Time Warner Cable is increasing the cost of renting your cable modem. In the third increase in ten months, using the company-provided cable modem will now cost subscribers $5.99 a month. But the costs don’t stop there. Last week, Time Warner announced it was raising the price of its broadband service an average of $3 a month. Taken together, the cost of standalone 15/1Mbps broadband with a leased modem will now cost $61 a month.

SB6141 is a DOCSIS 3 modem

Time Warner introduced its $3.95 monthly modem rental fee last fall. In June, the company announced it was raising the price of the modem rental to $4.99 a month for new customers,  and has now decided customers can afford to pay more — $6 a month for equipment that costs the cable company, on average, less than $50 per unit according to Wall Street analysts.

CEO Glenn Britt remarked earlier this year that customers accepted the modem rental fee with few complaints. Britt foreshadowed the modem rental fee increase saying the company had significant room to boost prices, noting Comcast charges $7 a month for its modem.

Customers can escape modem rental fees altogether by purchasing their own equipment. At Time Warner’s new prices, most customers will recoup the cost of the equipment within one year. Unfortunately, as news of the modem rental fee increase made its way to retailers and eBay resellers, prices have soared for equipment on Time Warner Cable’s approved modem list.

The popular Motorola SB6141, which sold for $78 two weeks ago, has now shot up to $99.99 in anticipation of a new wave of buyers. Prices on Newegg have also increased from $78 to $99.99 as of this morning. Best Buy has also boosted prices to $99.99. Amazon still lists this white version of the SB6141 this afternoon for $87, but is expected to quickly sell out.

Based on the last two waves of price increases, if thinking about buying your own modem the time to buy is right now because major retailers are likely to temporarily sell out and eBay resellers will begin a wave of price increases in response to demand.

Stop the Cap! top rates the Motorola SB6141 among the modems on the approved list. It is DOCSIS 3 capable, which means it will support faster Internet speeds. But also be aware that if you upgrade to a DOCSIS 3 modem, Time Warner’s Speedboost technology, which delivers a few seconds of additional speed at the start of a download, will no longer work. Speedboost is gradually being phased out by most cable operators so we still think buying a DOCSIS 3 modem makes the most sense over the long term.

Out

In a widely anticipated move, Time Warner Cable CEO Glenn Britt will retire from his leadership role in December, replaced by his chief operating officer Robert Marcus.

Marcus will assume control of the nation’s second largest cable company with a promise to improve customer service, corporate culture, and growth in residential subscriptions.

Marcus told the New York Times the company has to develop a level of emotional connection with customers, many who loathe the cable company and complain regularly about the increasing cost of cable service.

Time Warner Cable has lost cable television customers and growth in other services has continued to slow as consumers explore competitive offers from the phone company and satellite providers. The company has made up the loss of revenue by raising prices and aggressively expanding business service by wiring offices and complexes for cable broadband.

In

Wall Street has complained Time Warner’s financial performance has fallen behind other cable operators, notably Comcast. Some also mention Time Warner’s broadband speeds are slower than other cable operators. Some analysts also continue to pressure the company to drop flat rate Internet access to accelerate earnings.

The cable company’s current market position has made them a target for a takeover, notably by John Malone and Charter Communications. The two companies have met informally to discuss a potential merger deal, but Britt doubted Charter — far smaller than Time Warner Cable itself — could run the combined entity effectively.

Marcus told the newspaper Time Warner Cable’s attitude towards a merger would depend entirely on how much value it would create for the company’s shareholders.

What was best for customers was not mentioned as a factor.

Time Warner Cable is once again raising its broadband prices, reflecting the fact Internet access continues to be a “must-have” product with room to raise the cost without driving customers away.

On average Time Warner Cable customers in the northeast with broadband-only service will pay $3 more a month starting Aug. 9, according to public relations manager Joli Plucknette-Farmen. Customers now pay $51 a month for 15/1Mbps service. After the increase, customers will pay $54.99, not including the modem rental fee. In early 2010, customers were paying $39.95, around $15 less.

Time Warner Cable’s new broadband prices will range from $34.99 a month for Lite 1/1Mbps service to $104.99 a month for 50/5Mbps service.

The rate hike will likely spread across the rest of Time Warner Cable’s systems around the country over the summer and fall.

Plucknette-Farmen said the increase will help the company offer the best possible broadband service.

Not every customer will immediately face higher pricing. Customers on promotional pricing packages will remain unaffected until those offers expire.

Because Time Warner Cable increasingly prices its services on a customer-by-customer basis, assessing the full impact of rate changes is extremely difficult because customers can pay dramatically different rates for the same services. A Time Warner Cable customer paying regular prices for standalone Internet service will find their neighbors with bundled service packages paying much less and those with promotional/customer retention deals paying the lowest rates of all.

In 2012, Stop the Cap! wrote a guide for Time Warner Cable customers to negotiate a better deal for themselves. Readers report the method still works.

Comcast has filed a patent application that would let the company expand its Wi-Fi network by turning customers into human Wi-Fi hotspots and convincing them to offer Comcast Wi-Fi from rental cars, bicycles, and buses.

FierceCable found the patent application, called “Mobile WiFi Network” that would let the cable company build a dynamic mesh network of mobile hotspots that could be used by its customers. But instead of placing permanent Wi-Fi antennas on buildings or light posts, Comcast wants a patent to extend its network by using vehicles and people that can be positioned exactly where Comcast needs better wireless coverage.

In one example, Comcast’s proposed roving rental car fleet would use incentives to convince renters to activate the car’s built-in hotspot in return for free or discounted services.

“The offer may indicate that if the rental car is dropped off at one or more designated parking spots, the driver will receive a discounted car rental rate, free parking, a coupon for items sold at the designated parking spot, etc. In this manner, the driver may be incentivized to assist in managing the network of transceivers to improve the coverage area. A driver wishing to accept the offer may press a button on the car’s computing display, or other computing device (e.g., using a smart phone application) to respond to the offer with an acceptance,” Comcast states in the patent application.

If a driver says no, Comcast can up the ante with an even better offer in response. If that does not work, Comcast can expand its Wi-Fi network dynamically in other ways.

“It should be understood that the process could be implemented by placing transceivers in or on any other mobile unit, such as bicycles, Segways, buses, police cars, taxis, boats, persons, dedicated vehicles, etc. or any combination of such mobile units,” Comcast wrote.

Last month, Comcast announced it would activate a public Wi-Fi network over wireless routers supplied to customers on a secondary channel.

Cablevision has begun notifying Florida customers it is pulling the plug on its market trial OMGFAST wireless broadband and voice services Aug. 19.

The cable operator launched the venture in 2012 advertising $29.95 broadband service delivered over Multichannel Video and Data Distribution (MVDDS) frequencies it won in a 2004 FCC auction.

FierceCable learned the service had not been a runaway success, attracting only 1,600 customers in the market test conducted in Broward and Palm Beach counties.

The writing may have been on the wall for the future demise of the service after the company laid off workers at its Pompano Beach headquarters at the end of June. The 10,000 square-foot building reportedly housed about 60 employees.

Cablevision sold its MVDDS spectrum to Dish Network last fall. Dish had been leasing the spectrum back to Cablevision to keep the service up and running.

Cablevision said it was still in the process of notifying customers they will have to get their phone and broadband service from somewhere else starting next month.

OMGFAST marketed up to 50Mbps service for $29.95 a month, charging an extra $10 a month to lease the required equipment.