The only reason I have cable t.v. is because I have cable internet. See, if I just had the internet it would cost me the same amount of money as having the internet and the very basic cable package. If it weren't for that, we would not have cable. I'm cheap. I'm also making a statement. I don't watch a lot of t.v. and most of the stuff I do want to watch I can get over the air, stream live on the internet, or rent on Netflix. Satellite isn't any cheaper than cable so it's not really an option for me either.
I see these "deals" all the time for both cable and satellite that make me think about upgrading. The problem is that they are not really deals. I received a "deal" for DishNetwork in the Valpak coupons I get in the mail. This "deal" is $24.99 for 12* months. I could get 120 channels including locals, free* HD for life, Free* 2-room HD DVR receiver, Free HBO and Showtime (for three months with activation*), and Free* activation.
Do you see all those little asterisks? Yeah, I thought so. First of all you have to sign a 24 month agreement for all of those "free" things. They don't tell you what the price is after the first year. I called and asked. The response I got was it depends on what package I choose, how many tv's I have, and whether or not I even qualify for the deal in the first place. Secondly, you have to give them your social security number and have a valid major credit card. HD programming requires an HD t.v. Now, most people would realize this, but unfortunately there are some people out there that don't. They will give you the DVR for free, but if you want to be able to use it you have to pay a $6.00 monthly fee. You will also have to agree to autopay and paperless billing. Wow! That doesn't sound like such a good deal anymore.
I went to the DishNetwork website to see if I could figure out how much it would cost me after a year. I looked at the different packages and channel lineups. You know what I realized? I don't want half those channels anyway. I always complain about the same thing with cable t.v. Who wants to watch this stuff?
I've come up with a great idea to solve this problem. Instead of these companies giving you a list of channels you don't want to watch and telling you how much it's going to cost, they should allow you to pick and choose. I wouldn't mind paying for cable if I knew I was going to get 60 channels I actually wanted to see. I would be happy with only picking 10 channels.
I'm sure it's possible for companies to do this. But, why would they? So many people out there pay the astronomical prices for the services offered now. People think they "have" to have a million channels so cable and satellite so they pay the prices and complain about it.
