The good news: More “skinny bundles” of pay-TV channels will be available to consumers as a growing number of households abandon fat programming packages and seek cheaper online streaming options for home entertainment.
The bad news: Analysts say cable and phone companies, quickly adapting to this new reality, will keep jacking up internet prices to make sure your monthly bill stays sky-high.
The LA Times reports the dual changes reflect the two sides of the telecom marketplace. On the one hand, consumers are making their voices heard in their embrace of new technology to avoid paying for hundreds of channels they may never watch.
This signals the gradual demise of a business model that has allowed pay-TV companies to take advantage of people for decades.
At the same time, the near-monopoly power that many cable and phone companies enjoy for high-speed internet service allows them to continue dictating terms, setting prices far beyond the cost of maintaining or improving broadband networks.
“We’re in the middle of a massive reinvention of the industry,” said telecom analyst and consultant Jeff Kagan. “Everything is changing.”
He noted that pay-TV service is no longer the main source of revenue for many cable companies — it’s internet. To maintain growth, therefore, these companies have to keep raising internet prices.
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