Anyone used Knology / CC Policies?

[chsscgas]

I live in Charleston, SC and I am currently using Comcast but thinking of switching to Knology.

Does anyone have any experience with Knology and know what their cablecard policies are in regards to price and availability?

[lombard]

I'm in Huntsville, AL. Until relatively recently, Knology has refused to support CableCard, stating the FCC mandate didn't apply to them. I called them on Monday after hearing from someone else that Knology had reversed their stance.

I was told $1.95/mo for each cablecard and a $9.95 installation fee.

I just got my order notification from Circuit City for my S3. Going to call Knology shortly to see what they really charge me. I'll report back...

[lombard]

Here's an update...

The CableCards are indeed $1.95/mo
They're requiring that in addition to that, I pay $9.95/mo for digital service (which is the standard digital service fee, including a box).
Then, it's another $9.95/mo for HD service (I haven't checked lately, but I know Knology used to broadcast the networks in HD for free, QAM).

Now here's a couple of kickers, battles I will fight when I get to those bridges that need crossing:

The CSR rep was obviously coached to push their DVR's, but that's to be expected. Anyway, she had never heard of a customer wanting 2 CableCards for 1 TV. She talked to her supervisor and got approval to place my order. Where she ran in to a problem was the computer system they use wouldn't let her order two cards without billing for a second TV. She just notated on the order that I wanted two cards. We'll see what happens when the installer gets to my place next Tuesday. Who knows what my bill will be like.

She told me that in order to order CableCards, I was required to upgrade to digital AND upgrade to HD. No problem, right? Well, she continued on and said that with a CableCard, I wouldn't get access to any of the HD channels aside from the networks. My take on it is that she's just confused, but we'll see.

Finally, she made it a point to tell me my service was going to be more expensive with CableCard than with one of their boxes, since the cost of a box is rolled in to the monthly fee for digital service. I've never had a cable box from Knology, but kinda figured the box rental and the digital service fee were separate...easier to stick some extra charges down the consumer's throat.

Oh well, I'm sure it'll be a real fight to get my billing straightened out. She really didn't understand the two cablecards/one TV thing.

[lombard]

Another follow up,

This battle's going to be a doozy too. Looking through the digital channel lineup for my area shows why I never bothered to go with digital cable. Of the 90 or so extra channels that come with the digital package, there's exactly 1 that I'm even remotely interested in. The HD lineup is at least a little better.

Going to try dumping the extended digital, but keep the HD package after they finish the install. If that doesn't work, I may sacrifice some of the additional HD channels and cancel digital and HD entirely, keeping just the cablecards (if I can get away with it). My networks are all broadcast in unencrypted QAM, so it'd be worth the money to just keep the cable cards to ensure proper channel mapping/season passes on the unencrypted channels.

For some reason my OTA reception is very hit/miss. I know other people in my area have had excellent results with simple indoor UHF antennas (Silver Sensor, etc). I tried one with no signal. I installed a bigger directional UHF antenna in my attic, with better results, but they are very hit/miss. I don't want to go through the effort of mounting it externally. I'll play with it over the weekend anyway....perhaps the tuners in my TiVo are better than the one in my TV.

[classicsat]

They aren't billing for every TV STB/outlet, but per cablecard, hence the situation.

[lombard]

Just finished the cablecard install. Installer showed up the usual hour and a half late, but I've never seen anything go so smoothly. Seriously.

10 minutes after he got here, he left. Both cablecards installed and channel tests looked good. Re-ran TiVo's guided setup and now it's downloading all the program info again.

After I see what my bill's like, I should be able to give this two thumbs up. For now....
:up:

[FDM]

I'm also in Huntsville and having Knology come tomorrow to install two cablecards. Hopefully, I'll get the same tech who installed yours. If not, any words of advice to pass along to any unsuspecting first time installer?

[lombard]

I don't know if I lucked out or what, but this was the installer's first CableCard install in any device at all. I was really expecting a hard time, but things went amazingly smoothly.

He called in with the two card ID's, then I did the actual install. Installed the first card, brought up the menu and he called in the host ID. Almost immediately, all the HD channels were working (not just the networks). I was getting program info for the digital cable channels but no picture. Figured it was just working its way through the system, so I went ahead with the second card install. Again, just brought up the menu, the tech called in the host ID info, then I did a channel check. All the HD channels were working. Couple of minutes later all the digital channels were working as well. Went back and checked the first card, and everything was working there as well.

Noticed a little later than I was getting all the premium channels, even though I didn't order them. Called in this morning and got everything straightened out. Even managed to get them to shut off the digital channels, so I should only be getting the analog package and the HD package!!

[lombard]

Another update. Finally got my first bill since the install.

As I said earlier, the day after the install, I noticed I was getting every channel they offered. I called in to cancel it and managed to cancel everything but extended basic and the HDTV package. Turns out, they were trying to charge the full HBO/Starz/Showtime to each card, and they only cancelled one "subscription", so they were still charging me $34.15/mo for the other card. Plus, even though I managed to cancel the digital service, they were charging me a $50 digital gateway fee, plus an additional $9.95 for a second digital outlet, plus two $9.95 charges for two HDTV services. Basically, even though I was told it would just be a $9.95 digital charge and a $9.95 HDTV charge (I was hoping that by cancelling the digital service I would dump one of the $9.95 fees) plus the $1.95 for each card, they were charging me the full fee for each card.

