Sling TV & Cord Cutting

[TURBO]

My cable just went up to $180 per month which includes TV (no premium channels like HBO, SHO, Etc) Internet, and a landline phone. We can only get Spectrum for cable. When it was Time Warner Cable a few short months ago, we were paying $140 per month.

 

Immediately after they switched over to Spectrum, my promo offer ran out (another total scam that cable companies push onto their customers), and it jumped to $160. That was in May or June. Now, my last bill came in at $180. That is obscene to me, to pay that kind of money per month...

 

I have made two phone calls to Spectrum, trying to get that cost dropped, to no avail. They are playing absolute hardball. They told me I could probably save money off my bill by switching from my Time Warner Cable bundle to their Spectrum bundle. Huh? They are all under one roof now, why is that even a thing? So I had them figure it up, keeping my package the same, same channels, same internet speed, etc. My new bill would now be $1.46 MORE than I am currently paying, and would include the best internet speed they offer, new boxes on all my secondary tvs that would provide all the channels my main dvr tv gets (currently, that is not the case, those tvs only pick up a certain amount of channels), but they completely ignored my reason I called in the first place, which was to lower my freaking monthly bill.

 

Both times I have called, I got the same song and dance. blah blah blah I asked to talk to their supervisor, or someone who can give me a better deal than the regular joe phone jockeys, and both times, they were unable to make my bill any less.

 

Even when I threatened to leave for a dish company, they seemed uninterested, and don't care much if I leave.

 

Customer loyalty means nothing to them, been a customer for 13 years.

 

So what I am asking is this, does anyone have a strategy that works to get my bill lowered, or am I screwed? It seems at this point, they are going to force me to either pay their ridiculous bill, or leave and go to a satellite dish company, which I do NOT want to do, and which they really don't seem to care if I take that route.

[adambr2]

My cable just went up to $180 per month which includes TV (no premium channels like HBO, SHO, Etc) Internet, and a landline phone. We can only get Spectrum for cable. When it was Time Warner Cable a few short months ago, we were paying $140 per month.

 

Immediately after they switched over to Spectrum, my promo offer ran out (another total scam that cable companies push onto their customers), and it jumped to $160. That was in May or June. Now, my last bill came in at $180. That is obscene to me, to pay that kind of money per month...

 

I have made two phone calls to Spectrum, trying to get that cost dropped, to no avail. They are playing absolute hardball. They told me I could probably save money off my bill by switching from my Time Warner Cable bundle to their Spectrum bundle. Huh? They are all under one roof now, why is that even a thing? So I had them figure it up, keeping my package the same, same channels, same internet speed, etc. My new bill would now be $1.46 MORE than I am currently paying, and would include the best internet speed they offer, new boxes on all my secondary tvs that would provide all the channels my main dvr tv gets (currently, that is not the case, those tvs only pick up a certain amount of channels), but they completely ignored my reason I called in the first place, which was to lower my freaking monthly bill.

 

Both times I have called, I got the same song and dance. blah blah blah I asked to talk to their supervisor, or someone who can give me a better deal than the regular joe phone jockeys, and both times, they were unable to make my bill any less.

 

Even when I threatened to leave for a dish company, they seemed uninterested, and don't care much if I leave.

 

Customer loyalty means nothing to them, been a customer for 13 years.

 

So what I am asking is this, does anyone have a strategy that works to get my bill lowered, or am I screwed? It seems at this point, they are going to force me to either pay their ridiculous bill, or leave and go to a satellite dish company, which I do NOT want to do, and which they really don't seem to care if I take that route.

 

For $180 bucks a month, what are you still doing there? By that I mean, what is it about cable TV that you can't do without? Local shows? NFL Sundays? Brewer games, Bucks games? Chances are, whatever it is, there's an alternative these days.

 

You mentioned you don't want to go to satellite, but there are other options. Have you considered any of them at this point?

