Cable Fees: Are You Paying More Than You Think?

A recent Cord Cutters News article caught my eye. It claimed Comcast/Xfinity charges San Francisco customers over $300 a year in hidden fees on top of their TV package. Yikes! But is this just a local issue, or are cable fees outrageous everywhere?

Intrigued, I dug deeper. Turns out, the article was based on San Francisco's rate card. I wondered if it was just an excuse to criticize Comcast, or if similar fees were lurking in other areas. Living on the opposite coast from San Francisco, I decided to investigate my own cable rates. Guess what? They weren't much better.

For instance, San Francisco customers pay a whopping $26.70 a month in broadcast fees, just for local channels! Here in southeast Georgia, it's not much lower at $25.70. That adds up to over $300 in fees annually, on top of the base channel package price! Speaking of which, the local channels package itself costs $20 a month, bringing the total cost to a staggering $45.70 a month.

Want more than local channels? The standard cable package jumps to $60 monthly. Then add the $25.70 broadcast fee and the $11.40 regional sports fee, and you're looking at a monthly bill of $97.10 for basic cable! My Streaming Life left cable behind years ago. It's no wonder why: The savings were significant then, and they seem even more appealing today.