Anyway, I was willing to bump my monthly bill by ~$20 per month just for the additional HD channels (TNT HD, Discovery HD, HDNet, Universal HD, etc). But I'm not willing to pay an extra $40. I went round and round with customer service tonight trying to convince them that I shouldn't be getting charged an extra outlet fee and an extra HDTV fee. Tried to equate my TiVo to their crappy DVR. The whole one TV, one charge thing. After an hour plus of very polite talking and moving my way up the chain of command, I got absolutely nowhere. Even after discussing cancelling my service entirely, they didn't offer anything.

In the end, I cancelled all digital service (including HDTV). I'm back to expanded basic analog. All my HDTV is now coming in OTA via my antenna. Long story short, I'm used to a $86 cable plus internet bill, but the screwed up system at Knology was going to up that to $125 for what amounts to expanded basic plus 8 HD channels.

Maybe if multistream cards work their way into the system I'll try again. Kind of sad that I had no problem getting cablecards to function properly (unlike so many on this board), but I'm forced to get rid of them because of billing.

[dig_duggler]

Anyone else using Knology in Huntsville? They have their act together yet? I'm thinking of getting for my dad in Huntsville, but he won't go for this screw job.

Out of curiosity, why didn't you switch over to Comcast? At least in Huntsville you have a choice....

[dig_duggler]

Anyone? Huntsville?

[eluckie]

I am in Montgomery and use Knology. When I recently purchased my HDTV, I decided to purchase one with a cablecard slot with the thought being I would eventually end up getting an S3 and I would just go exclusively cable cards.

During my first conversation with Customer Service after purchasing the TV I asked about their Tivo/CableCard policy in addition to ordering a Cablecard for my TV. I was originally told that I would have to pay the additional package charges for each CC, but she quickly backed off of that. After completing my order to upgrade to Digital and HD for my TV she placed me on hold for few minutes to check on the Tivo/Cablecard question. She eventually came back and found where their policy was now to only charge the $1.95 per Cablecard and not charge for the packages for each card.

Well, unfortunately my upgrade for my TV turned ugly quick and after being assured several times that a cablecard for my TV was going to happen, it still has not. I have been forced to use one of their HD DVR boxes (with the DVR not activated) because they have no cablecards in stock. A number of events that are too long to document here eventually led to me to talking to a local Knology Installation Manager. He has bent over backwards to keep me happy as a customer including giving me his cell number and calling me regularly to give me updates on the cablecard status.

Long story short...As of yesterday, they have two cable cards in stock that they had to have shipped in from another area. They are testing the card this weekend and he is supposed to contact me on Monday. He believes they are going to function fine and has assured me that he will work to accommodate a S3 when I am ready as well as getting my TV working on a cablecard. Overall, their customer service was not very helpful, but this Install Manager has really worked hard and I believe he will continue to work for me. Hopefully having a personal insider will make things go smooth. My plans are to go ahead with the S3 order in the next few days.

[dig_duggler]

I am in Montgomery and use Knology. When I recently purchased my HDTV, I decided to purchase one with a cablecard slot with the thought being I would eventually end up getting an S3 and I would just go exclusively cable cards.

During my first conversation with Customer Service after purchasing the TV I asked about their Tivo/CableCard policy in addition to ordering a Cablecard for my TV. I was originally told that I would have to pay the additional package charges for each CC, but she quickly backed off of that. After completing my order to upgrade to Digital and HD for my TV she placed me on hold for few minutes to check on the Tivo/Cablecard question. She eventually came back and found where their policy was now to only charge the $1.95 per Cablecard and not charge for the packages for each card.

Well, unfortunately my upgrade for my TV turned ugly quick and after being assured several times that a cablecard for my TV was going to happen, it still has not. I have been forced to use one of their HD DVR boxes (with the DVR not activated) because they have no cablecards in stock. A number of events that are too long to document here eventually led to me to talking to a local Knology Installation Manager. He has bent over backwards to keep me happy as a customer including giving me his cell number and calling me regularly to give me updates on the cablecard status.

Long story short...As of yesterday, they have two cable cards in stock that they had to have shipped in from another area. They are testing the card this weekend and he is supposed to contact me on Monday. He believes they are going to function fine and has assured me that he will work to accommodate a S3 when I am ready as well as getting my TV working on a cablecard. Overall, their customer service was not very helpful, but this Install Manager has really worked hard and I believe he will continue to work for me. Hopefully having a personal insider will make things go smooth. My plans are to go ahead with the S3 order in the next few days.

Thanks! I'm in Birmingham. Things weren't nearly as bad as you seem to have it.

[edge64]

I am in Prattville and I use Knology and I had 2 cable cards added to my S3 this week. Knology uses the Scientific Atlanta PowerKey cards. They initially tried to get me to take their STB but I refused. The cards do seem to work but I am having some dropped channels on the HD side as discussed in other articles in this forum. The problem may be TIVO and not cable card, jury still out. I am paying as follows in addition to expanded basic cable:

$16.95 for digital preferred tier
9.95 for HD tier
3.90 ($1.95 for each card)
______
$30.80 Total

[OGDanDogg]

I am in Prattville and I use Knology and I had 2 cable cards added to my S3 this week. Knology uses the Scientific Atlanta PowerKey cards. They initially tried to get me to take their STB but I refused. The cards do seem to work but I am having some dropped channels on the HD side as discussed in other articles in this forum. The problem may be TIVO and not cable card, jury still out. I am paying as follows in addition to expanded basic cable:

$16.95 for digital preferred tier
9.95 for HD tier
3.90 ($1.95 for each card)
______
$30.80 Total

I'm in Madison/Huntsville and already had the digital preferred and HD package prior to getting my S3. When I first called Knology, they said that it would cost $1.95 per card, so I went ahead and bought the S3. When I actually called to schedule the service call, they said that it was 1.95 per card, but each card required its own HD service. I questioned them and mentioned that they were going into the same device, but they wouldn't budge. I called back multiple times, talking to multiple techs, and all of them said that each card required its own HD service due to their billing policies. So for me, the price would have been:
$16.95 for digital preferred tier
19.90 ($9.95 for each HD tier)
3.90 ($1.95 for each card)
______
$40.75 Total

This pissed me off, so I only bought one CC and figured I'd wait until they get their act together before get another one.
All of this was done about a month ago (around Christmas). Have they since seen the light and actually changed their policies?

