I hate the cable company

I hate the cable company (Full Version)

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LafayetteLady -> I hate the cable company (5/23/2009 10:58:39 PM)
Ok, so I realize that many of you have no use for television except for a select few things. I enjoy watching television and admit I'm a reality show junkie. I know that it is mostly mindless drivel, but it relaxes me. Anyway, late summer last year, some of my favorite channels were no longer available without a digital box. I lost TLC, A&E, E! and SciFi to name a couple. It wasn't many but those four kind of annoyed me. So a few days ago, I went to channel surf and now I lost a whole bunch more. No more TVLand, no more VH1, MTV, BET, HIST, AMC, Spike, We, Lifetime, Family! By the time that whole "going digital" thing happens in July, I'll be lucky to get the basics of CBS, NBC, Fox, ABC and the likes. Now I'm sure there are some techies here who will want to explain how it all works, those who will tell me how HDTV is so great. I really don't care. Yes I will eventually be getting a digital box, but it still pisses me off. Without a box or a "cable card", these channels are no longer available, but they haven't changed the cost at all. So that is my rant for tonight.

Joseff -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/23/2009 11:29:35 PM)
Everybody hates the cable company. I thought cable was all digital anyway, and if you had it you didn't have to worry about the digital switch. Your local company must be worse than mine. I didn't think there was anything worse than armstrong.

housesub4you -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 4:13:13 AM)
Oh hell yea, Comcast is the worst, I canceled my service and now they are taking me to court because I refuse to pay the $50 they charged me for canceling the service. I was a customer for about 5 years and they claim there is a charge to disconnect and cancel. I think they where hoping I would just pay the money because it would be cheaper than going to court, but they have no idea how stubborn I am,

DarkSteven -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 4:57:19 AM)
Hating the cable company is equivalent to having skin covering your body. It's a basic human condition.

MissAO -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 5:12:48 AM)
I never thought I would appreciate Time Warner - then I moved to a Comcast area. ~A

rulemylife -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 5:16:31 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: housesub4you Oh hell yea, Comcast is the worst, I canceled my service and now they are taking me to court because I refuse to pay the $50 they charged me for canceling the service. I was a customer for about 5 years and they claim there is a charge to disconnect and cancel. I think they where hoping I would just pay the money because it would be cheaper than going to court, but they have no idea how stubborn I am, I could tell you stories about Comcast, their horrible service, and their billing scams all day long. A couple years ago I moved and transferred service from one address to the other. They kept billing me for seven months for the old account as well as the new one, even sending letters threatening to take it to collection. I don't know how many hours I spent on the phone and how many trips I made to their local office before it was finally straightened out.

mdr080480 -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 6:42:25 AM)
I had Comcast in Jersey, they were pretty good actually, but I also had dial-up internet, so, I can't comment on internet service. But when I was in Georgia, I had Adelphia, which was great, fast internet, good channels, a cable box with music choice channels (country, heavy metal, oldies, more, but I liked those) I had piping through my stereo. Then Comcast came in, fucked it up all. Lost a lot of what I liked. Thankfully we were moving to FL soon enough and I wouldn't be going crazy for long. Now Comcast is moving in down here... And on the HDTV front, I was always trying to explain how great it could be, but the shows that are on now are not worth the price of a new TV. On reality TV, I only watch Dancing with the Stars... which does look nice in Hi-Def, but since those dumbass writers in Hollywood went striking, all the recent shows are boring, repetitive and almost unwatchable. So there really is no need for an HDTV at the moment. I mean who wants to watch 20 minutes of commecials in Hi-Def?

hlen5 -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 6:51:56 AM)
I hate Comcast too!! I came home to watch my favorite channel only to find that since that signal was now digital Comcast expected me to bump up to the next cable package to watch it! I have the most basic cable package just for the broadband internet access. If everyone said it was only antenna connected people that would be affected, why do they now have to charge me more since I had cable TV to begin with???

TheHeretic -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 7:03:14 AM)
Dish Network, here, and no problems. At our last place, we had basic cable, but that was a funny story. When we first moved in, things were a little tight on cash, so we just hooked up the vcr and dvd and figured we'd be ok until the following month. After about a week in the house, a guy with a magnetic cable company sign on the side of his pickup knocked on the door, and said he needed access to the back yard to turn off our cable (we hadn't even checked if it was still on from the previous tenants). A couple minutes later, he was back, saying that he didn't feel like climbing the pole, and that we were still connected. Two years of cable, without ever receving a bill.

MasterG2kTR -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 8:00:48 AM)
I have Charter, and they are just as bad at scamming their customers as all the rest of them. The only way we will ever get them to change is to write letters to our legislators. There is no reason for the desertion of lower band channels on the cable spectrum. They can broadcast any source on any channel if they wish to. They are intentionally depleting lower band channels to raise revenues by forcing people to purchase "upgrades" (i.e.: digital or HD) to get the channels they want to view.

