JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – If you pay to watch TV in Jacksonville, more than likely you are going to pay more very soon.
Comcast Cable and AT&T U-verse are increasing rates.
Comcast Cable is changing its rates early next year, and people who use the company's "triple play" service -- television, phone and Internet -- will be paying about $10 more per month.
Beginning Feb. 1, Comcast's "starter" bundle rate will jump from $129.99 per month to $139.95. The rates go up from there depending on premium options and high definition service.
"Comcast is continuing to experience increased costs, including rising programming expenses and operating costs," said Bill Ferry, Comcast's regional vice president. "We'll work hard to continue to add value by increasing the amount of content and channels and increasing Internet speeds, as well as making technology and service improvements."
Comcast says there will no increase in charges for television-only customers. Those with Comcast Internet service not in a bundle will pay $2 per month more.
The company is dropping installation rates for new customers beginning Jan. 1. The cost of installing a single product will drop from from $50 to $20, and installing three bundled services will cost $60 rather than the $99 the company currently charges.
AT&T U-verse, which covers a large part of the Jacksonville area, is also looking at increases between $2 and $12 a month.
"In February 2012, AT&T will be making some modest price adjustments to our U-verse packages that reflect increased business costs and increased costs for the content we offer -- an issue that affects all TV providers and that has been widely covered over the past year," an AT&T spokeswoman said in a statement. "Depending on the TV package, most customers will see monthly increases of $2-$5. The maximum increase a customer would see for both U-verse TV and Internet is $12."
Customers who are affected by the changes will receive a message in their December bill in the FYI section, as well as in January and February bills.
Cut the cable: Find TV service alternatives
Cutting the cable might seem difficult for many people, but there are alternatives other than going cold turkey.
There are a number of pay services available that only charge for what viewers watch, services like Netflix and Hulu Premium.
Doug Skiles is aware of that. He does not have cable anymore. He switched to an Internet TV service, Apple TV, and gets the shows he wants to watch.
"It is for me because I don't need to watch anything live, so I can watch what I want to and pay a fraction of the cost," Skiles said.
Movies and TV shows may cost a few bucks, but viewers will still have to pay for an Internet connection that could run between $40 and $70 a month.
Microsoft is well aware of that trend and is rolling out its new version of Internet TV that will use the Xbox to connect. That could cost about $60 a month.
People will be able to speak or point to what they want to watch on TV and when they want to see it.
Still, others are forgoing paying at all and relying on free TV, like what Channel 4 broadcasts. Those viewers say that's the only way to avoid paying.
"I have an aversion almost for paying for television," Joyce Wesley said. "I am not a real big television watcher. I get the news I like from the local stations, programming from public television that I support. I just don't have a need for it."