. I remember ESPN360. I didn't know it had been renamed ESPN3. It thought this was one of their "broadcast" video feeds.

That makes perfect sense. HSI rates could go up with higher ESPN3 fees.
Expand your moderator at work
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned) to andyross

Member

to andyross
Charter pays in the area of 5-10 cents per sub for ESPN3. So it would be responsible for a very small % of any price hike.

Duramax08
To The Moon
Premium Member
join:2008-08-03
San Antonio, TX

Duramax08

Premium Member

Tis the season

Tis the season to be screwed, Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Mikey
@charter.com

Mikey

Anon

Missing details

Not mentioned in the article is the speeds are incresing as well.

Product Name Download Speed Upload Speed
Lite 3 Mbps 84 Kbps
Express 15 Mbps 3 Mbps
Plus 30 Mbps 4 Mbps
Max Discontinued for New Sales, Current Customers
Grandfathered
Ultra100 100 Mbps 5 Mbps
(not avail. in all markets)

Sorry if it's hard to read, the column formatting doesn't work in the reponse window.
CharterDylan
Premium Member
join:2009-01-29
Chesterfield, MO

CharterDylan

Premium Member

Re: Missing details

Good Afternoon Mikey,

We appreciate your willingness to help however the speed tiers you posted are not applicable to all markets and the standard speeds where available are as follows:
Ultra: 100Mbps/5Mbps
Plus: 30Mbps/4Mbps
Express: 15Mbps/3Mbps
Lite: 3Mbps/384kbps

If anyone has any questions or concerns please feel free to contact us via our Direct Forum found here: »/fo ··· erdirect

Thanks,

Dylan
»www.charter.com/Umatter2Charter

Dominokat
"Hi"
Premium Member
join:2002-08-06
Boothbay, ME

1 recommendation

Dominokat

Premium Member

"Happy Rate Hike Season"

Is there an OFF SEASON for rate hikes?

Rambo76098
join:2003-02-21
Columbus, OH

Rambo76098

Member

Re: "Happy Rate Hike Season"

My thoughts exactly - especially this week, holy crap. AT&T, Charter, Directv, Windstream, Rogers, Comcast, etc.

Glad to have WOW for internet and no cable!
JohnW3
join:2011-03-13

JohnW3

Member

Re: "Happy Rate Hike Season"

add Cox to the list.. at least in some markets

wdoa
join:2001-10-16
Spencer, MA

wdoa

Member

Gouging on the basic service too...

All I have Charter for is "basic" (i.e. just the broadcast channels, along with CSPAN, and local public access). Here in Spencer, MA Charter is gouging away raising the rate from $15 to almost $19. If I didn't live in an area that could not get reliable over the air reception (at least w/o putting up a 200 foot tower in my back yard), I would kick them to the curb. I'm seriously thinking of dumping them anyway and just rely on online downloads (via Verizon DSL, which is very dependable) to get he shows I watch. Charter should just curl up and die.
JohnW3
join:2011-03-13

1 edit

JohnW3

Member

Re: Gouging on the basic service too...

I have used verizon DSL for several yrs u are right it's stable and dependable. but I moved to a location in my city a yr ago not avaliable yeah.. cox has faster speeds but when I had Verizon DSL everytime I was on espn3 got the max signal strength get go. now it takes some time to get the good quality. what I didn't like about Verizon DSL was the bad phone support from India but me being a former DSL tech on phone for SBC (now AT&T) wasn't an issue.. figured the issues myself and most issues were on Verizon's end.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned) to wdoa

Member

to wdoa
said by wdoa:

All I have Charter for is "basic" (i.e. just the broadcast channels, along with CSPAN, and local public access). Here in Spencer, MA Charter is gouging away raising the rate from $15 to almost $19.

$19? That's a deal. Charter has been charging $30 for basic in my area for a long time now.

If I didn't live in an area that could not get reliable over the air reception (at least w/o putting up a 200 foot tower in my back yard), I would kick them to the curb.

Depending on your exact location you don't need a 200 foot tower. 20 feet or 30 feet maybe, but not 200.

wdoa
join:2001-10-16
Spencer, MA

wdoa

Member

Re: Gouging on the basic service too...

I used Antennaweb.org and even with the antenna 200 ft above the ground most of the stations are listed as very poor. At 50ft I get 3 stations all listed as very poor reception. Nope I'm screwed for OTA
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Gouging on the basic service too...

said by wdoa:

I used Antennaweb.org and even with the antenna 200 ft above the ground most of the stations are listed as very poor. At 50ft I get 3 stations all listed as very poor reception. Nope I'm screwed for OTA

Antennaweb sucks. Everyone in the know uses TVfool.com
desarollo
join:2011-10-01
Monroe, MI

desarollo

Member

Unfortunately...

I have not received a corresponding increase in my paycheck.

