Looks like we might possibly be losing AMC, IFC, & WE.

[mkmcc]

Listen up AT&T -- I'm a brand-spanking-new customer as of 3 weeks ago.  I won't hesitate to go back to DirecTV if you don't settle this contract dispute with Rainbow/Cablevision.  You can scarcely afford to lose new customers to your fledgling subscription TV service. 

I've been on the fence about whether I should keep U-verse or go back to DirecTV -- the noticeably lower quality HD (due to the compression codec), no comparable DTV 'Double-Play' feature, intermittent picture freezes, and slow response from the remote (am I alone in finding that the remote/receiver communication can sometimes take a few pushes of the button??)

AT&T should be ADDING NEW CHANNELS (like AMC HD!) not losing them in a pissing contest.  DirecTV isn't losing channels -- and you know that they are your primary competition.  Pay Rainbow/Cablevision what they want and GET THIS DONE ALREADY!!!  (and add AMC HD while you're at it...)

[robbo_1]

the free movie package does little to satisfy the U450 users, unless i can get a credit for the market value of the channels they are giving to you non-movie channel subscribers.    losing 2 of the channels that i watch almost daily will make it very hard to not call DirectTV tomorrow morning!

[texasguy37 ACE - Champion]

---

mkmcc wrote:

AT&T should be ADDING NEW CHANNELS (like AMC HD!) not losing them in a pissing contest.  DirecTV isn't losing channels -- and you know that they are your primary competition.  Pay Rainbow/Cablevision what they want and GET THIS DONE ALREADY!!!  (and add AMC HD while you're at it...)

---

Are you serious about paying Rainbow Media whatever they want?  Also, Rainbow Media has not made AMC HD available to U-verse.

By the way, do you recall that Directv lost the rights to carry Versus for several months last year because of a dispute with Comcast?

[bb6219]

let's keep AMC and WE channels and get rid of some of the others.  How many Urge channels do we need?

[texasguy37 ACE - Champion]

---

robbo wrote:

the free movie package does little to satisfy the U450 users, unless i can get a credit for the market value of the channels they are giving to you non-movie channel subscribers.    losing 2 of the channels that i watch almost daily will make it very hard to not call DirectTV tomorrow morning!

---

$20/30 days x 4 days = $2.67

[paul416]

---

robbo wrote:

the free movie package does little to satisfy the U450 users, unless i can get a credit for the market value of the channels they are giving to you non-movie channel subscribers.    losing 2 of the channels that i watch almost daily will make it very hard to not call DirectTV tomorrow morning!

---

I agreee. Those of us paying the most get nothing while others get freebies.

[robbo_1]

i would gladly pay $3 to get the 3 channels that AT&T thinks don't matter to its subscribers. 

  honestly, i wouldn't notice the difference.

....but since they think that their users are all too cheap to pay more to get more, i'd gladly take the bill credit, if they offered it.  

The point is, users will pay for what they want, if given the option.    i didn't receive any emails, letters, or calls saying "hi, would you like to pay more to get these channels, if you needed to?".  they think they're sticking up for me, when really - they're driving me away.   just like the increase with the monthly rental for boxes, or the elimination of u400 (yes, i realize i posted this elsewhere on the forum a few minutes ago), i accepted the increase as a neccessity to keep a quality product.   i suppose the difference is, though - that all went to their pocket - so they didn't mind just charging it.   this will go to someone else's pocket - so they think they'll "save us" from increases.

i would pay per-channel, if i were asked to do so.  i think most people would.  those that won't - well, maybe they're better off without premium television service and premium internet.     i really really really like my Uverse service - i'm just not sure i like the company that offers it to me, right now.

[Melissa69]

Well Texas, you seem very busy tonight. AMC didn't start the scroll until ATT sent the message to all of us. Look when it's all said and done ATT is going to be the losers in this battle.There are a ton of unneeded stations on U-Verse. Get rid of them and keep these 3. I'm sorry but you keep attacking me. I'm pretty sure you don't know all the facts either. But reading this board shows me I'm not alone in the way I feel. When I talked to Customer Service the ATT REP DOWNRIGHT LIED to me. She told me all the other providers are having the same problems. Maybe that is what made me as mad as I am. I don't trust a thing that ATT says after that conversation. I've had UVERSE since October and there's been someone at my house once a month because of it not working. They lied about what I was going to be paying from the start. My bill has not been the same twice. ATT needs to make us the customers happy and after reading all of these posts ATT is going to lose it's shorts. It's going to get worse when people who haven't been following this and sit down for Mad Men's premiere and it won't be there. I have 10 days to switch before Mad Men and trust me when I say I will.

[wotsnewnow]

um.... it's after midnight on the east coast.

I'm watching IFC.  Time to celebrate ???

[Dead_Terrorist]

Not unusual for negotations to continue past the stroke of midnight.. I am wathing IFC and still see programming.. In fact, I hadn't seen a crawl until when I went ot hit post

[Melissa69]

I wish but the scrolls from ATT and AMC R still running on the TV screen on AMC.

