Subject: CableCard Installations
From: Evan Kinney
Date: Fri, 18 Jan 2008 01:30:18 -0500
To: michele.varsano@twcable.com

Ms. Varsano:

I called earlier today to try and obtain two CableCards for my TiVo Series3 DVR.

I was told that to obtain these cards, a truck roll was required. First of all, I don't see why this is necessary - inserting CableCards is a very simple process, and the majority of the "work" that needs to be done is by the TWC reps (adding the card to my account, etc.). With this being said, I was informed that I could not pick up cards from my local office, as I could do with a SA8300 or similar box. This is a huge inconvenience for me, as my work schedule is such that it is very difficult for me to take time off for an installation.

I realized that discussing this point any further would get me nowhere, so I finally agreed to a truck roll. I was then informed that I would be charged $42.95 PER CARD for the installation. This is completely absurd. $42.95 for one card is bad enough as it is (this requires almost no work on the tech's part), but these two cards are going in to ONE box. I don't see why I should pay over $85 for 15 minutes worth of work. The Series3 platform does not support multistream cards as the TiVoHD does, so I have to have two cards for both tuners to receive encrypted QAM programming.

Is there anything that can be done about this? If necessary, I can (begrudgingly) pay the $42.95 installation fee, but I refuse to pay an installation fee for both cards. It would be ideal If I could pick up the cards from a local office here in either Cary or Raleigh.

With the switch to switched digital video coming and the observed second-class treatment of CableCard customers (we pay the same price for the HD tier while getting 1/3 fewer channels, among other things), I'm starting to think this is more trouble than it's worth. It seems to me that Time Warner is making the process of obtaining CableCards so difficult, expensive, and time-consuming that most consumers won't even bother with it. It's upsetting enough that I will not be able to receive some of the current HD lineup, and even worse that I will not be able to receive any future HD rollouts without the proposed external USB dongle solution (but who knows when that will be deployed...).

Thank you for your time and attention to this matter. I hope these problems can be resolved and we can continue to be a Time Warner Cable customer.

1/18/2008 3:29:07 AM

you realize this is a female

1/18/2008 3:36:27 AM

TWC RESPONSE


"ARE YOU THE HOMO NERD WITH THE GEEKY PLATE ON HIS CAR?"


"IF SO, YOU SUCK, AND WE'RE GONNA CONTINUE FUCKING YOU"

1/18/2008 3:36:29 AM

lololol

"homo nerd"

1/18/2008 3:46:14 AM

would "virgin nerd" be more applicable?

1/18/2008 3:47:04 AM

no, neither would be

1/18/2008 10:12:10 AM

yeah, evan's not a homo--he's just confused

1/18/2008 10:13:33 AM

http://www.timewarnercable.com/nc/aboutus/executivemanagementteam/teamlist.html

1/18/2008 10:17:20 AM

ok i called back

i figured since i tried being nice before, i'll be evil this time

it worked

i think they finally got tired of me and a supervisor finally said "okay, we'll waive the installtion fee"

the funniest part was when i got disconnected when he put me on hold the first time

i call back and explain the situation to the new CSR

and i hear in the background the voice of the first rep i talked to (the one i was evil to)

"oh yeah THAT'S that one i was talkin about"

lololol

i dont care, i'm getting cablecards

1/18/2008 12:41:43 PM

Quote :

"michele.varsano@twcable.com"

noted

1/18/2008 12:44:07 PM

wtf is a cable card and why do you need them

1/18/2008 12:48:56 PM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cable_card

1/18/2008 12:49:36 PM

so whats wrong with the set top box

1/18/2008 12:52:02 PM

Quote :

"I called earlier today to try and obtain two CableCards for my TiVo Series3 DVR."

1/18/2008 12:54:03 PM

yeah... why not just get a DVR and call it a day?

1/18/2008 12:59:05 PM

twc dvr boxes BLOW.

1/18/2008 1:02:06 PM

^ I have had 2 HDMI box Crap out on me and finally went back to the old HD component Box.

I called and complained (too long to get into) about the HDMI boxes; the second time they finally told me they are having problems with all HDMI DVR boxes and working with Scientific Atlantic to fix it. But they haven’t told anyone so I had to suffer through trying to get 3 new boxes and having to reboot the damn thing 2 to 3 times a day.

Now i have the old box and it works great, but i have a $50 HMDI that i'm not using.

1/18/2008 1:42:00 PM

Quote :

"twc dvr boxes BLOW."

they do

1/18/2008 1:43:33 PM

One of my DVR's is crapped out right now. Looks like a dead HDD. Works fine for watching TV, but if you try to bring up the list of recorded programs it has a heart attack.

1/18/2008 1:46:03 PM

Quote :

"$50 HMDI that i'm not using."

you paid $50 for a HDMI cable?

i hope it was several dozen yards and installed in your wall for that price...

1/18/2008 1:47:21 PM

I've had the 8300HD for almost 2 years and have had no problem whatsoever with it.

1/18/2008 1:51:05 PM

i feel sorry for anyone who tries to get a new DVR through TWC with their fucking shitty interface

my 8300HD isn't all that bad, it could be better though.. freezes once every few days

1/18/2008 1:54:44 PM

Our DVR has been doing this thing lately where the sound gets out of sync with the picture. It's really annoying, but it was fine for a while before it started doing that.

1/18/2008 1:56:47 PM