from: Broadband Reports [1]

Wasn't Competition Supposed To Bring Lower TV Prices?
Everybody raising prices in Northeast...
09:56AM Tuesday Jan 22 2008 by Karl

Remember all of the talk about how when the phone company got into the TV business, you'd see lower prices? Apparently they were just kidding. The Boston Globe notes that RCN, Comcast and Verizon are all raising prices in the region. Comcast will raise rates by an average of four percent next month. RCN is raising their standard TV rates by five percent. Verizon will be raising rates for FiOS TV customers by as much as twelve percent. Comcast explains the rate hikes to the paper:

"Price adjustments reflect the increased value of our services," said Comcast spokesman Jim Hughes. "Additionally, we have hired more than 1,000 new employees, the vast majority of whom directly support customers in their homes, on the telephone and online."

Those hires, as we've noted, are part of an effort to improve customer satisfaction.