You've gotta be 'frickin' kidding me!!! I don't believe this!!!... (1 Viewer)

[Kevin Alexander]

I just got the following letter from AT&T Broadband Digital Cable:

Dear Valued Customer:
Each year AT&T Broadband conducts an audit of all customer accounts to ensure that each account is being properly and appropriately billed. Our recent audit identified your account as being one that is improperly billed.
According to our records, you are not being correctly billed for the AT&T Broadband digital converter box(es) and the digital programming access fee. The monthly rental fee for each box converter box and remote is $4.80, plus the digital programming access fee of $4.99. Therefore, your next monthly statement will reflect an increase of $5.94 per box, plus applicable franchise fees and taxes. If you are no longer using this equiptment, you can avoid this increase by returning the box(es) to one of the AT&T Broadband cable stores listed below: .....
If you do not return the boxes by December 20, 2001, your January statement will reflect the increase....AT&T Broadband appreciates your business, and we look forward to continuing to provide you with the best entertainment and communication services availiable.
Sincerely,
AT&T Broadband-Atlanta

Are these people stupid or what? I already pay $72+/mo. for extended basic w/ Showtime & HBO. Now they want me to pay $5.94 for each of my 2 cable boxes + franchise fees and taxes + the 7% increase that will take place for everyone in January 2002. That'll be around $100!!! Are they trying to lose business? Do they want me to cancel their service? I guess I better start looking into Dish Network.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I have basic cable from ATT, but they bumped the cable modem service by $10/month on me. If it weren't such a freaking hassle to switch over to some form of DSL, I'd drop ATT like a hot potato. As it is, I'm fortunate that I can expense the cable modem portion of my bill due to my job, but I'd give it serious thought of given ATT the boot otherwise.

 

[Philip_G]

dude dump CATV and go DSS...

 

[Brad_W]

ATT = Devil

 

[Steve Tannehill]

I guess I better start looking into Dish Network.

$72 a month will go a lot farther on Dish Network...

- Steve

 

[Philip_G]

not to mention dobly digital and an optical out

 

[Brian Lawrence]

AT&T are a bunch of assholes and I try to avoid them as much as possible.
About two or three years ago I attempted to hook up to ATT internet via dial-up connection. I never got past the god damn sign-up process. 3 or 4 months (at this point I am now on an @home connection and would not even have any use for ATT) later I find that they are charging my credit card for internet services that I never even got to complete signing up for (Hence never once used). After explaining this to them they still refused to credit me back the amount that they had charged. I told them to make damn sure that they cancel me out. A month later my card gets billed agian. I call up mad as a wet hornet, They say that they can cancel my service but not refund me the money, because they have no record of me requesting that services be terminated.
After I start ranting on endlessly about how they are not at all the friendly and understanding folks they present themselves to be on those sappy TV commercials. the woman at the other end of the line agreed to take the last billing amount off of my credit card and actually did make sure I was cancelled out.
I absolutely despise those prick bastards and will avoid AT&T as much as humanly possible for the remainder of my life

 

[Peter Kim]

I have to say my feelings about ATT reflect that of the other posters...they're a bunch of lying arseholes. They deserve a demise.

ATT Broadband is the only cable show in Saint Paul, and they've ripped me off for years by charging for an unneccessary box and remote. I still don't understand why, with my cable-ready tv, I needed the damn box and remote. I've talked to colleagues and friends in Minneapolis and other suburbs, and none of them need the box to receive cable.

Additionally, I've asked over the last year and a half about getting Speedvision in the lineup (I'm an F1 freak). During that time, I was promised that Speedvision was soon to be included.

Lo and behold, when ATT fleshed out their digital cable, I was told that I would need to upgrade from regular to digital cable. And it's only available if you buy some kind of sports package, not with the basic digital.

Doing the price comparision between satellite and digital cable...well their is no comparison. Even adding the extra cost of local channels to satellite, digital seems unreasonably overpriced.

Wtf happened to cable deregulation and the supposed inclusion of competition, resulting in a better product at lower prices for the consumer?

 

[Chris Beveridge]

Wtf happened to cable deregulation and the supposed inclusion of competition, resulting in a better product at lower prices for the consumer?

It's gone about as well as other forms of deregulation in other industries. Sorta like how California was earlier this year with their minor electricity problem.

 

[DennisHP]

Another recomendation for DSS. It may not matter who you go with, Dish or Direct, if the merger goes thru. But, no matter who you decide on, it's WAAAAAY better than cable.

