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Comcast to Increase Rates an Average 6.6 Percent for Colorado Customers

Posted on: Tuesday, 2 December 2003, 06:00 CST

Dec. 2--Cable giant Comcast Corp. plans to increase rates by an average of 6.6 percent beginning Jan. 1 in Colorado, extending an industry trend of boosting prices faster than inflation.

The increases in monthly rates unveiled Monday range from 9 percent hikes for basic and standard cable packages in places such as Fort Collins, Greeley, Superior and Idaho Springs to a 1-cent decline in Lafayette.

Basic-cable rates in Denver will rise 1.9 percent to $13.69. Basic subscribers make up less than half of Comcast's customers.

Comcast also will boost monthly prices on premium services -- pay-television packages and digital programming -- by up to $6.

Comcast's January bills will carry information outlining the increases for customers.

One-time services will cost more, too. For example, Comcast will increase its hourly service charge to $29.99 (previously $27.99 to $28.49) and boost by $1 its consumer-trouble call charge to $17.99.

"The price adjustments reflect the increased value of the service, new products, the increased price of providing the service -- but it's really about value," said Jeannine Hansen, a Comcast spokeswoman in Denver.

"We continue to invest in new technology to expand the programming and service that we offer customers," she said.

The Jan. 1 increases come after Comcast predecessor AT&T Broadband boosted Colorado rates an average of 5.2 percent in 2002. Philadelphia-based Comcast serves 680,000 Colorado customers.

In July, the Federal Communications Commission reported that cable rates rose by an average of 8.2 percent -- more than five times the rate of inflation -- from July 2001 to July 2002.

Rates for satellite television have risen too, but at a slower rate because DirecTV and EchoStar Communications Corp.'s Dish Network do not need to maintain miles of cable and equipment.

Of three Denver cable customers contacted by The Denver Post on Monday, none minded the latest increase. But they said they appreciate having satellite TV as an option if they decide to switch.

"Clearly, cable has been outstripping inflation over the past several years. But, clearly, the programming is costing them more," said Michael Mazer, a telecommunications consultant who subscribes to Comcast in Denver. "Beyond that, the fact of the matter is there is competition out there."

Denver resident Valerie Farnham said she will keep her Comcast service, including HBO and Cinemax. "I'm just not that concerned about it," she said. "I still think it is a good entertainment value for the price."

Raymond Gifford, a former Colorado utilities regulator now running a free-market think tank in Washington, D.C., said he will keep the Comcast service at his Denver home unless he sees a better offer from a satellite provider.

"If anything, it looks to me like the market is responding to increased costs and network upgrades," Gifford said. "If you don't like it, don't subscribe." Satellite providers likely will seize upon Comcast's rate hikes to woo customers.

Littleton-based EchoStar recently launched a marketing campaign imploring customers to "stop feeding the cable pig." The campaign reportedly has incensed Comcast officials.

EchoStar spokesman Steve Caulk said Dish Network's rates for basic digital service will remain at $24.99 until January 2005.

Comcast, meanwhile, notes that costly upgrades of its cable systems now allow it to offer services equal to or better than satellite, such as telephony and broadband Internet access.

"While we continue to add customers and offer new services, the competition has resorted to mud-slinging," Comcast's Hansen said.

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To see more of The Denver Post, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.denverpost.com

(c) 2003, The Denver Post. Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

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