From the local fishwrapper (Orange County Register)
Most TV viewers pay $70/month or more for service
March 4th, 2010, 2:45 pm · 42 Comments · posted by Tamara Chuang, a.k.a. The Gadgetress
Now that 2009 numbers are in, how much did the average person pay for TV service?
A lot! At least $70 a month!
Scanning public documents, I set up a handy chart for consumers to see how much money TV services are collecting from subscribers each month.
Please note that some of these prices may include Internet and phone service (cable and Internet providers) while others only include TV service (satellite providers).
Also, these numbers are what the companies call the average monthly revenue per subscriber. I like to think of this as the monthly bill, but technically, the numbers can also include business customers and other fees, which skews what the monthly bills really are. Here are the results, in no particular order:
TV service 2008 2009 change
Dish Network $69.27 $70.04 1.1%
DirecTV $83.90 $85.48 1.9%
Time Warner Cable $92.44 $97.83 5.8%
Verizon FiOS $133.00 $140.00 5.3%
AT&T U-verse $61.75* n/a*
Comcast $111.05 $118.20 6.4%
Cox** n/a n/a
Source: All numbers are based on public annual reports from the companies.
* AT&T’s 2008 figure includes cheaper DSL service. The company did not release the price for 2009.
** Cox is a private company and does not release its numbers.
With more fee disputes between TV networks and the TV services, prices aren’t expected to go down any time soon. One analyst estimates cable TV customers pay $100 a month. Plus, we heard from Time Warner this week that Internet has replaced the cable TV as the company’s core product so Internet prices may go up too (read: “Time Warner toys with raising Internet prices.”)
But some have hinted at expanding plans and offering some lower-priced packages. Perhaps when online TV services like TV Everywhere from Time Warner and Comcast become available, a wider variety of lower-priced options for paying customers will open up.
Most TV viewers pay $70/month or more for service
March 4th, 2010, 2:45 pm · 42 Comments · posted by Tamara Chuang, a.k.a. The Gadgetress
Now that 2009 numbers are in, how much did the average person pay for TV service?
A lot! At least $70 a month!
Scanning public documents, I set up a handy chart for consumers to see how much money TV services are collecting from subscribers each month.
Please note that some of these prices may include Internet and phone service (cable and Internet providers) while others only include TV service (satellite providers).
Also, these numbers are what the companies call the average monthly revenue per subscriber. I like to think of this as the monthly bill, but technically, the numbers can also include business customers and other fees, which skews what the monthly bills really are. Here are the results, in no particular order:
TV service 2008 2009 change
Dish Network $69.27 $70.04 1.1%
DirecTV $83.90 $85.48 1.9%
Time Warner Cable $92.44 $97.83 5.8%
Verizon FiOS $133.00 $140.00 5.3%
AT&T U-verse $61.75* n/a*
Comcast $111.05 $118.20 6.4%
Cox** n/a n/a
Source: All numbers are based on public annual reports from the companies.
* AT&T’s 2008 figure includes cheaper DSL service. The company did not release the price for 2009.
** Cox is a private company and does not release its numbers.
With more fee disputes between TV networks and the TV services, prices aren’t expected to go down any time soon. One analyst estimates cable TV customers pay $100 a month. Plus, we heard from Time Warner this week that Internet has replaced the cable TV as the company’s core product so Internet prices may go up too (read: “Time Warner toys with raising Internet prices.”)
But some have hinted at expanding plans and offering some lower-priced packages. Perhaps when online TV services like TV Everywhere from Time Warner and Comcast become available, a wider variety of lower-priced options for paying customers will open up.