This guy had the same issue: p=4812878&&#post4812878 <--can't post links, so I've instead added the thread and post part of the URL.

[DeathRider]

When I actually called to schedule the service call, they said that it was 1.95 per card, but each card required its own HD service. I questioned them and mentioned that they were going into the same device, but they wouldn't budge. I called back multiple times, talking to multiple techs, and all of them said that each card required its own HD service due to their billing policies. So for me, the price would have been:
$16.95 for digital preferred tier
19.90 ($9.95 for each HD tier)
3.90 ($1.95 for each card)
______
$40.75 Total


Did you ask if they charge HD Tier for each tuner in their own HD DVR?

I'm pretty sure I already know what their response would be. But if they aren't charging per tuner on their box, I would think that goes against the FCC mandate...

[OGDanDogg]

Did you ask if they charge HD Tier for each tuner in their own HD DVR?

I'm pretty sure I already know what their response would be. But if they aren't charging per tuner on their box, I would think that goes against the FCC mandate...
Yes I did. They said that they didn't. However, their own HD DVR probably doesn't have Cable Cards, so they probably argue that it's different somehow. Also, once you bring that up, they try to push their DVR on you. Is there something in the FCC mandate that specifies that they have to have equal pricing, or just that they have to offer CCs.

[pl1]

Yes I did. They said that they didn't. However, their own HD DVR probably doesn't have Cable Cards, so they probably argue that it's different somehow. Also, once you bring that up, they try to push their DVR on you. Is there something in the FCC mandate that specifies that they have to have equal pricing, or just that they have to offer CCs.When the same thing happened to me, charging me for 1 cableCARD fee and 2 A/O's (additional outlets), I simply returned my HD box so Comcast is now getting less than they did BEFORE I had the cableCARDS installed. If they were reasonable about it, I would have kept the STB for PPV/VOD.

[OGDanDogg]

When the same thing happened to me, charging me for 1 cableCARD fee and 2 A/O's (additional outlets), I simply returned my HD box so Comcast is now getting less than they did BEFORE I had the cableCARDS installed. If they were reasonable about it, I would have kept the STB for PPV/VOD.
I already returned my STB since it counted as a drop (another 9.95...)

Also, confirmed from their website, DVR with two tuners is 9.95 a month.
Pricing from order page: "Digital Video Recorder (must have Digital Preferred) ($9.95)"
DVR capabilities from website (google: knology dvr): "Record up to two shows while watching a previously recorded show."

So basically to get a dual tuner DVR with HD channels:
Knology DVR: $18.90 (9.95 DVR + 9.95 HD)
Tivo DVR: $23.80 ( 2x $9.95 for HD + 2x $1.95 for cards)

[pl1]

I already returned my STB since it counted as a drop (another 9.95...))When Comcast initially quoted me, and I asked multiple times, it was going to be $0.00 for the first card, $1.50 for the second card, and and extra $4.45/mo for the upgraded STB. NEVER did they mention a thing about the Additional Outlet charges. My bill came in at $2.75/mo for EACH A/O and no cablecard charge. The NEW cableCARD charge starts effective March 1 for $1.50/mo. And the A/O charges are going from $2.75 to $3.51/mo effective Feb 1. So, by giving them back the box, I save $9.95 PLUS $3.51 A/O per month. Scammers! I could not get this information from ANY of the Comcast CSRs. It was in my price increases with my current bill.

[dig_duggler]

When Comcast initially quoted me, and I asked multiple times, it was going to be $0.00 for the first card, $1.50 for the second card, and and extra $4.45/mo for the upgraded STB. NEVER did they mention a thing about the Additional Outlet charges. My bill came in at $2.75/mo for EACH A/O and no cablecard charge. The NEW cableCARD charge starts effective March 1 for $1.50/mo. And the A/O charges are going from $2.75 to $3.51/mo effective Feb 1. So, by giving them back the box, I save $9.95 PLUS $3.51 A/O per month. Scammers! I could not get this information from ANY of the Comcast CSRs. It was in my price increases with my current bill.

Nice to see they are not double dipping each service for A/O. For anyone who doesn't want to fight with Knology in Huntsville over excessive charging, seems like you should just go to Comcast.

[pl1]

Nice to see they are not double dipping each service for A/O. For anyone who doesn't want to fight with Knology in Huntsville over excessive charging, seems like you should just go to Comcast.Comcast IS double dipping on the A/O charge. They do NOT charge any A/O for their own box. Their own DVR will do PPV, VOD, and Dual Tuner. Yet, they do not charge for ANY A/O's.

OTOH, if you get their HD STB and two cable cards, they will let you have one A/O included and you must pay TWO A/O charges.

[dig_duggler]

Comcast IS double dipping on the A/O charge. They do NOT charge any A/O for their own box. Their own DVR will do PPV, VOD, and Dual Tuner. Yet, they do not charge for ANY A/O's.

OTOH, if you get their HD STB and two cable cards, they will let you have one A/O included and you must pay TWO A/O charges.
Then I misunderstand. How do you "save $9.95 PLUS $3.51 A/O per month"?