 

To answer your question, for what it's worth, I'm very good friends with a guy who used to work for Charter (Spectrum) and he told me that their representatives have been trained in recent years to stand their ground and dig in their heels on re-issuing promotional offers. This seems surprising to me in this day and age where cord cutters have probably been cutting into their bottom line, but that's what he told me.

 

I used to play the same game with Directv and Dish Network and Directv was the only one I ever had luck at getting to hook me up, but sometimes I still had to press hard and talk to the right person. But I always told them first off that I was calling to cancel. And I did, if they couldn't help me.

[madbad2000]

$180 a month is obscene. I balked at paying over $100. I have a few options living in between Baltimore and Washington DC. I had Verizon FIOS for a few years and it fit what I needed. This year they jacked it way up to the point where I went through the hassle of having xfinity run a cable to my house just to swtich to them. I went through the song and dance with Verizon reps and the best they could do was lower the new bill by $5. Xfinity I was able to get my base cable, 150 mbps internet and hbo for 2 years at about $30 a month cheaper than FIOS and 50 Mbps faster connection. This also included access to wifi hotspots and no contract. FIOS wanted a 2 year lockin. I gave FIOS 3 chances to keep me and each rep was at the same level of only saving me $5. So I left no questions. Now I'm innudated with attempts to bring me back. They even sent a rep to my door which is pretty desperate. That doensn't even take into my ability to switch to DISH if I wanted. I don't want to and am more likely to only keep internet going forward once my promotion runs out.

[Outlander]

Sometimes you have to stop bluffing and actual cancel the service, if they still don't offer you a deal they will constantly try to get you back after. I have been without cable for a couple of years and it is great. The freedom to buy/cancel Sling, Vue, Netflix, Hulu, etc is great

[adambr2]

Sometimes you have to stop bluffing and actual cancel the service, if they still don't offer you a deal they will constantly try to get you back after. I have been without cable for a couple of years and it is great. The freedom to buy/cancel Sling, Vue, Netflix, Hulu, etc is great

 

So true. I never bluffed with the cable/satellite companies. I tell them, 'this is what you need to do to keep me', and if they can do it I stay, if not I go.

 

Its been my experience over the years with Dish and Directv that every time they don't give in and I cancel, I get bombarded with offers from them for months -- really low promo offers, 200 dollar VISA cards, etc.

 

So I'm sitting there scratching my head every time thinking, "This is a lot less than what I asked you to do, so why didn't you just do it and you wouldn't have lost me?"

[TURBO]

If I were to switch to a dish system, what are the best companies out there?

 

Dish network, etc?

 

I have friends who have had bad experiences with satellite/dish systems, I just hate the thought of going that route.

 

The thought of switching is such a giant pain in the rear, new equipment, new services, new remotes, etc...

[Samurai Bucky]

If I were to switch to a dish system, what are the best companies out there?

 

Dish network, etc?

 

I have friends who have had bad experiences with satellite/dish systems, I just hate the thought of going that route.

 

The thought of switching is such a giant pain in the rear, new equipment, new services, new remotes, etc...

I think it has been around 9 months since we left Dish Network. Our 12-year experience was great, but our price was around $110/month. It was certainly something different, but it was one of the best decisions we made.

 

We now have a Roku Streaming Stick on our three TVs. We did something similar as one poster listed above to use an OTA antenna. We do notice that when watching sporting events via the Internet, it may be 30 - 60 seconds behind. Funny when you receive a notice on your phone about a play, but it hasn't happened on TV, yet.

[FVBrewerFan]

$180/month isn't bad. Remember, that includes high-end internet and local phone. Don't get me wrong, it's ridiculous. But compared to other packages it's not bad. I have looked at all options out there from time to time, piecing things together, and I figure I would have saved maybe $5-$10/month. But now I'm using a couple different providers (roku, appltev, FoxSports Go, etc), still need DVR, figure out how to have service for several TVS , antenna for locals, etc. Oh, and still need internet separately (which will now be more doing it that way of course) Vonage for my land line. Just a giant pain.

 

On another note, I did save a ton on cell service switching from VZ to Sprint.

