New year, new rates: Cable TV and Internet customers can expect to pay more in 2015

Comcast is raising its rates.
Comcast is raising its rates.

Cable and Internet fee increases in 2015

EPB Fi TV 2014 // 2015 Bronze $12.99/month // $14.99/month Silver $59.99/month // $67.99/month Gold $71.99/month // $80.99/month Comcast 2014 // 2015 Broadcast TV $1.50/month // $3.25/month Custom installation hourly service charge $60/hour // $70/hour Installation service call $60/hour // $70/hour Modem $7/month // $9/month

The new year will bring rate increases for most Chattanooga-area cable and Internet subscribers.

The higher fees that Comcast, EPB and AT&T will charge are due to equipment and infrastructure costs or broadcast fees, according to the companies.

Comcast's basic cable service will cost about 14 percent more beginning Jan. 1, $14.10 a month compared with $12.85. That's because a broadcast television fee will be more than twice what it was: $3.25 a month as opposed to $1.50.

The increase isn't as drastic for customers paying for one of the company's digital television packages, though. For example, the broadcast fee coupled with a Digital Preferred package amounts to a 2 percent increase, from $79.70 to $81.45.

"Our broadcast retransmission costs have more than doubled in recent years," said Russell Byrd, Comcast's senior director of external affairs. "This fee generally represents only about one-third of those costs."

Comcast started breaking out the broadcast TV fee this year.

Close to a dozen fees and rates will go up in all, including hourly service charges for custom installation, from $60 to $70; modem rental, from $7 monthly to $9 monthly; and Xfinity Blast, from $68.95 to $70.95.

According to Comcast's calculations, the average customer bill will go up 3.4 percent.

"We have worked very hard to hold down price adjustments," Byrd said.

Come January, EPB will raise monthly charges 12 to 15 percent for its Fi TV, depending on the package -- though those increases could be offset if customers bundle cable with Internet or phone service. EPB won't increase Internet fees next year, and installation is still free.

"One of the things, really, that all cable providers are seeing is the cost the networks are charging us: That goes up every year," said John Pless, an EPB spokesman.

EPB has not yet itemized a broadcast TV fee.

AT&T U-Verse subscribers will have price hikes a month later, beginning Feb. 1.

Depending on their TV package, most customers will see monthly increases ranging from $3 to $5, which includes a broadcast TV surcharge and price increase for non-DVR receivers, said AT&T spokeswoman Cathy Lewandowski.

High-speed Internet subscriptions will increase $1. The average customer with AT&T U-verse TV and Internet will have a $4 and $5 increase, she said.

The fee hikes help cover costs to replace existing equipment, as well as maintain and improve infrastructure, Lewandowski said.

In what could be seen as a nod to the season of giving, starting today Chattanooga subscribers to EPB's Fi TV Silver or Gold services will have four new channels. Customer demand has prompted the company to include IFC, Sundance TV, Fusion and EPIX 3 HD.

IFC is a spinoff of the Bravo network and features independent films. It also plays cult television series and specials. Sundance TV shows award-winning independent films. Fusion is geared toward the nation's Hispanics and offers news, current events, pop culture and lighthearted analysis geared toward digital-savvy millennials. The EPIX family of networks delivers blockbuster and first-run movies, along with comedy, music specials and championship boxing events.

For all the providers, customers getting service through promotions won't have increases during the duration of their plans.

Contact staff writer Mitra Malek at mmalek@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6406.

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