[pl1]

Then I misunderstand. How do you "save $9.95 PLUS $3.51 A/O per month"?Well once I was surprised with the additional outlet fees, I returned the cable box worth $10/mo and they then removed one of the A/O charges of $3.51/mo.

[eluckie]

This pissed me off, so I only bought one CC and figured I'd wait until they get their act together before get another one.
All of this was done about a month ago (around Christmas). Have they since seen the light and actually changed their policies?

This guy had the same issue: p=4812878&&#post4812878 <--can't post links, so I've instead added the thread and post part of the URL.

I think I may the guy you were referring to. Their pricing policy as it has been finally told to me is that you must pay for the HD Tier($9.95) and the Card rental (1.95) per card in the device. It does not matter how many devices are involved, only how many cards are involved.

I have been talking with a "Senior" account rep here in Montgomery and he assures me that is the final answer and is what Knology is doing across the board in all of it's markets. He also says this is much better than what they were doing because they were charging an additional $6.95 per card/outlet for the Digital Tier fee but have decided to drop that fee on the additional cards/outlets. He also said that he was actually involved in lobbying the company for lower fees for these type situations but that this was what the final pricing policy became.

So for me, it is costing me an extra $23.80 a month to have my new S3 equipped with 2 cable cards. That hurts if I stop and think about it for long!!

[edge64]

eluckie, that is not how it was explained to me by Knology. See my comments above. Your $23.80 must not include the Digital Tier at $16.95. I am having problems with itermittant channel loss on HD channels 911-919 on the HD Tier.

[eluckie]

eluckie, that is not how it was explained to me by Knology. See my comments above. Your $23.80 must not include the Digital Tier at $16.95. I am having problems with itermittant channel loss on HD channels 911-919 on the HD Tier.

They are not charging me the digital tier on the cards in the TIVO. I also have a card in my television and they are charging me the digital tier for that but he explained that their compromise for TIVO users was to not charge additional digital tier charges for the cards in the TIVO only for the HD and the card fee.

Now that all being said, I am actually supposed to talk to the Billing Manager I have been dealing with some time this week and they are going to finalize my billing and give me the appropriate credits for the lack of service I have had from them since late December. I can post an update after that conversation.

As far as cablecard performance, it is horrible in my television! Constantly giving errors and failing. The cards in the TIVO have worked better. The only problems I have had with them is missing audio on a handful of the digital channels and the occasional signal loss on the HD channels. I have not really pursued the cause of those issues yet, that will be part of my conversation with Knology this week.

[whitmans77]

This is the first thread I have seen commenting on Knology's service. From what I have read it appears Knologys ineptness to iron out the CC issue is company wide. I use Knology in Augusta and when I purchased an HDTV I was going to get a CC for it and see how it worked out before getting an S3. The 1st rep I talked to gave me the 1.95 price for each card and said thats all I would have to pay even if i got 3 of them.Then i call back and another rep tells me the HD package for each card. i finally talk to a supervisor who was extremely honest and just said that the company had not had much experience with CC. Anyway to make a long story short because of my "pain and agony" they ended up giving me a very substantial credit because I told them I would use their box instead of getting the S3. So now I have about 6 months of free service. Really cant complain but I sooooo want the S3. Im still looking forward to getting an S3 but will wait until Knology gets their stuff together.

[OGDanDogg]

Nice to see they are not double dipping each service for A/O. For anyone who doesn't want to fight with Knology in Huntsville over excessive charging, seems like you should just go to Comcast.
Comcast isn't offered in my area, I already tried to go that route.

[PeytonRE]

I already returned my STB since it counted as a drop (another 9.95...)

Also, confirmed from their website, DVR with two tuners is 9.95 a month.
Pricing from order page: "Digital Video Recorder (must have Digital Preferred) ($9.95)"
DVR capabilities from website (google: knology dvr): "Record up to two shows while watching a previously recorded show."

So basically to get a dual tuner DVR with HD channels:
Knology DVR: $18.90 (9.95 DVR + 9.95 HD)
Tivo DVR: $23.80 ( 2x $9.95 for HD + 2x $1.95 for cards)

It appears that I am in the same boat here. I was assured that when I turned in my 8300HD DVR STB and received 2 cable cards that my cable bill bill would basically remain the same:

8300HD DVR: $12.95 /month

HD Service: $9.95 /month
Cable cards: $1.95 /month x 2 = $3.90 /month
Total for TIVO 3 = $13.85 /month

Actually I would pay 90 cents more per month to supply my own equipment.

However, when I actually got my bill they tried to throw in an additional $9.95 /month for another digital outlet. Like others, I tried to use logic to show that this was no different than their HD DVR, but they did not seem capable of budging. I see this as an unreasonable cost and it appears to be enough for me to make my wife happy and reduce our overall cable bill by almost half. I could reduce my cable service to basic analog (and get HD OTA) and see about switching the phone and internet service back to Bellsouth or some other provider -- I would save significant $$$ by not having Knology digital service and all of the Pay stations that I was getting, but not watching enough to justify the incremental costs.

Fortunately, my wife is on a business trip until Wednesday so I will have a chance to calm down and then I may make another run at them before I go Draconian. This looks like one of those cases where the "Principle of the Thing" will lead me to cut back my dealings with Knology as much as I can, even if it ends up costing a bit more to do it.

[dig_duggler]

Has knology's billing gotten any better? Or do they still double bill? This is all that's holding me back upgrading my dad to an s3.

