Bundles Gone Wild: Phone Companies Exposed
You've probably seen the ad on television, "phone TV DSL",
offered by SBC Global. Is it a good deal? Compared to
services offered by traditional telephone service providers
in the past, yes. Compared to what you could get by doing
some research yourself, no. While SBC advertises bundled telephone, DSL, and satellite
TV service for around $75.00 a month, you knew there had to
be a catch didn't you? The catch being the advertised price
is not the end price. You'll also be bound to a contract. Did you know you could be getting a much better deal on
those services if you just do your homework? About an hour
doing the research could save you a big hunk of money every
month. Sure, you'll have to pay separate bills, but with the
money saved, it's worth it. Let me give you an example. You are probably looking for
phone, TV, and DSL services. Let's discuss the promotional
rate and the end price on each of these services. Keep in
mind, these examples will reflect basic packages with no add
on's. Satellite TV from dish network will cost you about $19.99 a
month for three months then go up to $31.99 plus $5.00 for
DVR service in two rooms. Movie channel packages range from
$12.00 to $40.00 a month. The end basic package price with 2
DVR's is $36.99 DSL or Cable broadband Internet from both ComCast and Earth
Link will be around $19.99 to $29.99 for the first three to
six months, depending on your service area. In most cases It
will be $19.99 a month for the first six months then go to
around $45.00 regular rate. Broadband telephone service or VoIP from Vonage is about
$15.00 a month for unlimited local calling plus 800 long
distance minutes a month. Now, don't fall over, but this is
not a promotional rate. This is the regular rate for basic
service with Vonage. So what we have now is phone, TV, and high speed broadband
Internet for about $55.00 a month for the first few months,
that's $20.00 a month cheaper than SBC. In the end, you'll
be paying less than $100.00 a month for the services just
mentioned. So the next time you are looking for a good deal on bundled
packages, keep in mind you'll save a whole lot more if you
just take the time to bundle your own services and spend an
extra five minutes each month paying your bills separately.
That's an hour a year folks.
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