Follow Up. My CABLE TV provider offered lower rate package IF I accept PHONE Service.

Here you go -- IF your cable company encrypts basic channels they MUST provide you a cable box for free and cannot charge you for service. Instead of doing that most cable companies do not encrypt local channels. They mention the law in the article and I think it also has to do with the "Must Carry" law but not sure

[link to www.cnet.com]

^this^ plus, you might need an updated router for the phone which will add to the bill, that is if you rent your router from them

This is exactly why they want you to have a phone number. They sell the phone numbers to hundreds of companies. The minute you get a new phone service, you will be slammed with telephone calls, all who know your name and address.

And of course, there's the online companies who publish your phone number...

Don't do it!!!

Hmmmmmmm

Cut your phone, cut your internet.....

Know what we should start doing? We should take a different approach to this type of service.

Instead of us buying their service, what about they pay us to use their service instead. We should come across as not wanting the service. We all know they track, collect and sell every single thing we do. So, if they want to collect "metadata" then they must purchase that data from us in order to sell it. In order to collect that data, they must give us the access for free if they want that data.

Lets turn this around on its head and lets make it something they want from us, rather than us wanting something from them. They want the data, we want the content, sounds like a fair trade. Make them depend on us.

for evening crew

I bought the Ooma home phone and never use it. No phone bill tho, so I guess that's ok.

Here's my follow up.

Technician arrived. Installed a new cable box.
and gave me some literature that, among other things,
also had MY NEW PHONE NUMBER on it.
I did not hook up phone line.
I do not own a land line phone.
I did not ask for a phone number.

So,this was about Cable TV creating a phone number for me. For what purpose?
To sell to who?

I won't be answering the calls....

I confirmed that my monthly bill was $30.00 lower
and would remain that for one year, second year
a 10% increase. Still lower than what I was paying.

I know I've been "used" in some way but still can't be sure how.

Maybe it is the advertising.

I gave up my Internet landline because it ended up being used as a tool for advertisers and harrassment during political campaigns. I was being robot allied to death by the local Republican Party. They put everyone on their calling list because they can. You can't decline political campaign calls in this state, unlike commercial phone campaigns. Surveys were allowed.

Speaking of the cams in TVs, I kicked out a roommate because he behaved suspiciously about the TV. He received one in the mail, and had a peculiar explanation about who sent it and why. Then he tried to get me to use it. He told me that the remote from my TV was lost, and handed me another remote he said he reprogrammed. But he wasn't the account holder, and I am not sure how he could've gotten another one from Comcast. That was when I got really suspicious and searched his stuff. I found a sophisticated antenna of some kind. He was from India. He tried to take me to court for kicking him out suddenly. WTF?

Robo allied = ROBOCALLED
damn autocorrect