[homer]

High end internet is too much internet for a lot of people. Unless you are streaming content on multiple devices at the same time you can usually get away with lesser speeds.

 

Speaking of cell service, I finally ditched my iPhone and Sprint and picked up a Motorola G5 and republic wireless account. Saves me like $40 a month.

[LouisEly]

If I were to switch to a dish system, what are the best companies out there?

 

Dish network, etc?

 

I have friends who have had bad experiences with satellite/dish systems, I just hate the thought of going that route.

 

The thought of switching is such a giant pain in the rear, new equipment, new services, new remotes, etc...

How's the weather where you live? Having the signal go out in rain is a pain... because when it's raining is when I'm going to be inside looking to watch TV. The only place I'd consider satellite is if I lived in the southwestern US. They don't credit you when the weather causes loss of signal.

 

I'd be curious as to what the individual costs are for each provider when you break it down into its parts - TV, premium channels, internet, phone, taxes, fees. Taxes and fees can vary depending on where you live. Post who your provider is and what these amounts are (making sure to indicate what your internet speed is and if you have any extra channels).

 

I have Xfinity in Chicago:

TV (220 channels, a middle-of-the-road package) + 75 Mbps internet + Starz (which I can't remove from the bundle) = $110 (claims to have $40 discount for bundle)

DVR (which is horrible, but they only have one option) = $10

Broadcast TV (local channels) fee = $7

Regional sports fee = $5 (necessary for Big Ten Network)

Taxes, surcharges, and fees = $15

 

Total - $147

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

I'm wondering if anyone could help with a few questions. I am in the Quad Cities (Iowa) and just signed up for the PS Vue trial. I was getting tired of 100+ dollars a month from DirecTV, but it is more convenient in some ways. My question is about the availability of Brewers games. I understand if no one knows, but I was curious.

 

The Quad Cities are in blackout territory for the Twins, Brewers, Royals, Cubs, White Sox, and Cardinals. This means MLB.tv isn't really an option since you're basically missing half the games on the schedule, and I can never watch the Brewers. DirecTV allowed a work around that allowed me to buy a 10 dollar (after discount)/month add-on package from April to September that allowed access to the regional carriers of all those teams.

 

On my Vue free trial, I have access to FS North and the generic Fox Sports Network. I also get NBC Sports Chicago. Basically, I'll get to watch the Brewers every time they play the Cubs for sure.

 

I'm wondering about FS North. Does that usually carry Twins or Brewers games? Will the Vue allow me to access Brewers games through either FS North or Fox Sports Go? Or is it going to black me out of those games? It's a pretty small factor in our decision, but any insight would help. The Vue is like a $40/month savings.

 

I add this here because I haven't been able to see, even in this thread, answers that address RSNs outside of Wisconsin but still within supposed "viewing territory" for the Brewers. If anyone has any insight into Iowa access to Brewers games, that's appreciated too.

 

Thanks.

[nate82]

FS North I believe is the Minnesota Fox Sports network. So you will get the Twins, Wild, and Timberwolves.

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

That was my hunch initially.

 

Does anyone live in IA/IL/MN and access the Fox Sports Go App? Are Brewers telecasts available to you?

[jerichoholicninja]

That was my hunch initially.

 

Does anyone live in IA/IL/MN and access the Fox Sports Go App? Are Brewers telecasts available to you?

 

You would still get whatever your regional network is.

[DuWayne Steurer]

I use Ps Vue and watch a lot of sports through a lot of different apps, but I just have to say that Foxsportsgo is trash. I can watch games through any other app (cbs, nbc, abc, espn) and have no problems, ever, and when I use FSgo, I get frequent buffering, will often have to refresh every 10 minutes or so, and the audio can get out of sync with the picture. I've emailed them a few times about it, and their response is "it's your internet connection" (100mb) or "your computer or tablet is too slow". sigh..... no it isn't.

 

Just something to think about. I've heard other people make this complaint about foxsportsgo as well.

