I have come to the conclusion that cable doesn't actually cost anything, that the pricing is totally arbitrary, and they charge whatever they feel like.
last year, we dropped our basic-cable-tv + roadrunner down to just-roadrunner, and they charged us $30/mo. then suddenly, they started charging us $45/mo. i called them and explained the situation. thus followed:
TWC: oh, that was just a special rate for one year. $45 is the real rate. do you know that for just $8 more you could have cable tv too? ME: how's about you give me a special rate this year too, and no TV TWC: hmm, let me see what i can do... ok, i can give you roadrunner for $25/mo. but it's a special offer and it'll go up next year. ME: great, talk to you in 12 months...
$45? $25? whatever. they don't care. they just want us to be sedate, and if we press a little they'll give us cookies. just most of us don't ask for cookies. i wonder what would happen if there was a mass uprising in which we all demanded cookies.
(in the mean time: turns out we actually still get basic cable even though we don't pay for it. we didn't know this because we never turn the TV on, but when my in-laws were here, they were watching the weather channel and whatnot. huh.)
TWC
last year, we dropped our basic-cable-tv + roadrunner down to just-roadrunner, and they charged us $30/mo. then suddenly, they started charging us $45/mo. i called them and explained the situation. thus followed:
TWC: oh, that was just a special rate for one year. $45 is the real rate. do you know that for just $8 more you could have cable tv too?
ME: how's about you give me a special rate this year too, and no TV
TWC: hmm, let me see what i can do... ok, i can give you roadrunner for $25/mo. but it's a special offer and it'll go up next year.
ME: great, talk to you in 12 months...
$45? $25? whatever. they don't care. they just want us to be sedate, and if we press a little they'll give us cookies. just most of us don't ask for cookies. i wonder what would happen if there was a mass uprising in which we all demanded cookies.
(in the mean time: turns out we actually still get basic cable even though we don't pay for it. we didn't know this because we never turn the TV on, but when my in-laws were here, they were watching the weather channel and whatnot. huh.)