Mandate Hi-Def basic service
Somewhere back in the late 1990’s some people got together with our government and decided that they would replace our already free over the air channels with High Definition (HD) forcing everyone to buy new TV’s or converter boxes. Currently we get our over the air channels included in almost any base package that cable or satellite service offers. However, now as you are forced by 2009 to go to HD you will still have to pay for basic but to get HD over the air you will now also have to pay for a special HD box and an additional fee to actually get the HD not to mention all the special high cost cables.
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Congress enacted the Cable Television Consumer Protection and Competition Act of 1992 to provide increased consumer protection and to promote increased competition in the cable television and related markets. I don’t know about you but I sure have not seen any competition and I sure don’t feel very protected. All I see is the Cable Company adding the knitting channel and my bill goes up.
With this new mandate to go to HD and the premiums we have to pay and equipment you have to buy, you have to think that government is now in bed with people they were to protect us from.
If the government was not so attached to all the taxes they suck out of the industry maybe they would breakup the monopolies and allow real competition and mandate that HD be provided as a basic service not a premium service.
As long as we keep letting the same people be in control, we are going to keep getting the same results.
For me, cable cost went from $15 dollars back in 1992 to over $80.
Larry Aiken
Hellam Township
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