[PeytonRE]

This was my reply as of April:


Originally Posted by PeytonRE
More FYI, I have Knology in Huntsville, AL -- when I saw my first bill, it showed a an additional $9.95 HD service and an additional $9.95 for a digital outlet for each of the cablecards; however, the did give me a $13.80 credit for a "Tivo Hd Addl Box Discount" in the same block that they charge the $3.90 for the cablecards. So it looks like they were trying to charge me $10 more per month than they stated when I called for the install. The CSR had assured me that, once I turned in Knology's HD/DVR STB and received the 2 cablecards that my bill would only go up by 90 cents (difference between $9.95 hd + 2 x $1.95 CC = $13.85 and the $12.95 DVR/HDTV service). My first call to clear up the billing discrepancy did not budge the CSR or Supervisor -- they kept going back to 2 cable cards equals 2 sets of fees (HD & digital outlet) and could not seem to grasp my comparison of the TIVO 3 to their 8300HD DVR, I thought I finally had it figured out with them and they even gave me a $20 credit for my trouble. Unfortunately, on my next bill all the charges reappeared AND they took away the TIVO credit :mad: When I tried the CSR approach again they said they would bump it up the chain and someone would get back to me within 48 hours (that was a week ago and no call...).

I am pretty much fed up with the whole Knology billing abuse and I purchased an attic antenna to get my HD OTA. As soon as I can fish the cable down and the antenna is installed I will be telling Knology to cut my service back to basic cable only -- which will reduce my overall bill by almost $100 (their incremental cost for digital/HD/Movie channels) and make my wife very happy in the process.

Their loss for being so greedy.


And Then...

Still no call and I have finished installing the antenna to put in the attic and began receiving HD OTA.

Bottom line is that I just returned from dropping my cablecards and digital box off at their office and have cut back my video to the basic analog package -- this made my wife very happy :) since it saves us over $80 (would have been more, but my wife decided not to cut back our phone service with them just yet but it's coming) from our last bill and made me happy by getting a little payback against Knology. :rolleyes:


NOW.

Bottem line is Knology was not being flexible and seemed to just want to shaft the Tivo users... :down: Would be interesting to see if they have changed their tune -- but I wouldn't count on it.

PS. I even got my wife to agree to cut the phone service back to the minimum also and our bill is down $100 from the HD days :D

[edge64]

Knology in Montgomery is still not flexible so I use no cable cards; use an outside antenna and also get their local HD channels plus their music channels using the QAM tuner in both my TV and the S3. I pay $100 per month for expanded basic cable, internet and phone.

[unimonkey]

Knology in Montgomery is still not flexible so I use no cable cards; use an outside antenna and also get their local HD channels plus their music channels using the QAM tuner in both my TV and the S3. I pay $100 per month for expanded basic cable, internet and phone.

I have Knology in Montgomery.

I just picked up the Tivo HD (series3 lite) and called Knology to get my new service.

I didn't have digital cable (only expanded basic) so I had to sign up for that.

Digital Cable - $16.95
Cable Card x2 - $1.95 (the give you the second one for free)

The installer comes tomorrow so I get to see how it goes and will post my results.
I really just wish Tivo would provide the QAM channel mapping. That seems so much easier but who knows when that will be available.

One thing I did notice with the Tivo HD using the QAM tuner. I could not find the Fox HD channel. I did find the HDNet and HDNet Movies along with the Music Choice channels and the other local network HD channels.

[dig_duggler]

Out of curiosity, does Knology have M-Cards? If you got one of those shiny new Tivo HD's (not that this helps those in this thread that much), that's only one 'outlet' fee, eh?

[unimonkey]

Out of curiosity, does Knology have M-Cards? If you got one of those shiny new Tivo HD's (not that this helps those in this thread that much), that's only one 'outlet' fee, eh?

Hehe.. I asked about the M-Cards. Of course they were clueless.

But from the reps and supervisor I spoke with they are treating dual tuner cable card devices as one outlet. Hence only one charge for 2 cable cards. Again regions vary.

If Tivo ever gets around to making the QAM mapping user configurable then I might drop the cable cards. I'm just happy to finally have Tivo back in my living room. My wife was giving me hell about not having *insert Tivo noises here* on the main TV.

[edge64]

I have Knology in Montgomery.

I just picked up the Tivo HD (series3 lite) and called Knology to get my new service.

I didn't have digital cable (only expanded basic) so I had to sign up for that.

Digital Cable - $16.95
Cable Card x2 - $1.95 (the give you the second one for free)

The installer comes tomorrow so I get to see how it goes and will post my results.
I really just wish Tivo would provide the QAM channel mapping. That seems so much easier but who knows when that will be available.

One thing I did notice with the Tivo HD using the QAM tuner. I could not find the Fox HD channel. I did find the HDNet and HDNet Movies along with the Music Choice channels and the other local network HD channels.

The Fox HD channel is having parts problems and has been off the air for several days and that is why you do not find the channel. The Fox channels on my S3 are 82.1 and 82.4 (weather). I occasionally see the HDNet channel on 110.2 but what channel do you see HDNet movies? Also in the pricing you mentioned you did not list the HD tier (900 series channel through cable card) so I assume you do not get these through your cable card, correct?

[hijammer]

Any one have experince with Knology in the Panama City area. I have them for voice and data. I currently have DTV but I haven't been happy with them for a while. As soon as the series 3 sorts out MRV I will be ready to switch but have a problem with there A/O charges.

Does the A/O only applie to digital outlets or both digital and analog ones too. I have a problem if they charge for analog outlets.

[unimonkey]

The Fox HD channel is having parts problems and has been off the air for several days and that is why you do not find the channel. The Fox channels on my S3 are 82.1 and 82.4 (weather).

Yeah today when I got home from work I check 821. and 82.4 and they were back. I read on AVS forums that their equipment got struck by lightning last Wednesday.

