Last week Verizon introduced its new Custom TV "skinny bundle," which pairs a basic channel lineup with a rotating selection of $10 channel add on packs. While highly lauded as a more flexible approach to cable TV pricing and a baby step toward a la carte, actually signing up for the new packages leads users to find more of the same under a shiny coat of public relations paint.
An ongoing
thread in our forums features more than a few users that aren't particularly impressed with the effort.
The most notable way the offer fails to deviate from the status quo is the use of below the line fees to jack up the advertised rates. That's right: once you get done paying for a DVR or set box rental and navigate Verizon's often-nonsensical (and in some cases non-government mandated) fees, your savings will quickly evaporate:
quote:
Want a high-definition picture and an on-screen channel guide? That’ll be a $12-per-month set-top box rental fee. Adding DVR brings that fee up to $18 per month, and that’s only for one television. If you want a second TV box with multi-room DVR, the monthly rental price rises to at least $35 per month, or as much as $50 per month for the most advanced features.The fees don’t stop there. All TV bundles also include a $1.99 per month “broadcast TV fee,” and if you include a regional sports package, another $4.99 per month fee applies.
We've
often noted how that "broadcast TV fee" is particularly nefarious, since it simply takes programming hikes (a cost of doing business) and puts a chunk of it below the line to keep advertised rates the same. So as usual, while Verizon's trying to give the impression of being progressive on pricing, they're engaged in the same sort of shenanigans that makes it virtually impossible to determine how much you'll
actually pay once you get your bill.
So basically, Verizon's promise of a $65 Custom TV and 25Mbps Internet bundle is actually at least an $85 to $100 bundle. It's another $20 after the first year if you don't want to get locked into a two-year contract and $230 early termination fee, or another $30 more expensive after two-years if you do. Sound like a particularly sharp deviation from the cable industry status quo to you?
The good thing about Verizon's effort? They're pushing ESPN and sports content out of the core channel lineup, something that's
angering Disney and ESPN and could act to move the ball forward in terms of more flexible programming. Still, while Verizon's getting praised as being disruptive on pricing, the actual savings you'll see when it's all said and done may not be much to write home about.
