Comcast is raising prices for cable TV and Internet service on January 1, 2021, with price hikes coming both to standard monthly rates and to hidden fees that aren’t included in advertised prices.
TV customers are getting an especially raw deal, as Comcast is adding up to $4.50 a month to the “Broadcast TV” fee and $2 to the Regional Sports Network (RSN) fee.
TV customers will also have to pay an additional $2 for the Regional Sports Network fee. As Ars notes, that’s an additional $78 for fees that aren’t even part of Comcast’s advertised rates. Even customers on promotional pricing will have to fork out that extra amount, since both charges aren’t part of the promo. All on-demand subscriptions will cost $1 to $2 more. Meanwhile, all Xfinity Internet packages will cost $3 more across the board.
The Xfinity Home Security and Plus services will cost $50 and $60, respectively, up $10 from their current prices. In addition, there will be “up to a $2.50 increase for TV boxes on the primary outlet, with a decrease of up to $2.45 for TV boxes on additional outlets,” a spokesperson told Ars. Finally, the company’s installation service and in-home service visit will cost $100 next year, or $30 more than what they currently cost.
Other changes for 2021 include a Broadcast TV Fee increase of up to $4.50 depending on the market; $3 increase for Internet-only service; and up to a $2.50 increase for TV boxes on the primary outlet, with a decrease of up to $2.45 for TV boxes on additional outlets, the Comcast spokesperson added. The fee for a customer’s primary TV box is rising from $5 to $7.50, while the fee for additional boxes is being lowered from $9.95 to $7.50.
The company will also start implementing a 1.2TB data cap on broadband usage across all 39 states where it offers its internet service. It will at least waive overage fees for the first two months to get people used to the new limits, but it will eventually charge $10 for every additional 50GB of data.