I occasionally see the HDNet channel on 110.2 but what channel do you see HDNet movies?
110.3

Also in the pricing you mentioned you did not list the HD tier (900 series channel through cable card) so I assume you do not get these through your cable card, correct?

Not yet. They asked if I wanted it and I said no. I called back later and ask for it and they told me I didn't need it ?!?. Anyway, I'll see what I get when the installer is here tomorrow.

[edge64]

Yeah today when I got home from work I check 821. and 82.4 and they were back. I read on AVS forums that their equipment got struck by lightning last Wednesday.


110.3



Not yet. They asked if I wanted it and I said no. I called back later and ask for it and they told me I didn't need it ?!?. Anyway, I'll see what I get when the installer is here tomorrow.

unimonkey, what service did you finally get and at what cost?

[cbme1965]

Well...thanks to the "good" folks at Knology, I have given up on getting the HD Tivo box. I don't know whether it's stupidity (probably) or they're trying to run Tivo out of their sandbox, but there are so many $#! hoops you have to jump through to get 2 cable cards at a reasonable price, I just gave up and chose to get their company DVR.

When I called about a week ago, one guy told me there would be no problem getting the 2 cards and my bill would only rise by about $13.50 a month. Today, the person I talked to said that THEIR (Knology's) cable cards would NOT pass through the HD channels. I checked with a few people I knew in the TV business and they all said whomever told me that was full of @#$! I read all the posts here and decided it wasn't worth all the trouble so I called to get the Knology DVR. That's not the end of the story. Oh no!

I asked the third Knology idiot I talked to if they had more than one version of their DVR, specifically one with a larger hard drive that would record more hours. She said no. I asked her how many hours would their "standard" box record? (You may want to sit down for this!) She said, "Four." Yep. The Knology CSR told me four hours recording time. I asked her, "Is that 4 hours of HD programming or 4 hours total?" She said, "Four hours total." I was laughing at this point because this mental midget didn't even realize an old Betamax would record more than that and if what she was saying was true, Knology was the most backwards communications company since the Hooterville Phone Company and Chicken Plucking Factory. After threatening to take my business elsewhere, she said she would check with her supervisor. She came back with 80 HOURS of recording time. She still didn't know if that was HD or regular. I suspect it's SD and not HD. At any rate...I'll find out on Thursday when they come to install my new DVR.

So at this point, I bid all of you and TiVo a very sad, "goodbye." Knology made it so difficult to do an upgrade that I caved in and went with their system. Maybe Tivo will have the FCC fine these idiots into oblivion for unfair trade practices but until then, I'm stuck. I hope all of you have better luck than I did.

By the way...for any of you wondering WHY I didn't just drop the Knology fools for Charter, it's because even with all their ineptitude, Knology still offers more HD channels than Charter and if I dropped Knology, I'd have to have all my business cards changed because my email address would no longer be valid. Arrrrgh.

I hate you, Kyle (aka Knology). Screw you guys (Knology), I'm going home!

[unimonkey]

unimonkey, what service did you finally get and at what cost?

I upgraded my service to the digital preferred so it went up about $30 altogether

Digital Outlet 6.95
HDTV Service 9.95
Digital Preferred 16.95
HDTV Service 9.95

Then they charge me
Digital Cable Card 1.95

And give me miscellaneous credits to cover the additional HDTV Service and Digital Outlet charge

It's kind of weird seeing it on the bill but it all balances out in the end.

Just hope it lasts :)

That said if Tivo every does a software update that lets you manually map QAM channels then I would probably just drop the extra services all together and go back to what I had.

I just wish they would add some more HD channels. DiscoveryHD is awesome and I can watch it for hours but I would like a little variety please.

[whitmans77]

quick story about my knology install
-installer appeaed to have never done an install off cable cards let alone one on a tivo.When he got the cards installed there were no hd channels present because "your tivo mut be messed up, it needs to connect before they will show up." S=ince I was at work i just told my wife to let him go and we would figure out why there were no hd channels later. Installer leaves,my wife makes it connect and then we realized why the installer could not get any HD channels. HE WAS TRYING THE WRONG CHANNEL NUMBERS!!!! The HD channels all start at 901 and he was trying to tune in 101. So a quick tune to the 900s and my problems were solved...but were they.

I get home from work and realize that one of the cards hasnt been authorized for HD channels so i call support. They immediately tell me that I have to have a tech come out and fix the problem. I as the guy what exactly the tech will do and he said that the tech would "gather info" about the card.I ask--you mean like the serial number and stuff? He answers yes....so i pull the card out and read it to him and boom it works. To think they were going to send someone out to read a serial number.....

[dig_duggler]

Another bump for Xmas considerations - anyone in Huntsville, AL successfully using CC's without the billing hassle? How's the competence/service?

It looks as if Knology offers a SA (yuk). My father won't want to deal with the billing hassle so I'm trying to come up with a good recommendation. In the long run, the Tivo HD seems wise if it all goes smoothly with respect to installation/billing. If not, he would be going from a S2 to the SA. He currently watches HD programming live (but sometimes records it and watches a letterboxed version) but uses S2 for all SD and is accustomed to (and happy with) the software. He's just be looking at the standard cable package and HD tier, so double dipping the HD tier alone is probably not that big of a deal.

I'm having a tough time making up my mind what might be the best way for him to go. Any input greatly appreciated.

[dig_duggler]

Bump?

[RBC3]

I just got done "discussing" this issue with Huntsville Knology today. They told me that it would be :

Card 1
Digitial: $16.95
HD: $9.95
Card Fee: $1.95

Card 2
Digitial: $9.95
HD: $9.95
Card Fee: $1.95

Grand Total: $50.70

Or Digitial and HD and their DVR: $29.90

So......Tivo loses and Knology wins. I want more options!! I'm gonna miss my TiVo!

