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Cutting the Cord
#13
(07-05-2022, 11:04 AM)crimsonghost747 Wrote: Ahh so if internet is more like a monopoly then that explains it.
Over here it's essentially so that you can pick from several different providers, regardless of how far in the woods you live.
Of course certain providers will have better coverage in the middle of nowhere, and if you want fiber then your choices are quite limited if you are outside of a city.

So the majority of the people have the choice between several providers, all of which can offer you roughly the same service. That definitely helps to keep the price down. Over at my previous home country, it was common practice for your current service provider to just price match any offer you got from their competitors. So that really helped because you were almost happy to get a call from an internet sales person, you didn't even need to switch to another provider, just get their best offer on paper and forward it to the customer service of your current one with a "thinking of switching because I want to save $5/month, but I do like your service... perhaps there is something we can do to make me stay with your company?" and voila, cheaper internet! Big Grin
If you want to stream everything off a phone contract you can dodge internet.  You can hot spot a desktop PC or whatever off a phone, until you hit a small limit and start paying up.  Cable got stupid.  You could sign an introductory deal and get it cheap for a year. If you don't trim back options it will double in a year, they go up 10% for random reasons until you call and put a leash on them.  It's a racket.  A lot of people don't notice they are getting ripped off right away, and time goes by before you do anything about it because it is a chore.  And internet varies.  I really only have one reliable choice.  You may have several choices in a more populated area.  My internet goes up 5% a year, and get's 5% less reliable the past three years.
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#14
Some great ideas here, thanks.

I may have to just continue rationalizing my cable bill as the equivalent of going to X number of in person Hawks, Sox games (which I really don't enjoy that much anymore. A whole other kettle of fish, how the in person games cater to the ADD crowd or casual fans who don't care to watch or discuss the game that they are attending-but I digress)
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#15
(07-06-2022, 06:25 AM)NilesMike Wrote: Some great ideas here, thanks.

I may have to just continue rationalizing my cable bill as the equivalent of going to X number of in person Hawks, Sox games (which I really don't enjoy that much anymore. A whole other kettle of fish, how the in person games cater to the ADD crowd or casual fans who don't care to watch or discuss the game that they are attending-but I digress)
I thought the sports thing might be a problem.  I am pretty sure it keeps cable alive.  I can share on thing you might try.  Call them and ask if there are any deals because you think you are going to try streaming.  I was never not offered a better deal but I was leveraging dish or cable.  Whatever I didn't have at the time.
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#16
Most sports leagues seem to also have their own streaming services. If it's just 1-2 leagues that you want to watch, then that might be a much cheaper option than keeping cable around just for the sports. There may be some blackout restrictions so be sure that you can actually watch the games you want to watch.
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#17
(07-07-2022, 02:54 AM)crimsonghost747 Wrote: Most sports leagues seem to also have their own streaming services. If it's just 1-2 leagues that you want to watch, then that might be a much cheaper option than keeping cable around just for the sports. There may be some blackout restrictions so be sure that you can actually watch the games you want to watch.
I ran into the blackout issue trying to get a baseball package. Mike and I have a teams in the same division so he will understand how ridiculous this is. I can't watch the Twins at home so there goes 81 games.  Can't watch them on the road in KC, CHI, STL, MIL. I think I was good for road games in CLE and DET.  That's it in the division.  There are a few months I could watch 0-3 games.  I hope the rules change soon if they haven't yet.
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#18
My son has that issue in Dallas. Workaround is to get a VPN and set your location to another city. Worked for him.
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#19
(07-09-2022, 12:04 PM)NilesMike Wrote: My son has that issue in Dallas. Workaround is to get a VPN and set your location to another city. Worked for him.
I'll have to Google that.  Big Grin
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