[JayPSU]

---

Melissa69 wrote:

I wish but the scrolls from ATT and AMC R still running on the TV screen on AMC.

---

She would DEFINITELY know if an agreement is reached. 

[Dead_Terrorist]

I'm swithing back and forth.. only seen the 1 crawl on IFC aobut 5 mins ago.. at the top of the screen. AMC seems to be running them more frequently. I noticed the Rainbow crawls are now in the middle of the screen.. (Glad I've seen The Negotiator before).. AT&T 's still at the top..

This is almost like watching two kids on a school playground

[robbo_1]

i appreciate how we're all up still, waiting and watching for a reason to pounce or celebrate.

honestly, i see both sides, but i think that ATT is underestimating the % of people that would have to pay more if they had to keep these channels.

[Sunny_in_SD]

The following is from an article published 07/12/10 on MediaWeek.com

"As is generally the case with most rancorous carriage disputes, pricing is the primary cause of the AT&T-Rainbow deadlock. Analysts estimate AMC’s sub fee at around 25 cents per customer per month, a number that puts the 26-year-old network in the same neighborhood as A&E and Lifetime."

Link to complete article:

http://www.mediaweek.com/mw/content_display/news/cable-tv/e3ic1df212a5f55796febd23aacb223f309?imw=Y

[robbo_1]

i will pledge an extra $5 a month on my U450 plan for the 3 channels.  that will pay for a U300 subscriber and a U200 subscriber to get the channels, as well as myself.  their rates won't be raised (since they're the ones whining, so it seems).   i would also buy the $10 HD Premier package to get the HD versions of these channels that are available elsewhere.   my bill is over $250 a month now - i think i get what i pay for, and will share the wealth, if that's what it takes.

any other U450 users want to offer $5/month to pay for yourself and other subscribers so they stop whining?  

[wotsnewnow]

robbo wrote:

i appreciate how we're all up still, waiting and watching for a reason to pounce or celebrate.

_________________________________________

....I watch election results, too.

[Melissa69]

You have to be kidding this is all over a quarter a month. And some station that would probably be a success.  Wedding stations usually are. If this is the case I'm definitely been in the right camp. ATT is definitely have a lot to learn. I think you're right it's a total pissing contest. I can't believe ATT is being so petty.

[SomeJoe7777 ACE - Geek]

robbo,

The actual cost of AMC to you, the end customer, if it were an a-la-carte channel, would be about $57 per month.

Would you pay that price to keep it?

See, you watch AMC or IFC or WE, so you say you would pay more.  But you're in the 0.8% of people who regularly watch these channels (yes, it's that tiny, look at the Nielsen ratings).  Rainbow wants their money, no matter what.  If 99.2% of U-Verse subscribers (like me) don't want to pay extra because we don't watch these channels, then the entire monthly cost of AMC/IFC/WE to AT&T falls on your 0.8%.

That's why AT&T doesn't want to pay Rainbow more money and be forced to increase rates.  Because there's 99.2% of us that would be very unhappy with that move, because I would be charged more to support channels I don't watch.

[SomeJoe7777 ACE - Geek]

---

Melissa69 wrote:

You have to be kidding this is all over a quarter a month. And some station that would probably be a success.  Wedding stations usually are. If this is the case I'm definitely been in the right camp. ATT is definitely have a lot to learn. I think you're right it's a total pissing contest. I can't believe ATT is being so petty.

---

No, Melissa, I think we all see who has a lot to learn here [text removed - keep it courteous]

Read the above message.  You're completely forgetting that 99.2% of U-Verse's customers pay money to support these channels and don't watch them.  We will not stand for a rate increase to keep these channels that we don't watch.

[Sunny_in_SD]

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

[paul416]

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

I posted a response earlier to one of the kool-aid posters that is similar to your post. I didn't have the facts you posted . I estimated DirecTV at 18, DISH 13 and didn't know Comcast until you just posted their customer base. U-verse 2 mil. No wonder they don't get the same favorable rates. They need to eat some of the expenses to please the customer base or they will be losers in the long run. Or dump the recently added Tennis Channel and give us te Rainbow channels. And add MLB Network while they are at it.

[Melissa69]

[text removed - keep it courteous] It just shows how insecure you all are. If all of these people that r threatening to leave U-VERSE will be no more. And as hard as the job market is right now it won't be a good thing. Keep attacking me. I must be hitting a nerve. I did read the article and U-VERSE is in it's infancy with plenty of other competitors to switch to.

[Melissa69]

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

In a word NO!!!

[paul416]

---

Melissa69 wrote:

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

In a word NO!!!

---

Makes sense. Do you think Wal-Mart pays the same price for product from distributors as a local ma/pa store?? Not brain surgery.

[dhascall ACE - Professor]

---

Melissa69 wrote:

Some Joe, I really don't  appreciate being attacked by  what I believe to be an ATT employee. It just shows how insecure you all are. If all of these people that r threatening to leave U-VERSE will be no more. And as hard as the job market is right now it won't be a good thing. Keep attacking me. I must be hitting a nerve. I did read the article and U-VERSE is in it's infancy with plenty of other competitors to switch to.

