Spectrum "Choice" Retention Package? Anyone?

[cpalmer2k]

Does anybody here have an definitive info about Charter's "Choice" retention package? I've tried three times to get info out of their online chat about it with no luck. Everybody says you have to call on the phone and every time I call the wait times are horrible.

From what I understand from previous threads on other forums the package is $29.99, gives you all local & Public Info channels; and then you get to pick 10 channels from a list of 50 that you want.

The problem is it seems impossible to get a straight answer out of them as to what 50 channels are included. Anyone have any info?

 

[primestar31]

Does anybody here have an definitive info about Charter's "Choice" retention package? I've tried three times to get info out of their online chat about it with no luck. Everybody says you have to call on the phone and every time I call the wait times are horrible.

From what I understand from previous threads on other forums the package is $29.99, gives you all local & Public Info channels; and then you get to pick 10 channels from a list of 50 that you want.

The problem is it seems impossible to get a straight answer out of them as to what 50 channels are included. Anyone have any info?

Yep, I tried getting info on it also. IMO, it just can't be done. You MIGHT be able to get it IF you go to your local office, and talk face to face with one of their reps. That makes it extremely hard for them to lie to you since they are facing you...

Be VERY careful in saying that you'll just leave if they won't give you a deal. They'll wipe your account so fast, you might not even have a couple seconds to save it. So make SURE you tell them you want to KEEP the internet portion up front (IF you do) before you say you want a tv deal.

https://www.consumeraffairs.com/cable_tv/charter.html?page=16

 

[Claude Greiner]

Why not just cancel? The triple play is only $89.99 for new customers.

 

[primestar31]

Why not just cancel? The triple play is only $89.99 for new customers.

For one year, and that year goes by real fast. The price will jump at least 50% at the end of the year, and then at the end of the second year when the final promos run out (free dvr and such) it'll jump another 20%

 

[Jhon69]

http://www.spectrum.net/support/tv/channel-lineup-and-spectrum-tv-packages/

 

[Tampa8]

http://www.spectrum.net/support/tv/channel-lineup-and-spectrum-tv-packages/

You see Choice somewhere in that mess? I've been to that link several times before I can't see it, I see all their packages including basic, digital etc etc but no Choice.

 

[primestar31]

You see Choice somewhere in that mess? I've been to that link several times before I can't see it, I see all their packages including basic, digital etc etc but no Choice.

Choice package is completely unlisted, or maybe not even available anymore. I don't think the majority of the CSR's even know it exists, OR, they are told to never promote it except under extreme circumstances. Or, it's only available in certain areas or something.

Quite frankly, Charter/Spectrum has become impossible to get retention deals with since their bankruptcy and reorganization. They locked down and instituted a 'our way, or the HIGHWAY' policy, and rolled it out across all their systems. ONLY new subs can get any sort of a deal, and then ONLY for a max of 1 year. Then they knock you down, and take turns kicking you in the nads and screaming "YOU ARE GOING TO PAY OUR PRICE, AND YOU ARE GOING TO LIKE IT!"

 

[Gobucks]

Choice package is completely unlisted, or maybe not even available anymore. I don't think the majority of the CSR's even know it exists, OR, they are told to never promote it except under extreme circumstances. Or, it's only available in certain areas or something.

Quite frankly, Charter/Spectrum has become impossible to get retention deals with since their bankruptcy and reorganization. They locked down and instituted a 'our way, or the HIGHWAY' policy, and rolled it out across all their systems. ONLY new subs can get any sort of a deal, and then ONLY for a max of 1 year. Then they knock you down, and take turns kicking you in the nads and screaming "YOU ARE GOING TO PAY OUR PRICE, AND YOU ARE GOING TO LIKE IT!"

Time Warner here in Columbus changed over to Spectrum. They have been getting cancelations left and right. They've been running retention deals because of all the cancellations.

Wide Open West (Wow) cable here has been getting a lot of new subscribers from Spectrum. A couple of our neighbors signed up with DirecTV.

We're just lucky to live in an area with competition. So Spectrum found out quick people in Columbus will just leave.

 

[primestar31]

Time Warner here in Columbus changed over to Spectrum. They have been getting cancelations left and right. They've been running retention deals because of all the cancellations.

Wide Open West (Wow) cable here has been getting a lot of new subscribers from Spectrum. A couple of our neighbors signed up with DirecTV.

We're just lucky to live in an area with competition. So Spectrum found out quick people in Columbus will just leave.

