This is republished from 2012- people asked to see it again!
I got my lovely cable bill from Cox Communications today and my internet and cable rates have gone up AGAIN.
It makes my head want to explode.
For the time being internet will stay as it is. It’s a business expense for me so while it is painful I’m not ready to mess with that yet.
Cable is a different story.
Let me start all of this by saying “I Love Television.” I am sure many of you think it’s bad for me to say but when you live alone the television or radio are on pretty much all day long to keep the quiet from driving you mad. While most people would consider cable an expendable service in my house its a little farther up the list of bills.
But I’m not exactly rolling in money here (especially after being hacked two weeks ago) so when a bill goes up it catches my attention.
I sat down to do some math about one particular part of my bill- Expanded Service. Expanded service are the shows beyond ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox and those channels.
The Expanded Service part of my bill is $41.99. I basically have it on there so I can watch three channels- USA, TNT and A & E. So I went to Amazon to see if I BOUGHT each of the episodes (to keep forever) how much would it cost me per year. Most of the shows I watch have an abbreviated viewing schedule so they do not have 22 episodes per year.
The Glades [1] (current season not available to watch online for FREE) 13 episodes per year X $1.99 = $25.87
Falling Skies [2] (not available to watch online for FREE) 10 episodes per year x $1.99 = $19.90
Franklin & Bash [3] (not available to watch online for FREE) 10 episodes per year x $1.99 = $19.90
Leverage [4] (not available to watch online for FREE) 18 episodes per year X $1.99 = $35.82 (plus then I don’t have to buy it on DVD which I usually do)
Rizzoli and Isles [5] (not available to watch online for FREE) 16 episodes per year X $1.99 = $31.84
Each of these below is on USA so I SHOULD be able to catch them online for FREE at some point. But just in case I figured out the math:
Psych [6] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
White Collar [7] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
Covert Affairs [8] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
Suits [9] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
Royal Pains [10] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
Burn Notice [11] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
Fairly Legal [12] (5 episodes at a time online to watch so may be able to catch some for free) 13 episodes per year x $1.99 = $25.87
Okay so lets look at the numbers:
Total Paid for 12 Months of Expanded Service Cable: $41.99 x 12 months = $503.88
Total Paid for Digital Copies of Each Episode: $314.42
And since I have my Kindle Fire I can take these episodes with me everywhere I go with no hassle.
So I get on the phone and I call Cox. Their customer service people were great. Please remember these operators didn’t raise your rates- be nice!
I explain to them I would like to drop my Expanded TV Service. I discover this also means I would have to get rid of my DVR (which makes my head want to explode) but I tell her I am okay with that on the principle of the thing. And, LO AND BEHOLD, they have a promotion! It will drop my bill $21 a month thus making it cheaper for me to KEEP the cable rather than download episodes on Amazon and keep my DVR.
So total saved for 15 minute phone call- $252 a year.
This promotion lasts 12 months and then next year I get to try again. I am going to make a more conscience effort to see what I can find online, do research on Roku [13] and see if I think I can survive without DVR.
When was the last time you called your cable company?