TW raising RoadRunner prices

[cnjbucks]

Where does this end?  First they "drop" channel 4.  Then the CBS fiasco.  And now this!  I was looking at my bill...  It sucks that the only other option is AT&T and they are just as expensive...


 The new stand-alone prices for Lite Internet will be $34.99, Basic Internet $44.99, and Standard Internet $54.99. The new Turbo price will be Standard Internet plus $10.00. The new Extreme price will be Standard Internet plus $20.00. The new Ultimate price will be Standard plus $50.00. If you are currently in an Internet bundle, your prices may be affected. If you are currently receiving a promotional price, your prices may not be affected at this time.

[Ralph Kramden]

Switch to EarthLink, it's the exact same service for less.  It's a subsidiary of TWC. The bill even says TWC on it. My total bill is $44.09 each month for "EarthLink High Speed" 10 Mbps.

[PONIES]

EarthLink does not offer the DOCSIS 3.0 speed tiers.

[Ralph Kramden]

EarthLink does not offer the DOCSIS 3.0 speed tiers.

What does that even mean?

[LoadStar]

What does that even mean?

DOCSIS (Data Over Cable Service Interface Specification) is the standard that all cable modems use. As with many technical standards, over time the standard is revised to incorporate new technologies and support new services. The current version of the DOCSIS standard is 3.0.

The higher speed tiers that Time Warner Cable offers, the 20 megabit and above, all require the new DOCSIS 3.0.

Basically - he was just trying to say that EarthLink doesn't offer the faster speed tiers that Time Warner Cable does.

[gparris]

Maybe TWC is raising prices on its internet service now, so it doesn't have to with its usual calendar year increases on everything else - or maybe it's raising the speeds a bit to compensate for the increase?
So-called "cord cutters", unless they use only OTA, still need some sort of internet access, so an increase, however inevitable, will add to their bottom line, but nothing like adding cable or sat TV to their billing mix and TWC offers faster internet than other providers, which can valuable when streaming a high def movie. :wave:

[ArgMeMatey]

If I'm reading your info correctly, the rack rates are then $35 to $105 per month.  

Think how much better off TW shareholders would be if every customer paid $105 a month rather than $35 or any amount less than $105.  Once they cover their fixed costs, the rest is gravy, and they get a lot more gravy from the $105 customers than the $35 customers.  Sure, there are some infrastructure upgrades needed to support higher tiers but with contracted subscribers it's hard to see how they wouldn't be able to cover those.  

In their perfect world, everyone is at $105.  For a few years, they would make money hand over fist until the pay TV subscriber base dies off or no longer finds enough value to subscribe.  In other words, they don't care what service (TV, music, internet, phone) the money comes from, but when they're bringing in less money, they lose their jobs.  

People who are now paying $105 are low-hanging fruit.  Most of them probably want the fastest available service, regardless of the cost.  The trick is to "add" enough perception of value that the $35 people and the middle tiers won't feel they are getting ripped off.  Doesn't sound like you're on board yet.   Advice:  Become a shareholder.

[Jack 1000]

If I'm reading your info correctly, the rack rates are then $35 to $105 per month.  

Think how much better off TW shareholders would be if every customer paid $105 a month rather than $35 or any amount less than $105.  Once they cover their fixed costs, the rest is gravy, and they get a lot more gravy from the $105 customers than the $35 customers.  Sure, there are some infrastructure upgrades needed to support higher tiers but with contracted subscribers it's hard to see how they wouldn't be able to cover those.  

In their perfect world, everyone is at $105.  For a few years, they would make money hand over fist until the pay TV subscriber base dies off or no longer finds enough value to subscribe.  In other words, they don't care what service (TV, music, internet, phone) the money comes from, but when they're bringing in less money, they lose their jobs.  

People who are now paying $105 are low-hanging fruit.  Most of them probably want the fastest available service, regardless of the cost.  The trick is to "add" enough perception of value that the $35 people and the middle tiers won't feel they are getting ripped off.  Doesn't sound like you're on board yet.   Advice:  Become a shareholder.

That's why they still encourage bundling of services.  If you are a good negotiator you'll get better deals that way.  I predict that we won't see a true Ala-Carte model for a long time.  But we WILL see a series of say five smaller channel packages to compliment smaller budgets in later years.  Right now to bundle, you have to take Triple Play.  (TV, Internet, and Phone.)  For the budget-minded, cable TV needs to broken up as an option with smaller packages, sort of like what Comcast is doing:  The program is still only in Test Markets, and is called "My Choice."

http://www.bubblews.com/news/778430-how-i-am-saving-money-with-my-choice-of-comcast-cable-tv-plan

Jack

[Danno321]

Ain't monopoly great?  USA Real Median Household Income has been decreasing since 1972.  Time to get out.  Uruguay looks good.

[WITI6fan]

In the end this is just a horrible area when it comes to Internet Service Providers. We have nothing close to what other parts of the country have. Fiber to the Home? Hahahahahaha. Not for a couple of decades at least! 1Gbps service? Yeah, that costs about $5000 a month and you have to be a certain kind of "business subscriber" to get it.

[gparris]

I don't know if 1Gbps service is really needed, my 50Mbps seems to work great, even for 1080p streaming for movies, but if and when more will be needed, it might just be there. Maybe if UHD movies streaming became "necessary" something close to that would be required, I don't know.
Raising monthly bills over a year's time seems inevitable, I don't like it as would anyone as a subscriber, but as long as there are no usage caps and RR works well, it is the lesser of two evils, IMO.
It would be great to have competition, it seems to make for lower prices, better service and overall customer satisfaction.