February 28, 2007

As of this morning we're a Comcast free household. Yesterday Dish Network came in and installed their dish on our roof, installed their DVR and with local channels and we're paying only $39 /month locked in for 18 months. Oh and we have the American top 100 package. Has everything we really enjoy including Sci-Fi, Disney, Nick, Food Network and so on.

At least it's cheaper and crystal clear compared to the static and snow we enjoyed with Comcast. I'm only sorry we couldn't have the dish placed so it was viewed from the street. I'd love each Comcast truck going by to look up and see Dish on the roof.

We were planning on replacing our TV this year because we thought it was going out. It never occurred to me it was the cable service. So we're looking at purchasing an HDTV next year and taking our $1800 (for the new TV) to the bank. I'm thinking the prices should be much better by 2008 (still a little pricy)

I'm amazed Comcast won't terminate the cable service. My wife was told the soonest they can come by to disconnect us is March 13th and they will need to bill us for the next two weeks. The only thing they are willing to do is suggest we may be able to get a credit for the next two weeks but so far have been unwilling to put that in writing.

I beg to differ. The pro-rated bill will be sent to the Attorney General's office and a suit for fraud filed if this happens. We've already called them 3 times just today to terminate the service and send either a fax or email to verify we're free and clear. The next call will be to the FCC as they regulate Cable and Telephone.

We always paid in advance every month for about 4 years. We're paid up until today and I'm unwilling to renew the monthly contract with them for any portion of March. I am under no obligation to continue the service. It feels like I'm dealing with AOL or something (I've heard the stories). We can't get HSI from them and can't get rid of Cable! Incredible!

My wife was very amusing today. When she was transferred to their cancellation department, the first words out of her mouth was "You're Fired!" (apologizes to Donald Trump). She couldn't resist. I only wish I was at home to hear the conversation.

DSL is now available in my neighborhood as of this morning. My wife spoke with a Qwest tech checking out the DSLAM yesterday. He was performing the final checks when she caught him. We signed up for the 7 Meg DSL service. It will cost $15 for the line and $22 for Xmission (the ISP). Again cheaper and faster than my old Comcast HSI service. I've had dozens of people in my neighborhood asking when this will be available. Guess Comcast will have plenty of bandwidth in our area to spare :-)

Utopia is still on my target for the long run. After my comments on the 20th to the City Council, I learned there were financial roadblocks to making this happen. After speaking with several people outside the City Council Chambers, I understand Qwest, Comcast and other's heavily lobbied the Utah Legislature years ago to pass a bill that prevents public funds to be used for projects such as this. The bill has a sunset provision set for June 2007. Roger Black (the COO of Utopia) was at the West Jordan City Council meeting that day and explained this a little more. I am very appreciative of his insight and experience.

So it seems I'll be back online next Monday. The DSL modem has been ordered and this time we're going for a business account and will be running a web server to share family photos. I figure I can do that now. In two years I should be ready to test code and move my wife's business to the Internet. Comcast was right. We do want to move the business to the Internet. They were just two years too early.

One more note, it seems there are many people here in Utah who have seen the FOX13 and KUTV/Gephardt spots and passed the word along. I've received emails and calls from journalists in California, Florida, Massachusetts and recently Georgia. I appreciate the opportunity to interview with them and provide my analysis of Comcast's statement describing what the top .01% are consuming monthly (13 million emails a month? come on. Nobody talks like that). I've only asked to be made aware when they publish their article as I'd like a copy to share.

That's it for now. I've heard rumblings of a class action lawsuit and would interested in learning more. While technically it may be legal for Comcast to terminate services according to their fuzzy Acceptable Use policy, I doubt a Judge would accept a one sided contract with undisclosed terms to stand up in court.