[pacopete4]

That was my hunch initially.

 

Does anyone live in IA/IL/MN and access the Fox Sports Go App? Are Brewers telecasts available to you?

 

You would still get whatever your regional network is.

 

I buy the regional sports package from DirecTV (usually they give me $10 off for 6 months so it costs like $3/month) and I get the Brewers on the Fox Sports Go app. At least I think I do. If I don't I must use my parents sign in from Wisconsin.

[Cool Hand Lucroy]

I appreciate the thoughts.

 

I have been really happy with the DirecTV regional add-on, but it's getting to the point where my DirecTV account is basically just a ticket to be able to buy the regional sports package (I can watch all the CBK, the other sport I follow closely, I want much more cheaply with a cord-cutting service), so it's just one of those things where I'm trying to decide how much being able to watch 140 games instead of like 40 (looks the Vue trial will allow me to watch the Cubs, Sox, and Cards pretty regularly, and I think the Brewers have 3 with CWS this year) is worth. I will probably be investing in MLB Audio for the others (another service I really have had good luck with).

 

Part of the problem is stupid MLB blackout rules and just the weird convoluted regional structure of the Fox networks here. FS Midwest, FS Wisconsin, FS North, and FS Kansas City all broadcast single team baseball, and I cannot understand how the "primary" RSN is determined. State boundaries don't seem to matter. We are twice as close to Wisconsin as Minnesota and are apparently assigned FS North. Odd.

 

Maybe someday there will be blackout free baseball.

 

EDIT: I'm sure the new ESPN deal will end up changing things too...anyone seen what they're planning?

[jerichoholicninja]

For FS-North vs FS-Wisconsin, it used to be that FS-Wisconsin wasn't a "real" channel or something like that. We had DISH growing up and our regional network was FS-North (Minnesota) but any Twins games were blacked out. However, we could watch Brewer games on the alternate channel (all other games on the alternate channels were blacked out) but got no other FS-Wisconsin programming. When the Brewers would get bumped for the Bucks we usually wouldn't even get the Brewer game. It was weird.

[McRibMcLove]

Depending on what device you use there are VPN options which can be used to set your location. StrongVPN (IIRC) has a wireless router option where the router you buy from them logs into the VPN and any device that connects to the router will look like it is going through the VPN location. That allows you to use the MLB app on most devices and get around regional blackouts. If you use a computer only then just a regular VPN will work fine (they cost about $70 per year for the subscription). I've used a regular VPN when I lived in Chicago to get around the Cubs/WhiteSox blackouts (when I was looking for other games when the Brewers were off the air) and will try it again this year having moved back to MKE.

[wallus]

My Charter bill was raised a few more bucks this month and I wasn't happy. I took 10 minutes and chatted with a Charter person online. They gave me a $30 a month discount for 12 months. I did not expect it so I would give it a try if you have Charter.

[TURBO]

Spectrum plays hard ball... If you call, complain, or make threats to leave, they simply don't care. Their attitude is "pay our price or leave, we don't care."

[wallus]

Spectrum plays hard ball... If you call, complain, or make threats to leave, they simply don't care. Their attitude is "pay our price or leave, we don't care."

 

They didn't play hardball with me today..... I didn't threaten to leave or anything. I just asked if there was a way to reduce my bill.

[TURBO]

Spectrum plays hard ball... If you call, complain, or make threats to leave, they simply don't care. Their attitude is "pay our price or leave, we don't care."

 

They didn't play hardball with me today..... I didn't threaten to leave or anything. I just asked if there was a way to reduce my bill.

 

Charter, right? I'm talking about Spectrum.

[stoutdude04]

Spectrum plays hard ball... If you call, complain, or make threats to leave, they simply don't care. Their attitude is "pay our price or leave, we don't care."

 

They didn't play hardball with me today..... I didn't threaten to leave or anything. I just asked if there was a way to reduce my bill.

 

Charter, right? I'm talking about Spectrum.

 

Are they not the same?

[jerichoholicninja]

Same company now.