Therefore, I'll drop something in the programming in order to come in to where I am now.
Bengie25
join:2010-04-22
Wisconsin Rapids, WI

Bengie25

Member

Good news

The good news about this is if you account for inflation, it's still cheaper than 2 years ago.

crazyk4952
Premium Member
join:2002-02-04
united state
Ubiquiti EdgeRouter Lite
Ubiquiti UniFi AP-LR
Polycom VVX300

crazyk4952

Premium Member

doesn't make sense

I don't understand, they recently dropped the price on their highest HSI tier, increased the throughput from 60Mb to 100Mb. Now they are raising the price..... sounds like they can't figure out what they are doing!

AND of course, this is in addition to the modem rental fee increase from $5 to $7 a couple of months ago....
JohnW3
join:2011-03-13

JohnW3

Member

Re: doesn't make sense

thats one bad thing most cable co's do.. slap a modem "fee" My provider Cox Communications only has 3 months payment and it's not that big and thats all.. if u get cable internet best thing to do is buy ur own modem it will pay off in the long run. if not tech savvy make sure tech support will support the modem.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned) to crazyk4952

Member

to crazyk4952
said by crazyk4952:

I don't understand, they recently dropped the price on their highest HSI tier, increased the throughput from 60Mb to 100Mb. Now they are raising the price..... sounds like they can't figure out what they are doing!

At the end of the day back in Novemebr just a mere 2 months ago someone on Ultra was paying $100 a month for 60 Mbps. In March they'll be paying $88 for 100 Mbps.

AND of course, this is in addition to the modem rental fee increase from $5 to $7 a couple of months ago....

Most of these modems are new docsis 3.0 modems which are more expensive. Also the modem price had been $5 a month for several years.

crazyk4952
Premium Member
join:2002-02-04
united state
Ubiquiti EdgeRouter Lite
Ubiquiti UniFi AP-LR
Polycom VVX300

crazyk4952

Premium Member

Re: doesn't make sense

said by 88615298:

said by crazyk4952:

I don't understand, they recently dropped the price on their highest HSI tier, increased the throughput from 60Mb to 100Mb. Now they are raising the price..... sounds like they can't figure out what they are doing!

At the end of the day back in Novemebr just a mere 2 months ago someone on Ultra was paying $100 a month for 60 Mbps. In March they'll be paying $88 for 100 Mbps.

AND of course, this is in addition to the modem rental fee increase from $5 to $7 a couple of months ago....

Most of these modems are new docsis 3.0 modems which are more expensive. Also the modem price had been $5 a month for several years.

Right, so why didn't they just make it $88 in the first place.

Also, I was renting a DOCSIS 3.0 modem for $5, then then raised this to $7. The fee has nothing to do with DOCSIS 3.0. It is just an arbitrary way that they can increase the cost to most customers without having to change their advertised price.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: doesn't make sense

said by crazyk4952:

Right, so why didn't they just make it $88 in the first place.

would have made more sense. We are talking about Charter though.

Also, I was renting a DOCSIS 3.0 modem for $5, then then raised this to $7. The fee has nothing to do with DOCSIS 3.0. It is just an arbitrary way that they can increase the cost to most customers without having to change their advertised price.

Want to avoid rental fees BUY your own modem. Unless you're in the habit of changing ISPs doesn't make sense to rent a modem.
JohnW3
join:2011-03-13

1 edit

JohnW3

Member

ESPN getting so EVIL!!

Yeah I can believe price hikes for HSI because of ESPN3. just like ESPN, FOX, Viacom, etc demands more money each year (or in some cases 6 months) causing the cable TV bill to go up. ESPN possibly the reason the stupid BCS system exists in college football all about $$$ but I still watch ESPN..I am just stating the facts.
bakorican
join:2004-02-28
germany

bakorican

Member

Competition

My Internet/TV Prices in 2008 € 16 Mb internet with unlimited everything telephone and ca. 100 channel TV €64.

My Internet/TV Prices in 2009 € 16 Mb internet with unlimited everything telephone and ca. 100 channel TV €49.

My Internet/TV Prices in 2010 50 Mb internet with unlimited everything telephone and ca. 200 channel TV €49.

My Internet/TV Prices since 2011 120 Mb internet with unlimited everything telephone and ca. 250 channel TV €29. (that's permanent pricing not introductory offer)

I enjoy these dropping prices due to the fact that we have very healthy competition here in Germany, dozens of providers and telecom laws that actually promote competition vs. supporting monopolies.

I used to live in the US and know how it feels like to have the choice between AT&T and using drums or smoke signals for communication.

No amount of lobbing money can trump the will of the citizens of a country. Good example was the recent SOPA/PIPA strike.

Also there needs to be a mechanism in place that prevents the bundling of TV channels. IMO Sports channels should be an add-on package not included in any bundle at all. Why should grandma Molly subsidize her neighbors desire to watch sport?

If only those really wanting to watch Sport subscribe to it, supply and demand will take care of the price of those packages as well and maybe the Sports broadcasters will realize that their pricing schemes are insane and greedy.

