[BC] OTA TV makes a big jump.

[Charles Ring]

Time Warner Cable has a neat monopolist trick to pile up the cash: Here, 
their franchise requires them to offer "basic cable" for about 
$20/month. That provides about 20 channels. To get anything more than 
that, you are forced to go all the way with "digital" with its hundreds 
of channels and a price over $70/month.

They tell customers that anything more than the 20 channels will not 
work without the digital converter box and they get away with that lie. 
You are not allowed to get the channels up to 75+ that actually are 
still analog and any modern TV will receive connected directly to the 
cable. Funny, that worked just fine until TWC decided to boost the 
bottom line with the big lie, and in truth it still does.

The way they do the "basic cable" is to insert a filter that blocks from 
channel 21 (?) to the real top of the analog channels. As long as you 
pay for the whole digital junkpile AND the digital converter, you can 
still connect additional receivers to get all of the real analog signals.

I once went to the TWC local office with a friend who was confused about 
this and could not afford the outrageous cost.  I did not do very well 
at controlling my anger when told this bald lie that the monopolist 
tells everyone with the confidence of a pathological liar with great 
corporate power.

My friend had no choice but to drop cable completely, buy a digital 
adaptor for her TV and an antenna, and tolerate endless signal dropouts 
in her first-floor apartment 20 miles from the nearest TV stations.

On 6/20/2012 0235, Jeff Carter wrote:
> On Tue, Jun 19, 2012 at 9:33 PM, Alan Alsobrook <radiotech at bellsouth.net> wrote:
>> This is more a TV thing, but it may be of interest that many are cutting
>> the cord and not getting a dish.
> I had a horrible time convincing people that OTA didn't just
> disappear.  In North Georgia, where I was living at the time, the
> cable and DBS providers were actively telling people that they'd need
> cable or a dish, that the days of broadcast TV as they'd known it was
> over forever.
>
> I proved the reality to my brothers by setting up temporary antennas,
> and one still thought it was some sort of trick. As far as I know, he
> continues to this day paying for a worse signal than he could get for
> free.
>
> Very frustrating...
>
> Jeff
>