While you might be frustrated by the price hikes to live TV streaming services like YouTube TV, Hulu Live TV, fuboTV, Sling TV, DIRECTV STREAM, and Philo over the last few years, they do have one major benefit compared to traditional pay-TV subscriptions; no hidden fees.
In fact, Comcast’s “Broadcast TV Fee” for local channels — which are available for free over the air — will now add up to as much as $27.25 to your bill in some markets, as first spotted by TVAnswerMan's Phillip Swann.
While the exact amount differs by market, The Streamable has been tracking the Chicago market for the last few years to see the impact. Starting in late-December, customers in the Chicago market will see an 8% increase from $19.75 to $21.50 in 2023 –– after increasing from $11.70 to $16.20 from 2020 to 2021. That is over an 83% increase in just four years from channels that are free over the air.
In 2014, the “Broadcast TV Fee” was just $1.50 — so in just eight years it has gone up more than 14 times.
The fee is not optional either and not bundled into the base pricing on the service. What’s crazy is the “Broadcast TV Fee” has gotten so expensive, you can now get Philo ($25) and use an OTA antenna for about the same price — as just that one fee.
Comcast’s Regional Sports Fee in the Chicago market will also be increasing, this time by 6% from $17.30 to $18.35, after being just $14.45 in 2021 and $6.20 in 2020 just prior to the addition of Marquee Sports Network. In comparison, fuboTV — the only live TV streaming service to charge an RSN fee — adds $8.99 per month RSN fee in the Chicago market.
Xfinity 2022 Pricing (Chicago)
Xfinity 2023 Pricing (Chicago)
In a statement to The Streamable, a Comcast spokesperson said:
“TV networks and other video programmers continue to raise their prices, with broadcast television and sports being the biggest drivers of increases in customers’ bills. We’re continuing to work hard to manage these costs for our customers while investing in our broadband network to provide the best, most reliable Internet service in the country and to give our customers more low-cost choices in video and connectivity so they can find a package that fits their lifestyle and budget. Our national average increase of 3.8% is about half of the most recent rate of inflation.”
But those are not the only fees going up.
You will also be charged even more for your cable box, which is increasing from $8.50 to $10 a month, plus a DVR Fee ($10+), and that’s before you even get to choose your base TV package – which will be going up as well.
Comcast’s base Choice TV Select, Entertainment, and Digital Starter packages will increase by roughly 10%, as will adding service to an additional TV, which is now $8.50 per month.
- Digital Starter: $68.45 (was $65.45)
- Choice TV: $37.50 (was $32.50)
But if you just want Internet? Well, that’s going up too. All Xfinity Internet plans will increase by $3 per month — and range from $62 to $122 per month –– the same increase as the year prior.
So if you’re wondering why so many people are getting rid of cable, start with the fact that it sometimes costs almost $40 per month before you even pick your channel package.