---

Hmmm, I thought that you were a Rainbow employee, M69.  You mentioned imaginary AT&T rate increases in your first post and have never admitted the obvious - Rainbow / Cablevision is the Greedy monster here, that needs its head chopped off.  Rainbow stinks of anti-trust issues.  You haven't struck a nerve, I think folks are ready to move on from one sided nonsense and troll-like behavior.  I tried to send Rainbow a response and got a DNS error.  At least AT&T is allowing you to run your mouthpiece.

SJ7777 an AT&T employee?  Too funny (you've been a riot, tonight, do you do standup?) - when AT&T runs afoul of something, he will let us know, in no uncertain terms.

I jumped at 12:59, AMC went blank.  Nah, we still have them, it was my DVR hitting the 4 stream limit.  Drats.

[Melissa69]

---

paul416 wrote:

---

Melissa69 wrote:

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

---

Sunny_in_SD wrote:

And more from Bloomberg News, 07/14/10...

"On average, pay-TV providers such as Comcast Corp. pay 24 cents per subscriber per month for AMC, 21 cents for IFC and 12 cents for WE TV, according to industry research from SNL Kagan. AT&T’s pay-TV subscriber base is 2.3 million U-Verse video customers, compared with 23 million for Comcast and 19 million U.S. subscribers for satellite provider DirecTV, according to the companies’ most recent earnings reports.

AMC received 26 Emmy nominations last week for programs including “Mad Men.” The season premiere of the show, which has won best dramatic series for two straight years, is scheduled for July 25."

Is it any great mystery why AT&T may be asked to pay a slightly higher rate given the small size of their client base compared to Comcast and Direc TV ?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-14/at-t-cable-customers-may-lose-access-to-mad-men-in-cablevis...

---

In a word NO!!!

---

Makes sense. Do you think Wal-Mart pays the same price for product from distributors as a local ma/pa store?? Not brain surgery.

---

ITA, I'm glad someone has finally  posted the facts with the proof. I'm tired of being attacked by these ATT employees. 

[wotsnewnow]

somejoe7777 wrote:

We will not stand for a rate increase to keep these channels that we don't watch.

________________________________________

Your attitude might change if you DID watch them --

or 3 that you DO watch were now being negotiated instead.

Btw, a rate increase is out of the question for me to keep IFC. 

There are other alternatives.

[Melissa69]

---

dhascall wrote:

---

Melissa69 wrote:

Some Joe, I really don't  appreciate being attacked by  what I believe to be an ATT employee. It just shows how insecure you all are. If all of these people that r threatening to leave U-VERSE will be no more. And as hard as the job market is right now it won't be a good thing. Keep attacking me. I must be hitting a nerve. I did read the article and U-VERSE is in it's infancy with plenty of other competitors to switch to.

---

Hmmm, I thought that you were a Rainbow employee, M69.  You mentioned imaginary AT&T rate increases in your first post and have never admitted the obvious - Rainbow / Cablevision is the Greedy monster here, that needs its head chopped off.  Rainbow stinks of anti-trust issues.  You haven't struck a nerve, I think folks are ready to move on from one sided nonsense and troll-like behavior.  I tried to send Rainbow a response and got a DNS error.  At least AT&T is allowing you to run your mouthpiece.

SJ7777 an AT&T employee?  Too funny (you've been a riot, tonight, do you do standup?) - when AT&T runs afoul of something, he will let us know, in no uncertain terms.

I jumped at 12:59, AMC went blank.  Nah, we still have them, it was my DVR hitting the 4 stream limit.  Drats.

---

I'm so happy I'm entertaining you. If this happens ATT will be no more. Just wait if on the night of the Mad Men premiere and it's not there this is going to get really ugly. And no I'm not an RN employee as I matter of fact much to my dismay I'm unable to work. I have 8 herniated discs in my back.  Not that it's any of your business.

[Xbef]

I really don't get the logic. People are blaming the company that wants the status quo and not blaming the company that is raising prices.

I really don't get this logic. People will change providers to support the company that wants to raise prices.

I can understand why people might think that AT&Ts relatively low user base means it should pay more for channels than the big players, but really that arguement doesn't hold any water. When one is doing bulk purchasing there are benefits for the seller so the price drops because the other side of that coin is selling singles to many people.

This isn't as if you are selling to 1000s of people. Rainbow Networks has less than 200 names on its client list I would imagine. I could believe less than 100 (but certainly that is a guess). It takes as much resources to support 201 clients (by keeping AT&T at the cost it has now rather than removing AT&Ts rights to the channels) as it does 200.

Melissa, you say that this is all over a quarter. Couldn't you say the same thing about Rainbow? I mean if it is so easy for AT&T to pay the money then wouldn't it be as easy for Rainbow to not collect it?

This will cost Rainbow much more in the end than AT&T. 2million+ multiplied by a quarter each month or a few Uverse customers leaving for a while until Rainbow gets their heads out of their **bleep** and starts missing their easy money from AT&T each month and negotiates in good faith.

Thank you AT&T for not caving. I am sorry too many are too dumb to realize you are doing them a favor.