[rturrentine]

I'm trying to get my HD TiVo setup with Knology and HD.

I called today and was told by the CSR and her supervisor that their cable cards do not support HD. I could buy my own cable card that would though.

HD charge is $9.95 month. The SA DVR is $3.95 more.

They told me the cable cards would be $1.95 each. She had no idea what a Multistream card is.

Maybe I should punt on Knology and go to Mediacom. Anyone else use either in Huntsville with Tivo HD?

[eluckie]

She is incorrect about not supporting the HD on the CC. I am in Montgomery with Knology and using 2 CC's in a S3. For the most part, my CC's have worked almost perfectly (knock on wood) for right at a year now. Their billing sticks it to you and is really unfair, but if you are committed to staying with TiVo that is just the price you have to pay for not using the Knology DVR. In Montgomery it really has not been a choice to change to another cable company because the only other one is Charter and their HD lineup is weak at best. I do think Charter has made some recent improvements on their lineup and may make it worth re-evaluating in the future.

You just need to get in contact with someone that has some Knowledge at Knology and they can get you going. Just be prepared to pay!

[rturrentine]

Just called again and got another CSR. This time they said yes we can do HD using CableCards. They will charge per service per card as another poster stated!

I already have the digital package. They want to charge $9.95 for HD on each card, $1.95 per card for having the card, $9.95 for digital on the second card. That's $34!

If I just go with their DVR, my additional costs are $9.95 for HD and $3.95 for the DVR.

This is ridiculous.

[Geminix]

Also in Montgomery here. I just wanted to mention that Knology (at least locally) is using Multistream cards now. Got one installed in my TivoHD 3 weeks ago, works fine so far. So if you have a TivoHD, your local knology shop may have the m-cards now. Of course the CS rep had no idea what they were when I called to set up the appointment, so I requested 2 cards, but the tech who showed up already had the multistream card ready.

[rturrentine]

Well I called Knology again this morning and got someone that knows about Tivos.

She said it would only be $1.95 per cable card plus $9.95 for HD (not per card as the previous CSRs said). Can't install until Jan 22! She did say I had to get HD to get cable cards which I'm sure is not correct but at this point I did not want to argue about it. I can get the cards installed and then decide to keep or drop HD. I did request a multi-stream card but she didn't know what that was. She said she would make a note of it.

[rturrentine]

Got my multi-stream card installed today. The installer was late but I know stuff happens. The install took about 10 minutes or so because the Tivo HD rebooted while we were waiting for the head end to activate the cable card. Other than that, it went great!

Now I'm just hoping the billing will be right....

[lattanzi]

I had Knology install an M-Card in my Tivo HD the Monday before Christmas in Huntsville. Took a little while as the installer had never installed an M-Card in a Tivo HD. From the sound of it, I may have been the first one in Huntsville with a Tivo HD + M-Card combo as I ended up talking with the installation supervisor in the Huntsville office and he indicated while they had installed plenty of S-Cards in both the HD and S3, they had not installed an M-Card in the HD yet.

After working with Knology's back office folks and rebooting the Tivo HD, everything worked beautifully. I can confirm as I have received my first bill that the charge is $1.95for the cable card plus $9.95 for HD - I replaced my 8300 HD DVR with the Tivo. To get to the point of knowing I was going to get an M-Card, I was very persistant with the call center until they finally transferred me to the installation supervisor in the Huntsville office who knew what I was talking about. The installer had a stack of M-Cards when he came out and indicated that's what they were using now by default.

[lattanzi]

Well, I stand corrected, sorta. I received my next bill and while my previous statement about the HDTV+CC being $9.95+$1.95 being correct is, Knology overbilled me for pro-rated service for all the other cable line items.

Evidently, when you have a device (8300 HD DVR for me) that you're replacing with a Tivo as the primary or mainline device on the account, Knology's billing system has to completely rebuild your account from scratch. That seems to result, at least in my case, with being overbilled. I spent almost an hour on the phone with a supervisor trying to get the overbill resolved, received some credit back, but not certain the credit amounts are all correct now. You would think the billing system would be able to do something as simple as remove the DVR Service at $12.95/mo and add back in $9.95/mo + $1.95/mo without being so complicated, but in this case you, like me, would be wrong.

We'll see what happens next month. From a service standpoint, the M-Card + Tivo HD has worked just great since it was installed. I thought about adding another Tivo HD, but I think I'm going to let the dust settle with Knology for a couple of months before I do anything else with them.

[dig_duggler]

Well, I stand corrected, sorta. I received my next bill and while my previous statement about the HDTV+CC being $9.95+$1.95 being correct is, Knology overbilled me for pro-rated service for all the other cable line items.

Evidently, when you have a device (8300 HD DVR for me) that you're replacing with a Tivo as the primary or mainline device on the account, Knology's billing system has to completely rebuild your account from scratch. That seems to result, at least in my case, with being overbilled. I spent almost an hour on the phone with a supervisor trying to get the overbill resolved, received some credit back, but not certain the credit amounts are all correct now. You would think the billing system would be able to do something as simple as remove the DVR Service at $12.95/mo and add back in $9.95/mo + $1.95/mo without being so complicated, but in this case you, like me, would be wrong.

We'll see what happens next month. From a service standpoint, the M-Card + Tivo HD has worked just great since it was installed. I thought about adding another Tivo HD, but I think I'm going to let the dust settle with Knology for a couple of months before I do anything else with them.

So you did not get the A/O charge? That's really what has stopped me from getting one for my dad in Hville.

Service good? Happy with everything?

