Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I think there was just a post here recently about a TWC customer who had no luck getting them to extend the promo price. Seems like it is becoming increasingly difficult.
Nope, they called to cancel and got the rate extended:
It's happening everywhere. People are tired of getting raped. People are tired of paying for channels they don't use. I cut the cable because I was paying 120 dollars per month for the TV package I needed to have in order to watch the few channels I actually watched. I dropped them 2 years ago and I don't regret it at all. Netflix and online streaming is so much better, easier, and cheaper. My favorite part is NO COMMERCIALS. Crazy to think cable TV use to be something you would pay for and not have commercials. Now that's all it is. 1 hour show on Cable can be watched in 40min on Netflix or stream. AND I don't have to call TWC customer service only to be put on hold everything they screw up the bill.
Yes you can save hours just from not having to watch commercials. A 30 min show is only 22 minutes. A 60 min show is 42 min. It adds up, and if you are willing to not turn on the TV until/unless there's something you want to watch, you'll get back more hours of your life.
I see what you are saying. I think in general what is driving cord cutting in the Triangle is not the cost, but the fact there is a large population who likes tinkering with technology and there are lots of low tech and high tech alternatives tech savvy people can play around with and it is fun to share the results and options with others interested.
Yes, this makes a lot of sense to me. Excellent point.
First, if you're paying $100 for the Internet/TV/Phone package then you're getting the slowest internet possible and the lowest tier of TV programming so it probably isn't an issue. The people on the $100 plans know what they're getting and they are fine with it. I know for me, with TWC, I was paying $160 for the fastest internet (needed it for work and school) and the mid-level TV package (no premiums).
I'm not sure it's "this particular area", it is happening nationwide. If the technology exists to watch whatever your favorite show is on demand, why not take advantage of that? To me it has nothing to do with frugality, rather why pay for what I don't use? Sure with Cable/Satellite you get 500 channels, but what good is it if you only watch the same 5, 10 or even 20?
With the advent of cell phones, I ditched my landline back in 2002 and it is time for cable/satellite to go that same route. I cut the cord about 2 years ago and don't regret it one single bit! I went from paying $160/month to $80 per month. I'm at the internet for $50, Sling TV for $20 and Netflix for $9. I also have Amazon prime video that comes with my Amazon membership that I would buy regardless of my television configuration.
The bonus is, I can watch on any smart TV (or wherever I take my ROKU), smart phone, computer, etc.
To clarify, I post $100 "something". By that, I meant in the $100's......as in $100-$200.
I pay $197 for my triple package, which is more than many, however I love the quality, variety and simplicity. We have a large setup at home, resulting in the higher cost. We also have Netflix which we very rarely use, Amazon video which we never use, Rebox which we use 6 times a year and Crackle for Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee only.
Up until a few years ago, I was always up to speed on tech things. In fact, I was ahead of the curve early on. Now I do not even own a cell phone.....LOL!
People who go that direction, certainly do love to talk about it. Maybe that's the answer :-)
We are still sticking with cable, but would LOVE to go FIOS if it was available in the area (still my favorite provider). We have Amazon Prime and a ROKU but most of the time I find myself not wanting to bother switching all the inputs, grabbing three different remotes etc. I need to break down and program the Logitech Harmony that is just sitting here at some point in time to make the ROKU easier to use.
This would also be an issue for me. I like things simple and easy to use, now more than ever. However this conversation is very enlightening as to why folks in the Triangle area either are doing it more or are at least discussing it more. Great input so far.
A big part of my decision to cut the cord and just use an antenna is that I simply don't watch as much TV as I used to. It's not that it was a financial burden to pay for cable (I was actually on a basic plan that only cost about $20/month). It was more that I couldn't see the point in burning that $20 a month for what I could essentially get for free after a $25 investment for an antenna from Target.
Sounds like people have pretty much covered it, but dealing with the cable company sucks. And it's definitely not exclusive to the Triangle. Mohu (creator of the leaf with a warehouse out in North Raleigh) has done MILLIONS all over the country with people similarly fed up with dealing with crappy customer service, prices gouging, and never being able get a repair person out within a decent amount of time.
TWC cable refused to extend the promotional rate. BTW the promotional rates aren't the whole story -- you need to add on for equipment, rentals, all sorts of little bits and the taxes on them. And the DVRs never worked properly.
I was paying $165 for TV/internet/phone, and now it's $62. That's $1236 per year. For the record, I'm not counting Netflix and Prime in those prices as I had them anyway.
What I have now is TWC internet, Ooma phone, over the air channels + Roku with Sling. And I'm no techie (am in my early 60s) and will say thank you to all the posters here and their suggestions for how to cut cable!
By the way, in the same flurry of cost cutting and tech upgrading, when my T-mobile Samsung Galaxy s5 died, I got a Google Project Fi Nexus 6 phone and subscription and cut my phone bill from $90 to $30, and if I use less data on the cell phone system (wifi is not counted) I pay less.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