 

[Patrick R. Sklenar]

dude dump CATV and go DSS...

Not an option when your house is on the noth side of a hill and the entire top of the hill is trees. No view of the southern sky = no DSS. :frowning:

 

[Philip_G]

ouch.. well, it's worth a try, ya might get a signal if you're far enough south?

 

[Patrick R. Sklenar]

Southern New England isn't really all that far south.
Once my house is finished (they're framing this week), I'll get up on the roof and see if I can figure out how tall a mast I'd need to get the dish up to where it could see over the trees. Unfortunately, I've got a strong gut feeling that it would be far to tall to be safe, and I bet it would look ugly. :frowning:

 

[Ryan Wright]

Cable is a ripoff. My parents were paying ~$40/month for cable & HBO. Then Charter Communications decided they weren't making enough money, so they moved HBO and everything else that's worth watching to their digital cable network and ceased offering it on analog. My parents were forced to switch to digital cable to keep their HBO and their bill went up to over $80/month.
So, I hooked them up with DirecTV. They pay half and get more channels. Can't beat it. (I also have DirecTV)
The other thing that ticks me off is, these guys are a bunch of damn liars. They have been out to my house twice trying to sell me digital cable. The guy looks through my bay window, sees my 16:9 HDTV and tells me how I can't get HD signals over DirecTV, but his digital cable box is all HD. (I've seen digital cable, and it's no better than analog. Looks like hell.) I called BS, and he swore it was all HD. "It's digital. It has to be HD." I told him that digital != HD and asked him how he was getting an HD signal through that composite output - the boxes don't even have S-Video, for crying out loud. He had no idea what I was talking about. I tried to explain component video & HD signals, and he came right back with, "Oh, our box has that." I told him no, it doesn't, it's a COMPOSITE output. There is a difference. He insisted that it did have it, that digital = high definition, etc.
After a good half hour of arguing with this idiot, I asked him to leave. A few months later another guy came around and tried the same sales pitch. "It's all HD!" Bullshit. I told him to leave immediately. I wish there was some federal or state official I could complain to about these jerks ripping off the public with their lies, but even if there was, they likely wouldn't care.
It's times like these I thank God I'm a techno-snob...

 

[Micah Lloyd]

Geez, Ryan, I got pissed just reading about the digital cable = HD. Tell him to put it in writing (think: false advertising) "Put up or shut up". Of course he won't be able to...

 

[Tommy G]

After putting up with Cable way too long, I finally pulled the trigger on Dishnetwork a year and a half ago. What the heck was I thinking before with sticking with Cable? Long story short.....less money, more channels on dish.

 

[Richard Cooper]

I wish there was some federal or state official I could complain to about these jerks ripping off the public with their lies, but even if there was, they likely wouldn't care.

In England, it's called the trades description act. Selling something which isn't what it's advertised to be MUST be illegal in the US too (mind you, they call Bud the 'Genuine Article', so I guess it's not).

 

[Joseph Young]

I have to agree that AT&T is involved in some despicable practice.
Digital cable quality is piss-poor. On my WEGA, analog cable actually 'appears' better since there is no trace of digital artifacting. However my other two roomates insisted on digital cable and I lost out by default.
The Motorola box that came with the service is an embarassment. It's bigger and bulkier than even an Xbox . The setup instructions indicate s-video and digital optical inputs on the back of the box. However the boxes delivered to our home are devoid of any connections other than the standard RCA.
If it weren't for subscription to the Independent Film Channel, I would consider AT&T's service to be an utter, absolute waste of money and resources.
That said, it comes pretty damned close.
Joseph

 

[Dustin B]

AT&T sounds like Shaw up here. Shaw kept lying to me and changing their service arrangements. Never for my benefit. I was soo happy when I became Shaw free a year and a half ago.

The funniest thing I've seen up here in Canada lately was a StarChoice commercial explaining how they weren't the big evil cable company that ripped you off and gave you poor service. What makes that statment so funny is this commercial began airing shortly after Shaw took their 15 or so percent stake in StarChoice up to an 85 or so percent stake.

I suppose though, I at least have to give the crew who came up with the ad credit for doing such a great job disassociating StarChoice from Shaw to sucker the uninformed.

 

[Travis D]

I wish I had DSS, parents keep bringing up the argument, "You can't program the VCR with satelite." So I lose everytime it's brought up.