I really could careless what people choose as their TV/Internet/Phone provider. I have no stake in any provider, it doesn’t bother me. But when I see something that is incorrect, I will call it out. What forum it is, is irrelevant. If I read something that is incorrect or misleading I will speak up. I really don’t even look at specific forums, I just look at the Recent Posts panel on the left side of the home page and if I see something of interest, I click on it.
I have had Dish on two separate stints dating back to the late 90s and the mess that was the DishPlayer 7100, they are nothing special. Had DirecTV twice as well and continue to have them while I have Charter. As someone who has no strong emotional ties to any TV provider, and as someone who has experienced all of them that are available to me, it is easy to see that this site is incredibly biased towards Dish.
If you are someone like me who wants the premium channels, I’m not sure how it’s even debatable that I am getting my moneys worth. The TV portion of my bill including set tops and DVRs is $150. (TV Gold $105, Broadcast Fee $10, 2 STBs @ $7.50 ea, DVR $20). That’s the price of programming alone with AEP with no set top or DVR fees. And with DirecTV a close equivalent would run around $185 when all is said and done. How can’t I be getting my money’s worth? Why is Dish Network more and they don’t even carry the four NY RSNs because they said it’s too expensive? How can Charter carry them and they cost less? I don't really care about them, but how can Charter carry the Univision Networks but not Dish? Univision is only included in the Spanish add on tier for $9, along with about 100 other channel channels. I could add that and still be better off than Dish. How can DirecTV cost so much more and not carry things I get on Charter, like the Epix suite and all 7 PAC12 Network channels?
You only see me as an evangelist or fanboy or whatever because I am speaking from an opposite perspective and it is not the norm at this site.
Most of my other comments in this thread were related to phone and internet service. I have no idea why people are not getting the correct rates but you have to actively call Charter and make sure you are getting the correct and best rates available. Case in point, I had Ultra Internet at $95 for 120 x 10. They increased the speed to 300 x 20 for existing customers, but Ultra was actually increased to 400 x 20 and the price decreased to $80. They use different billing codes. Had I not been planning to upgrade to Gig I will have called in a New York minute to get my speed increased and rate decreased. I am not doubting anyone the rates they are paying, I am simply saying those rates are to my knowledge incorrect and Charter should be called and ask why the posted rates are not being honored. While they may be some very subtle differences, I haven't seen any, under SPP and SPP2 99.9% of Charter customers should be paying the exact same rate for the exact same level of service no matter where they live and no matter if they're L-Charter, L-TWC or L-BHN. Intro rates may vary depending on competition though.
