Cable Con

May28

Posted at 10:37 AM • 9 Comments

I ran across this interesting article about how cable is very expensive, especially considering how few channels users actually watch. I am guilty. I fought against cable for years, and I finally got it in January so I could watch The Wire and CNN. Now that I have it, I only really watch CNN and the Style Network. Still, I hold onto to cable service. I have a bundled package which includes my Internet and phone service for $122. Am I getting ripped off? For all my chatter about saving money, why do I still have cable?
I seemed to live just fine without it for years. I think cable is a social expense. No one wants to visit your house if you don’t have cable. They just don’t.

Do you have cable? How much is your bill? Do you think you are being ripped off? And just how many channels do you watch?

9 Responses

No one wants to visit if you don’t have cable??? I think that’s a stretch. Unless it’s the SuperBowl or similar, people don’t come over to watch TV.
We pay a jillion dollars for DirecTV but that’s because we have a bunch of premium packages. We like the HBO and Showtime series and hubby insists on the NFL Sunday Ticket.
While prices can be high, I don’t think it’s a rip-off because cable isn’t a necessity and we willingly pay the price.

✭ savvy on May 28, 2008 at 10:43 am.
Savvy, I know I’m dramatic, but people think you are strange if you don’t have cable. You’re too analog for them. Folks want to come over and watch Flavor of Love, not muse over a sitcom. And I should have added that I have a small screen TV. That may have something to do with it, too.

✭ The Frugalista Files on May 28, 2008 at 10:48 am.
I do have cable, and I don’t watch all of the channels, but I like knowing that cable is there just in case I need in one evening. But remember with the big conversion going on, a person will either need that converter box or cable anyway so you will be paying for something one way or the other. ( I do think the converter is a one time only payment though) Maybe you could just get very basic cable. Also consider the fact that your phone bill is tied in there also. It looks like you are doing well. I won’t be giving up cable any time soon.

✭ Product Junkie Diva on May 28, 2008 at 11:19 am.
Yes, I have cable and I love it
I love watching CNBC, FOX business news, HGTV and other lifestyle channels, I pay about $80 a month because of HD and premium channels, I don’t sweat the price because I’m forever focus on earning more than my lifestyle.

✭ Moneymonk on May 28, 2008 at 12:08 pm.
Cable free since 2000! I rarely miss it. And yes, it’s true some folk look at you funny or plan visits around their TV time.
I’m thinking about getting cable because of an upcoming salary increase and the 2009 digital conversion, but I don’t really look forward to it.
The worst thing about cable (or TV in general) is the time spent parked in front of the set watching nothing in particular. If they could make all channels pay-per-view or have a pre-paid cable card…I’d be the 1st to sign up

✭ Coco on May 28, 2008 at 2:04 pm.
I just have internet (work reimbursed) and basic cable, so no CNN, SciFi, or the like (I LOVE Battlestar Galactica).
I’m trying to wean myself off of my TV – cable is very expensive, when you think about all the time that you don’t have the TV on!
That being said, you are getting a decent bundle, when you figure what that would cost separately. I’d say that you still get the frugal street cred for that one!

✭ GLM on May 28, 2008 at 3:30 pm.
Have you had a serious talk with your accountant about what is deductible for you – a journalist – as non-reimbursed business expenses and other Schedule C possible deductions? If you haven’t had this chat, you should. It’s possible that at least a portion of your cable bill (and other things, too!) is tax-deductible!

✭ Leslie Marqua on May 29, 2008 at 8:00 am.
We live in the middle of nowhere, so life on the dish is a necessity if you want any info or entertainment. The nearest move theater is in a town 15 miles away, so with fuel prices so high, the dish is hardly a luxury. Also with hurricane season I appreciate having the info on weather channel. You can’t live in Florida and not say a thank you for The Weather Channel. (Disclaimer: I was an editor at a subsidiary of Landmark Communications which owns The Weather Channel.)

✭ Lou on May 29, 2008 at 12:00 pm.
I let go of my cable two years ago, but this weekend, I became a subscriber again.
My life was fine those two years without it. I went out more, and lived life. But lately, I found that when I was at home, or nothing was happening that I particularly wanted to do, I was bored out of my mind.
Tried reading. Tried journaling. Tried catching up with friends. But there’s only so much of that you can do.
I got standard cable, so I think my bill should be about $40 a month. I just hooked the cable up yesterday and it was such a joy to see channels with no snow! I’ll probably only watch a few channels, but I still think it’ll be worth it.
And if I find out otherwise, I can always stop. Honest, I can.

✭ Tali on May 30, 2008 at 5:02 pm.

Cable Con

9 Responses

Leave A Reply

Archives

Blogroll