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On Oct. 1, Bright House Networks began charging customers a $2 monthly “maintenance and rental” fee for using company-supplied modems to support Internet and telephone service.
Customers are unhappy about the new fee.
“They are like car salesmen who after selling you the car, want to sell you the keys too,” said one Tampa-area customer.
The modem fee is just one more charge Bright House customers pay above and beyond the cost of cable service. The company already charges for set top boxes and remote controls and has added fees for both DVR equipment and DVR “service,” which enables its recording capabilities.
Bright House says the new fee will cover installation, service, and support of the modem.
“It was one of the many things that Bright House covered,” company spokesman Joe Durkin told the Tampa Bay Times. “Since then we’ve added a lot of services at no charge.”
Customers can avoid the fee by purchasing their own equipment, but Bright House remains vague about what devices will support their telephone service, and whether customers will continue to get telephone equipment without a monthly fee. Durkin claims Bright House has only received a few complaints about the new modem fee, and says once customers hear about what the fee covers, “they understood.”
For now, Bright House’s approved modem list includes these models. This list is subject to change at anytime, so visit the approved modem list before making a purchase. Stop the Cap! strongly recommends customers only purchase DOCSIS 3 modems, to guarantee future compatibility:
| Manufacturer | Model Number | DOCSIS 3.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Arris | TG852G | Yes |
| TM402G | No | |
| TM402P | No | |
| TM502A | No | |
| TM502G | No | |
| TM508A | No | |
| TM512A | No | |
| TM602G | No | |
| TM604G | No | |
| TM608G | No | |
| Cisco | DPC2100 | No |
| Motorola | SB501 | No |
| SB501N | No | |
| SB501U | No | |
| SB6141 | Yes | |
| SBG6580 | Yes | |
| SBG900 | No | |
| SBG901 | No | |
| SBG940 | No | |
| SBG941 | No | |
| SBV5121 | No | |
| SBV5222 | No | |
| SBV5322 | No | |
| Netgear | CDG42G-100NAS | No |
| RCA/Thomson | DCM425 | No |
| DCM725 | No | |
| DWG855 | No | |
| Scientific Atlanta (Cisco) |
DPC2100r1/2 | No |
| DPC2203 | No | |
| DPC2203C2 | No | |
| DPX2203 | No | |
| SMC | 8014CPR | No |
| 8014WG | No | |
| 8014WG-SI | No | |
| Ubee (Ambit) | DVW3201B | Yes |
| DDC2700 | No | |
| DDW2600 | No | |
| DDW3611 | Yes | |
| U10C018 | No | |
| U10C019 | No | |
| U10C020 | No | |
| U10C022 | No | |
| ZyXEL | 974H | No |
| 974HW | No |
The modem fee just went up 175% from $2 to $3.50, Feb 2013
The justification is “adjustment reflects our continued investment in technology”.
How lame is that!
Like they’re not ripping off their customers enough.I’m disabled and on a fixed income so I really don’t need the extra imaginary charges that they pull out of thin air.They’ll do anything to keep their profits high like before the recession kicked into high gear.You can depend on Brighthouse with the annual increase.It’s no wonder they are losing customers.I for one will be looking for a different internet service.
@Ronald & @milo
It’s bad enough that they publicly stated ‘no one is interested in fiber speed internet, so we’re uninterested in doing what google fiber is because there’s no demand’. The second I get a decent service near me, I’m gone with their horrible monotinizing service.