LafayetteLady -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 10:23:40 AM)
quote: ORIGINAL: hlen5 I hate Comcast too!! I came home to watch my favorite channel only to find that since that signal was now digital Comcast expected me to bump up to the next cable package to watch it! I have the most basic cable package just for the broadband internet access. If everyone said it was only antenna connected people that would be affected, why do they now have to charge me more since I had cable TV to begin with??? My area has Cablevision, but that is exactly what I'm talking about. It isn't bad enough they rearrange the channels after you finally figure out where everything is, but now they are just doing this to force people to get boxes. In order to get the deal with the internet, you have to have the digital box. Right now, I don' t have to be doing it, but next month I'm going to have to be paying for the bigger cable package to qualify for the other services that I want. As for DirectTV, I would not meet the "credit check" to get the internet service which is through a separate company.

Lockit -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 10:36:40 AM)
With my ex, very long ago, we had a major cable construction company. I saw so much... and it was I think the dirtiest business I had ever seen. I didn't last long in it, that is for sure... there are just some things I will not do. So many years later I get comcast and they charge me $700. for two months. How the hell does that work when I only have basic cable, phone and online that is supposed to cost $119. a month? I had to have the phone at least and every couple of days they called threatening to cut me off and I had to keep paying. I finally got it worked out but after about six months of hell. I come to Time Warner... great service, great hook up... but some things don't work and I call in and put in my phone number and they say it doesn't exist. Okay... five long calls to work that out. Phone line was messed up on a completly new install and I can't talk on the phone for months. Finally we get it fixed. They have you do three months no contract. Then say it goes to a two year contract. Okay.. I will be here for two years. About five months into it I get the paperwork that states that after the two years you have agreed to, they add another four years and since you already agreed, you are committed. I didn't have to sign anything on that and since I accepted service and the two year agreement... I guess they see it as acceptance of the actual six year contract because you aren't going to cancle the two year contract and pay the price to do so and you are locked in somehow. They keep billing me wrong... it seems twice a month some months... they admit there is a mistake and yet... I still get the bill and shut off notice if I don't pay what they say. I expect just about anything at this point.

aravain -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 10:40:08 AM)
~FR~ Our area (that is, where my parents live) had cablevision, which got bought out by Adelphia, which is now Time Warner now, I think... it may have changed again. The service was: Great -> AWESOME -> Eh... and then my parents switched to direct TV a few years back and love it. It costs less than what they were paying for cable and they get more channels for the buck. (we were on basic cable through cablevision and for a year or two for adelphia, then they convinced them to go digital cable. Then Time Warner messed it up and they switched. They like it a lot better. I've gotten far enough away from watching television as it airs (I mostly just watch it on my computer now) that I'm ambivalent. It's kinda cool. This digital version has been happening for a while though. Most cities/local governements offer vouchers for basic conversion boxes if your TV (or whatever else) is so old that it can't read digital and you don't wanna pay for a fancy one.

hlen5 -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 8:33:52 PM)
Why should I have to buy a box? The cable company sends the signals to my tv now. They did that before the switch. It's not the box I need to buy. They want me to upgrade $40/month to get the signal they were giving me before (and admittedly channels I haven't had, too). If I had wanted to pay for those channels before I would have. The point I was trying to make was before the switch people with old tvs were told people with cable service would NOT be affected. I had cable. Now I'm told in order to get my favorite channel I have to pay more. It's aggravating in the extreme!!!!

aravain -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 8:45:15 PM)
Cable's turned/turning digital. Not all TVs can read/understand the digital signal. That box is what the voucher's for (a cheap version, that you won't have to pay a cent for). If anyone told you that your TV would be able to survive without being updated they were either lying or didn't have a clue what they were talking about. If you have a TV old enough to be affected... look into the vouchers with your local government first. Call City Hall (on Tuesday, since Monday's a holiday) and ask how/if they're available. How old is your television? What model/make?

BKSir -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 8:56:49 PM)
Hahaha, I have a bunch of them that aren't digital ready. My oldest is a 1982 RCA, one of the big console tvs. What? It looks awesome with all the wood in the house, and works just fine (for now).

hlen5 -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 8:58:43 PM)
One is ancient, the other is newer. When I questioned the cable company, they told me I would get my old channel back by upgrading. No mention was made about buying a box.

LafayetteLady -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 11:23:49 PM)
I think Cablevision is now Optimum, but I'm not sure. The web site is still Cablevision. We were supposed to be moving last month and I set up the install at the new address. Did it on line, got the confirmation number, etc. The next day about an hour and a half before I was supposed to meet the landlord to give him the checks for rent and security, he called me and told me he rented to someone else (whole other story, what a jerk). So I call to cancel the installation. They can't find the installation order. When I told them I could give them the confirmation number, they told me they couldn't find it that way? They why give me the fucking number in the first place? Got a call a week later to confirm the install! Went through the whole cancel explanation again. Now we have found a new place and I have to go through the whole thing again. Worst thing is that even though everything isn't approved yet (although I'm very optimistic), I feel like I should schedule the installation NOW so that I don't have to wait 2-3 weeks after I move in. Otherwise, I have to hope to jump on someone else's unsecured wireless network to go on line.

aravain -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/24/2009 11:40:25 PM)
Ack! It's older than me, BKSir! @hlen5 They wouldn't. They want you to upgrade. Contact your City Hall ;)

GreedyTop -> RE: I hate the cable company (5/25/2009 5:47:40 AM)
I have a tv. I dont have cable anymore. I DO have a DVD player. Between my neighbor and the library I can avoid spending tons on dvd's. I do miss some shows...the L&O franchise, for instance. but I've been looking for them to watch online..

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