ST. MARY’S TODAY

GREAT MILLS (Jan. 3, 2007) - Local resident Vincent Cumbo said she may be left with no option but to say goodbye to MetroCast cable service. “I might not be able to afford it,” Cumbo said on the newest rate hike that goes into effect with the New Year. She added she would weigh her options.

Six different kinds of MetroCast cable services, including expanded basic service, now cost more since Jan. 1, 2007.

MetroCast informed its customers in November about the price hike, the same day the company’s general manager Danny Jobe sent a letter to County Administrator George Forrest informing him about the rate changes. Jobe’s letter attributed the rate hikes to “the reality of the competition” in the marketplace.

The cost of basic MetroCast service with 18 channels increased from $16.75 to $18.75 or $2 more, the cost of expanded basic service jumped from $28.75 to $31.20 or $2.45 more, the cost of Combined Basic and Expanded Basic Service rose from $45.50 to $49.95 or $4.45 more, the cost of high speed internet service went up from $39.95 to $41.95 or $2 more, and HBO a la carte rates increased from 16.95 to $19.00 or $2.05 more. Each additional digital outlet cost an additional 45 cents.

St. Mary’s county cable advisory chief said it was not abnormal for the rates increase to take effect during the festive season.

“This is true for all cable companies. For most part the major networks increase their rates in December and the smaller companies have to pass that on to their patrons,” Bill Caplins, chair of the St. Mary’s Cable Advisory Committee, told ST. MARY’S TODAY.

Caplins explained that that translates into a price hike on New Year.

Jobe’s letter to customers said MetroCast is prevented from a la carte pricing, where patrons could have paid only for channels that interest them, because of existing contracts with most major network programming. He said the vast majority of cable television networks are owned by a small group of extremely large companies such as the Disney/ABC Company, Fox-News Corp., Viacom/CBS and Universal/NBC.

“Virtually all of these contracts also state that the network cannot be offered on a la carte basis; effectively denying MetroCast and other cable television service providers flexibility in how the channel line-ups are packaged,” he said.