Not sure what the clerk at Comcast meant today.

[Randi]

I have 1 TV (not HD) that has cable with Comcast. I had Basic & extended Basic service. Once everything went to digital, a few channels were discontinued unless we switched to digital. I didn't switch as they weren't ones I watched anyway.

Then last month, i rec'd a letter that if I did not get a free digital adapter then after 12/8/09, the only channels I would be able to get would be Basic.

I ordered the adapter & had nothing but problems. It was down more than usuable. Customer Service said I had a defective unit, they actually sent a tech who said I didn't have a defective unit

I was so sick of dealing with it all that I took a closer look at the channels i would lose & there are only 2 that I will miss. BUT by dropping the ext basic, I would save $44 a month!!! And I will only be in this house another 3 or 4 months before I move.

I took the adapter in today and arranged to have the service changed. Now what took me by surprise is I was told that a tech would be here on Friday to block the channels at the pole outside & then he would have to come inside to check on it. HUH? Once they went to digital on the other channels they just stopped coming in, nobody came to change anything inside.

Is this normal?

[lfontaine]

I would tell the tech that you didn't call for service at your unit and not invite them into your home.

[bicker]

Here's the down-side of turning the tech away. He's installing a band-pass filter. Typically, that introduces another 3 dB signal loss. That might not make a difference, especially since you're dropping down to limited basic which offers you only the over-the-air channels via analog service. However, depending on the condition of the lines, it could make a difference. If you send the tech away without checking, then you'll probably be paying for him to come back to fix things later, because you won't be able to prove that the trouble started at the time the band-pass filter was installed. Later, it'll just look like your wiring or connections have degraded, and wiring work inside is your responsibility, not the cable company's.

[SanFranciscan]

Randi, we just got Comcast after the digital conversion. The only thing worth it is On Demand. Hour after hour of the Golden Girls or repeats of network shows that have already been in syndication on the networks for years, even decades, I can do without. I am not well-to-do and am therefore forced to be careful with money, but it would be worth it to me to pay more for only the channels that I am interested in and be rid of those that I am never going to watch. Remember the song "57 Channels And Nothing On"? With cable you can easily have hundreds of channels that can be nothing but an inconvenience while looking for something of interest.

I would let that cable technician in if I were you so that you are not held responsible for things later. I never got the letter that you spoke of saying that we would need an adapter box by December 9th. If we lose the couple of cable channels that we do sometimes watch in the next couple of weeks, we'll just drop cable television and go back to Netflicks where the movies were always of our own choosing with no two-day time limit on the rental.

I can understand why you are going for just Basic. I am no spendthrift, but I will be the first to admit that I can be and have been influenced by advertising. When a commercial for something like Disney comes on, I sit at attention "What can I afford?! What can I afford?! How soon can I afford it?!" I wear contact lenses and ran right on down to the eyeglasses store after I saw their commercial. I really do believe that the best shows are on the networks because they have to attract advertisers or else since they get no subscription fees. Even major M.A.S.H. fans aren't going to sit there for four or five hours to care who their sponsors are.

[kaytieeldr]

Is this normal?

Probably? If you (any 'you', not just Randi) have a cable-ready tv - as most are, currently - and are dropping your service to no cable channels, as bicker said the tech needs to turn off the cable/digital signal at the pole, then come into the home to make sure that block 'took'.

Otherwise the customer has the potential of getting those other I dunno, sixty channels? free.

[bicker]

Originally Posted by SanFranciscan

Randi, we just got Comcast after the digital conversion. .... I never got the letter that you spoke of saying that we would need an adapter box by December 9th.

I think there is some confusion. You live in California, while Randi lives here in Massachusetts.

The "digital conversion" you're talking about is probably the over-the-air broadcast digital television transition that took place in the first half of 2009. That was when over-the-air broadcasters all turned off their analog signals, in favor of transmitting digital signals.

What Randi is talking about is technically called "analog reclamation". Comcast calls it, internally, "Project Calvary", and in marketing materials, "World of More". It is essentially Comcast's effort to catch up with other suppliers. What they're doing is dropping analog service for cable networks -- every cable network will thereafter be broadcast only in digital (which is why folks with older televisions would need special equipment). Besides doing away with duplication (really triplication), it's a lot more efficient: Cable companies can broadcast two or three HD channels, or ten standard definition (SD) channels in the one slot that they used to broadcast one analog channel.

The vast majority of Comcast's competitors either have already done away with cable networks via analog service, or never offered analog service. Actually, most of Comcast's competitors don't offer any analog service at all, neither cable networks nor over-the-air channels. Comcast will provide at least their basic service, which is just the over-the-air channels and some public access channels, in analog, until at least 2012, but after that, all bets are off, given that their competition won't be wasting bandwidth with analog like that.

