Cable and satellite TV bills are "going up" this month, with Time Warner Cable, AT&T and DirecTV "among the providers bumping up prices ... citing increased programming costs and expensive technology upgrades," according to Rick Rothacker of the CHARLOTTE OBSERVER. AT&T said that its U-verse TV customers will "see an increase" of around 5.7%, or $6.05 per month, starting Jan. 28. DirecTV, now owned by AT&T, is also "raising prices" by about 5.7%, or about $6.40 per month. TWC beginning Jan. 16 is "raising two surcharges that it adds to bills." The broadcast TV fee will increase $1 to $3.75 per month, and the sports programming surcharge goes up $2.25 to $5 per month. The cost of TWC's sports pass, which "provides additional sports channels, will also go up $1.01 to $10 per month." TWC also said that it "needs to raise prices because the amount it pays for broadcast TV and sports programs has been going up" (CHARLOTTE OBSERVER, 12/31). BLOOMBERG NEWS' Gerry Smith noted providers including Comcast and Dish Network are all "planning to increase their prices early next year -- at the risk of turning off more subscribers fed up with the rising cost of television." It is "part of the vicious circle at the heart of the U.S. media industry’s current troubles." Comcast, the "biggest U.S. cable company," will increase its broadcast fee by $1.75 to $5 and its regional sports fee by $2 to $3. TWC VP/PR Bobby Amirshahi said that the amount the company pays local broadcast channels has risen 85% in the past two years, while its costs for carrying sports networks have increased 116% since '08 (BLOOMBERG NEWS, 12/23).