Seems like the Cable/Telcos want to use 2 sides of an argument at once. On one hand they want to change to consumption based internet to, allegedly, make pricing more fair. On the other hand they want to shove unwanted programming down everybody's throat so they can raise prices whenever they feel like it and blame somebody else for it.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Internet price hike not that bad

Yeah we all hate price hikes HOWEVER this is the first price hike in 6 years on internet. And in that time speeds have been increased many times. 6 years ago the Express plan was the $45 a month and had a max speed of 3 Mbps. Now you can get 3 Mbps for $25 even after the price increase. The Ultra tier was $100 a month just 2 months ago. So $88 really isn't a price hike. And it was only 60 Mbps.

I have more of an issue with the TV price hike since in the same 6 years we had 7 or 8 price hikes, not to mention new "fees" added. With very little to show for it.
markopoleo
join:2003-04-02
Bonne Terre, MO

markopoleo

Member

Re: Internet price hike not that bad

said by 88615298:

Yeah we all hate price hikes HOWEVER this is the first price hike in 6 years on internet. And in that time speeds have been increased many times. 6 years ago the Express plan was the $45 a month and had a max speed of 3 Mbps. Now you can get 3 Mbps for $25 even after the price increase. The Ultra tier was $100 a month just 2 months ago. So $88 really isn't a price hike. And it was only 60 Mbps.

What does 2 months ago have to do with today? 2 months ago I was paying $85 for 100meg..now i'm paying $70 a month. NOW just ONE MONTH after they dropped price..they are raising it again.

That does not make any sense no matter how you like to spin things.

cork1958
Cork
Premium Member
join:2000-02-26

cork1958

Premium Member

Re: Internet price hike not that bad

But doesn't is SOUND good that Charter did all of that for you?

You know about that warm, fuzzy feeling, don't you?
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned) to markopoleo

Member

to markopoleo
said by markopoleo:

said by 88615298:

Yeah we all hate price hikes HOWEVER this is the first price hike in 6 years on internet. And in that time speeds have been increased many times. 6 years ago the Express plan was the $45 a month and had a max speed of 3 Mbps. Now you can get 3 Mbps for $25 even after the price increase. The Ultra tier was $100 a month just 2 months ago. So $88 really isn't a price hike. And it was only 60 Mbps.

What does 2 months ago have to do with today?

You know if Charter had left the price at $100 and lowered it to $88 in March you be happy. But somehow now you're getting fucked over. Does THAT make sense?
markopoleo
join:2003-04-02
Bonne Terre, MO

markopoleo

Member

Re: Internet price hike not that bad

said by 88615298:

said by markopoleo:

said by 88615298:

Yeah we all hate price hikes HOWEVER this is the first price hike in 6 years on internet. And in that time speeds have been increased many times. 6 years ago the Express plan was the $45 a month and had a max speed of 3 Mbps. Now you can get 3 Mbps for $25 even after the price increase. The Ultra tier was $100 a month just 2 months ago. So $88 really isn't a price hike. And it was only 60 Mbps.

What does 2 months ago have to do with today?

You know if Charter had left the price at $100 and lowered it to $88 in March you be happy. But somehow now you're getting fucked over. Does THAT make sense?

No..you still are not making sense. Not going to get into it with you, so hard headed.

Camaro
Question everything
Premium Member
join:2008-04-05
Westfield, MA

Camaro to 88615298

Premium Member

to 88615298
Well you are very lucky to live in a city that has not increased in price for internet and give you higher speeds

Now in my city in the past 5 years i have been living here my internet prices have increased 10 times over that time with 2 bumps in speed.

I agree on TV prices I only want a few channels but they scatter the ones across packages on purpose I don't care what they tell you about programming cost it's done on purpose.But again for me its been 10 times,and maybe they have added a handful of normal channels,and sports I could care less,give me Natgeo,military,or history channel any day.

justthefacts
@charter.com

justthefacts

Anon

However, the cost to prove landline bandwidth is....

However, the cost to prove landline bandwidth is usually either fixed or declining

This needs to be followed with the usage / subscriber is INCREASING.

As Karl mentions, costs to build networks declines around 18% year over year, but the usage / user increases between 55%-65% year over year. Therefore just talking about the reduce costs to build/support "roads" is only half the story. You are assuming the same usage of cars and speeds don't change and implying that year over year it is cheaper.

The truth is, as growth outpaces cost reductions, there is a real increase in costs year over year that needs to be managed with more than just capital cost reduction.

On top of that, if the average user is 20G / month while another user expects 200G+ a month. There are obvious cost differences in supporting those users and even more disparity year over year as usage grows.
justthefacts

justthefacts

Anon

Re: However, the cost to prove landline bandwidth is....

said by justthefacts :

On top of that, if the average user is 20G / month while another user expects 200G+ a month. There are obvious cost differences in supporting those users and even more disparity year over year as usage grows.

Just to clarify this statement. Networks are built to handle "peak", my assumption is that a 200G user "uses the road" at peak time faster and longer than the 20G user which reduces statmux efficiency and increases costs

Yes there are corner cases of off-peak usage for the 200G user, but that is the exception vs the norm.

SteveLV702
Premium Member
join:2004-04-22
Las Vegas, NV

SteveLV702

Premium Member

like their broadband prices

I like their broadband prices.. $84.99/$87.99 for Internet Ultra 100Mbps I would pay that... Here Cox Ultimate 50Mbps is over $120