Armstrong to increase cable TV rates | New

Benjamin Franklin may have missed a regular occurrence when he wrote, “In this world nothing can be said for sure except death and taxes.

Meadville City Council has acknowledged receipt of a letter from Armstrong, the city’s only cable TV provider, announcing the impending increase in monthly rates for consumers. Only the rates for video services will be increased, according to the letter. The prices of Internet and telephone services as well as equipment will remain unchanged.

The monthly cost of Armstrong’s extended television service will increase by 8%, from $ 91.45 to $ 98.45. Entry-level service will increase 12% from $ 29.95 to $ 33.45 each month.

Increases of between 50 cents and $ 1.50 will also affect the many video packages that can be purchased in addition to the entry-level service.

The letter, dated January 24, said similar letters would be sent to customers soon, with the increases evident on statements issued in March.

Board members made no comments on the letter or impending increases at this week’s board meeting.

The city’s cable franchise agreement with Armstrong runs until December 31, 2021 and is expected to bring the city $ 172,000 in revenue this year.

In the letter, Managing Director Michael J. Sammon attributed the responsibility for the increases to the cost of doing business.

“As has been the case in recent years,” he wrote, “the main driver of this video price adjustment is the skyrocketing costs we have to pay for programming. Supplier increases content and broadcasters continue to outpace inflation.

Sammon’s letter looked a lot like similar letters from Sammon’s predecessors. As in the letter received last month, the letters sent in 2017 and 2018 also cited “the staggering costs we have to pay for programming” as the main factor driving price increases. Online minutes of city council meetings show that council received similar letters in 2015 and 2016, although the minutes do not indicate whether these were also nearly identical to the one received this year.

“The products we offer remain competitively priced and are cheaper per month than similar offerings from most other similar service providers in the region,” Sammon wrote in the letter, echoing the sentiments expressed almost verbatim. its predecessor in Armstrong’s 2018 notice of an impending rate increase. .

Mike Crowley can be reached at 724-6370 or by email at mcrowley@meadvilletribune.com.