Anyway, the point is that while the over-the-air broadcast digital television transition happened mostly on a single day (with some exceptions), nationwide, the conversion to most-digital and all-digital service by cable companies happens town-by-town. My town had an October 20 date. Randi's had a December 8 date. This might not happen in San Francisco until the end of next year.

[bicker]

Originally Posted by kaytieeldr

Probably? If you (any 'you', not just Randi) have a cable-ready tv - as most are, currently - and are dropping your service to no cable channels, as bicker said the tech needs to turn off the cable/digital signal at the pole, then come into the home to make sure that block 'took'. Otherwise the customer has the potential of getting those other I dunno, sixty channels? free.

Interesting thought, but I think that's unlikely. The tech has a device he can stick on the end of the band-pass filter to ensure that the blocked channels are not getting through. What he cannot check is whether the "good" signal, on the unblocked frequencies, makes it into your home in the same condition that his device shows it is in when it leaves the band-pass filter. The most typical failure mode after installation of a band-pass filter is that you lose more channels than you were supposed to.

You could be right, though, so in a case where the tech is denied entry to verify that the block is in place, they would probably be required to cut the cable going into your home entirely. If you read the terms and conditions you'll see that they have the right to do that. I believe the FCC allows this in return for cable companies continuing to provide local over-the-air broadcast channels in-the-clear. If they couldn't verify service blocking, then they'd essentially be forced to encrypt everything, making practically everyone's life more difficult.

[Green Tea]

Originally Posted by bicker

If you send the tech away without checking, then you'll probably be paying for him to come back to fix things later, because you won't be able to prove that the trouble started at the time the band-pass filter was installed. Later, it'll just look like your wiring or connections have degraded, and wiring work inside is your responsibility, not the cable company's.

I have never had to pay for a service call from Comcast. They take care of the wires inside my house as well.

(I did pay for them to put cable into an upstairs room when we moved in years ago, but other than that, I have never been charged. And being that it is Comcast, I call for service A LOT)

[clori]

I have comcast in MA. We have to switch to digital by January 5th and get 1 free box plus two dummy boxes so essentially 3 boxes. I don't know what the difference is with the other two boxes which aren't set up yet. Looking at the digital line up we also realized we would be paying $60 for some lineup that we really just watch Tlc on. I want to drop it and add a family line up for $15 so saving $45 a month. I know they said to do that we will need a tech to come out and it would cost $14.95 for that. That day we just wanted to deal with setting up the box since we never had a cable box before. We also wanted to add a dvr. We don't have an hdtv but if we had not said anything they would have automatically given us an hdtv box and charged us more for the dvr then by using a non hdtv box.

[bicker]

Originally Posted by Green Tea

I have never had to pay for a service call from Comcast. They take care of the wires inside my house as well.

You're either paying extra per month for that ("wire maintenance plan") or you've been very lucky. Other folks shouldn't plan on being as lucky as you have been, especially not going forward.

[bicker]

Originally Posted by clori

I have comcast in MA. We have to switch to digital by January 5th and get 1 free box plus two dummy boxes so essentially 3 boxes. I don't know what the difference is with the other two boxes which aren't set up yet.

With some digital plans, you get one digital set-top box (STB), and two digital terminal adapters (DTAs). The DTAs don't support on-demand or pay-per-view. They also cannot receive any other encrypted programming.

Originally Posted by clori

Looking at the digital line up we also realized we would be paying $60 for some lineup that we really just watch Tlc on. I want to drop it and add a family line up for $15 so saving $45 a month.

This is a great deal that of all its competitors, only Comcast offers. Here, they call it "Digital Economy". You don't get Syfy or TNT, here, which were the biggest down-sides for us.

However, do note that Digital Economy, here, requires the installation of a band-pass filter, to remove the channels that you're not paying for: Those channels are not encrypted, so they must be removed with the band-pass filter. As a result, the DTAs will not receive any programming beyond the over-the-air broadcast channels. Here, they won't even activate the DTAs (so we got them, tried to connect them, and they didn't work, and when we called Comcast to come fix them, they realized that they sent them to us, and everyone else with the family tier, in error.)

[Green Tea]

Originally Posted by bicker

You're either paying extra per month for that ("wire maintenance plan") or you've been very lucky. Other folks shouldn't plan on being as lucky as you have been, especially not going forward.

Even their commercials, at least here, say something like never pay for service/ we take care of you. Nope, no special plan.

[bicker]

You're mistaken. You have indeed been very lucky:

Regardless of who installed it, we consider the Inside Wiring your property or the property of whomever owns the Premises. Accordingly, you are responsible for the repair and maintenance of the Inside Wiring, unless you and Comcast have agreed otherwise in writing. (If you do not own the Premises, contact your landlord or building manager about the repair or maintenance of Inside Wiring.) If you have us repair or maintain the Inside Wiring, we will charge you for that service.

Comcast Comcast Agreement For Residential Services 6c.