When the REAL deluge of people dumping their subs hits, maybe they'll change their policy and go back to making some deals. At least maybe something like Dishes "Flex Pack". I won't hold my breath though... Actually, that Choice package would be a GREAT deal, if anybody could actually get it.

I seriously hope Charlie is going to use all that spectrum he bought to start 5G or some other highspeed wireless nationwide, and blows everybody out of the water with a better deal.

 

[Jhon69]

All I know is I have never heard of the Choice package,that address I posted should show the channels in your area when you enter your zip code.
I am still new to Charter Spectrum but I consider what I get from them a good deal,I have the $29. each bundle deal for my HD cable TV and cable internet.
Then after awhile I upgraded to the Silver package which gave me more HD channels + HBO + Cinemax + Showtime channels for just $20. dollars more.
And later upgraded to their Gold package which has even more HD channels and The Movie Channel +Starz +Starz Encore and Epix for $20.dollars more.

I have never had cable internet before but I really like it,my speeds are always higher than what I pay for 60MB/4MB everytime I do a speed test,try that with AT&T DSL,always lower speeds.
My HD channels are upscaled to 1080p/60 through the cable box,it's the best picture I have seen on my TV except for 1080p Blu ray.
When my "special deal" ends I have it already figured out and it looks like I will be a Charter Spectrum
cable customer for a long time.

 

[primestar31]

All I know is I have never heard of the Choice package,that address I posted should show the channels in your area when you enter your zip code.
I am still new to Charter Spectrum but I consider what I get from them a good deal,I have the $29. each bundle deal for my HD cable TV and cable internet.
Then after awhile I upgraded to the Silver package which gave me more HD channels + HBO + Cinemax + Showtime channels for just $20. dollars more.
And later upgraded to their Gold package which has even more HD channels and The Movie Channel +Starz +Starz Encore and Epix for $20.dollars more.

I have never had cable internet before but I really like it,my speeds are always higher than what I pay for 60MB/4MB everytime I do a speed test,try that with AT&T DSL,always lower speeds.
My HD channels are upscaled to 1080p/60 through the cable box,it's the best picture I have seen on my TV except for 1080p Blu ray.
When my "special deal" ends I have it already figured out and it looks like I will be a Charter Spectrum
cable customer for a long time.

Their internet service is hands-down one of the best, no doubt about that. Their tv service however, is abysmal. Ancient dvr's, pixelating channels, can't "hide" channels that you don't subscribe to (like you can with Dish) all makes it almost impossible to ever actually use their guide! It's frustrating to click on a channel, and get the 'you do not subscribe to this channel' blurb.

Not only that, but they make it appear they have far more channels than they really do, because ALL of them are repeated 4 times in their guide, on different channels!!!

 

[jayn_j]

Their internet service is hands-down one of the best, no doubt about that. Their tv service however, is abysmal. Ancient dvr's, pixelating channels, can't "hide" channels that you don't subscribe to (like you can with Dish) all makes it almost impossible to ever actually use their guide! It's frustrating to click on a channel, and get the 'you do not subscribe to this channel' blurb.

Not only that, but they make it appear they have far more channels than they really do, because ALL of them are repeated 4 times in their guide, on different channels!!!

I solved most of this by purchasing TIVOs and putting in cablecards. A bit of a pain to set up, but once in place the TIVO unit has all the features you are complaining about, plus others. Unfortunately, the price has gone up for lifetime service recently. Your best bet is buying a used unit with lifetime already attached. I found that the payoff was 2.5-3 years to beat the cost of DVR rental.

You get three levels of guide: everything, subscribed and favorites. I put only the HD channels on the HD feed. You also get 1 button commercial skip, season passes, wish lists and built in internet streaming. I've been doing this for 6 years now and would never go back. I also bought the basic units, so I had an OTA tuner. When I get fed up with rate increases, I simply drop back to antenna for a couple of years and then go for the new subscriber deal.

 

[primestar31]

I solved most of this by purchasing TIVOs and putting in cablecards. A bit of a pain to set up, but once in place the TIVO unit has all the features you are complaining about, plus others. Unfortunately, the price has gone up for lifetime service recently. Your best bet is buying a used unit with lifetime already attached. I found that the payoff was 2.5-3 years to beat the cost of DVR rental.

You get three levels of guide: everything, subscribed and favorites. I put only the HD channels on the HD feed. You also get 1 button commercial skip, season passes, wish lists and built in internet streaming. I've been doing this for 6 years now and would never go back. I also bought the basic units, so I had an OTA tuner. When I get fed up with rate increases, I simply drop back to antenna for a couple of years and then go for the new subscriber deal.

I've got a Tivo Roamio Basic with Lifetime since 2014, (I sold the FREE Sony PS4 I got from Dish, and bought this, LOL) but I couldn't get them to give me a cable card. I gave up and dropped the tv sub. The Tivo is being used for OTA tv right now, and I do my basic streaming through it. Such as Youtube and Netflix. I have a Roku 3 for the rest.

 

[jayn_j]

weird. I had no problems getting one from them. Of course they were TWC then. Finding someone competent to configure the card was another matter. Finally found a number for a level 3 support tech that specialized in cablecards.

 

[Jhon69]

Their internet service is hands-down one of the best, no doubt about that. Their tv service however, is abysmal. Ancient dvr's, pixelating channels, can't "hide" channels that you don't subscribe to (like you can with Dish) all makes it almost impossible to ever actually use their guide! It's frustrating to click on a channel, and get the 'you do not subscribe to this channel' blurb.

Not only that, but they make it appear they have far more channels than they really do, because ALL of them are repeated 4 times in their guide, on different channels!!!

I understand completely your complaint about Charter Spectrum I have those issues also,but I also remember Charter cable in our area before the merger and I have seen improvements gradually because it will take time
to see all the merger's benefits to become a reality it won't happen overnight.The nice thing is if your not happy you can cancel service and that is that,no extra fees to pay.
Tivos are nice but their 30 minute live buffer keeps me away from them as the Charter Spectrum HDDVRs have a 1 hour live buffer.
Charter Spectrum Motorola HDDVRs to me are no worse than Dish's VIP622s,but Charter Spectrum does have a new guide coming out for their HDDVRs that looks as good a Dishs or DirecTVs,they show it on their website.

So I plan to give them time to bring their improvements to our area,but if you can't you can always sign a 24 month contract with a satellte provider.

I also googled "Charter Spectrum 2017 package price list" and it brought up their new prices for 2017 and their new services.

 

[Tampa8]

Their internet service is hands-down one of the best, no doubt about that.

Couldn't agree more all the more mystery they can't get the TV part right.

 

[primestar31]

Well, lookie here what I found. Though they might have a bunch of hidden fees above the regular price. I'd bet $6/month for the local tv channels at least, and probably local taxes for your township:

Spectrum TV Just Launched a “Sports FREE” Live TV Streaming Service - Cord Cutters News

Charter Communications

 

[Jhon69]

Well, lookie here what I found. Though they might have a bunch of hidden fees above the regular price. I'd bet $6/month for the local tv channels at least, and probably local taxes for your township:

Spectrum TV Just Launched a “Sports FREE” Live TV Streaming Service - Cord Cutters News

Charter Communications

Awhile back I called them up to see if I could get my Charter Spectrum Gold package through a Roku using their Charter Spectrum Internet App and they told me yes I could.
But until they come out with a"Cloud HDDVR" to back that up that's a no go for me.

I can get the new Charter Spectrum guide using their Internet App on my IPad.

 

[Bruce]

Well, lookie here what I found. Though they might have a bunch of hidden fees above the regular price. I'd bet $6/month for the local tv channels at least, and probably local taxes for your township:

Spectrum TV Just Launched a “Sports FREE” Live TV Streaming Service - Cord Cutters News

Charter Communications

The Hidden Cost of Spectrum’s New Live TV Streaming Service - Cord Cutters News

The Hidden Cost of Spectrum’s New Live TV Streaming Service

All subscribers to the new Spectrum streaming have access to all of their locals including PBS. The downside is you have to pay an $8 a month broadcast fee. This fee is on top of the $19.95 advertised cost of the service.

 

[primestar31]

The Hidden Cost of Spectrum’s New Live TV Streaming Service - Cord Cutters News

The Hidden Cost of Spectrum’s New Live TV Streaming Service

All subscribers to the new Spectrum streaming have access to all of their locals including PBS. The downside is you have to pay an $8 a month broadcast fee. This fee is on top of the $19.95 advertised cost of the service.

Yeah, I pointed that out to CordCutters on their Facebook page. Charter/Spectrum yet again lies. You will NEVER pay just the $19.95 base cost. I guess for people that can't install an antenna, it could still be a good deal for a base package.