[whitmans77]

I recently called emailed knology corporate and amazingly they got back with me about the double billing issue. Unfortunately I was playing phone tag with them and I was hoping to explain the the Series 3 to them but I was never able to get in touch. Well I recieved a message from them saying that my bill from this point on will reflect the new pricing...which does not include double billing for hd services....so we will see when i get the paper bill

[dig_duggler]

So sounds like huntsville is finally on the up and up? I think I'm finally going to pull the trigger and get one for my parents, but not being there for the install/crazy billing are a concern...

[konakahuna]

i've had knology for several years and the story is always the same: good product with well-meaning but mostly incompetent service and billing....so i was worried about my THD install.

well, once i got a technician into the house, it all went without a hitch. all the cablecards the installer brought were multistream "M" cards. we inserted one and within a few minutes, everything was working. the card then downloaded and applied a firmware upgrade and i was in business.

$1.95 for the M card (i already had HD and digital), so it was good for me. i haven't seen my first bill yet, so we'll see if it sticks, but so far, so good.

[dig_duggler]

FYI, my dad just got an install in Huntsville and they brought two S cards, even though a M card was requested. Seems to have gone smoothly, but I am kind of pissed since he is going to have to call and argue about billing now.

Anyone in Huntsville still getting double billed?

[whitmans77]

well i got my paper bill from knology and everything was correct. the bill had all the double billing on it but then there was an added credit and it gave me a credit for having 2 cards on the same outlet....now to see if i can get credit for being overcharged all these months

[rturrentine]

I got my first bill since adding CC and HD and the billing appears to be correct. It had some partial month charges and credits because they billed me last month even though they hadn't installed the services yet (they started billing on the order date not the install date!).

They did charge for an additional digital outlet but they gave me a credit too. I have a M card. My digital cable is part of a bundle deal but does not include HD.

So if I read it correctly, I'm being charged $9.95 for HD, $9.95 for additional digital outlet, $1.95 CC and then getting credited for the digital outlet since it's already part of my package.

[dig_duggler]

Hmm, thanks guys. I suppose I will find out soon enough :)

[JimGrisham]

For an additional TiVo (I have a Knology DVR as my primary stb due to a promotion):

M-stream cablecard: $1.95/month
Digital Outlet fee: $6.95/month
HD fee: $10.00/month

So, if you want to upgrade from a normal (non-hd) cable box to a Tivo, it's $1.95/month. If you want HD, that upgrade is $11.95/month.

To add a new TiVo & TV to your house, you'll need to pay Knology $18.90/month + tax.

[texasPI]

I know this thread is a bit stale but I have a Knology DVR at the moment (it sucks) that has an M card. I have a Tivo HDXL on its way to me and I should have it in hand late this week. So, when I get the Tivo can I pull the M card for the Knology box and put it in the Tivo and get it running?

I hope so as I will just call Knology and have them take the DVR back minus the M card and avoid an installation appointment to have a new M card setup for the Tivo.

[texasPI]

Ok, so I called Knology to request a cable card. They do not allow self install and require $20 for a truck roll. No biggie, it was expected.

The problem lies with the rep. I was connected to. She insisted I could not be provided a cable card. I told her I don't believe that is accurate and she quickly turned very rude and told me she had worked at Knology for 4 years and she knew better than I. To which I asked her if she was familiar with the FCC mandate governing these things to which she replied no. She kept telling me that they could not provide me one because my Tivo would not have VOD or PPV to which I told her it did not matter, they still had to provide one. Besides, I pointed out that their DVR has an M card so it was not true they didn't offer these at all. We went back and forth and I finally asked to be escalated and finally got sorted out.

Man, she was one rude person! I have a lot more respect for someone who tells me they do not know the answer to a question but will find it as opposed to someone who assumes an air of superiority. I'm still ticked off about it.

[eluckie]

Hey texasPI....It is bad when ignorance shows it's ugly face like that. I am not sure what city you are in, but if you continue to have issues like that I would be sure you were talking to a Knology employee in your town. Usually, Knology (unlike Charter) does let you deal with local staff. I have a Series 3 that I have had since early 2007. When I first started this with them there was a lot of unknowns and I talked to quite a few "idiots", however I finally was able to get a hold of one of the local Installer Supervisors and he was great. He understood what needed to be done and helped me through the rest of the process. It was still a bit painful because at that time only a few of there techs had ever installed a Cable Card but eventually we got it working. Here I am 3+ years later and (knock on wood) I have not had any issues with my Knology Cable Cards. Hopefully you can get past the rude ignorant employee and find someone to help you out.

[Just a J0e]

So I'd love to know the updates on Knology HD servie in Huntsville.
I have been waiting to upgrade to an HD Tivo until it seemed like Knology had "figured it out". I have also been hoping that the monthly fee would drop as adoption/competition increased (hey, it worked for cell phones).

I did just on-line chat with a knology Rep who told me that I could up upgrade to HD by switching my cable box in for an HD box at an additional cost of $10 a month.
If I wanted to us an HD Tivo instead, I would need their cable card and it was going to cost me $13.something a month.

Having read the posts here, I am thinking that this represents the $10 per month increase plus a $1.90 a month per cable card for the TiVo.

Can anyone confirm this?

Can I use an HD Tivo with Knology's cable box and just skip the cable cards?

[rturrentine]

Here is how they bill me:

$9.95 for digital outlet
$9.95 for HD

-$9.95 Tivo HD Discount
$1.95 cable card

Not sure about the digital outlet charge since I have a digital package I don't think I should be charged extra for it. Of course they say that's why I get the Tivo discount.

[burdellgp]

I pay $9.95 for "Enhanced Receiver Upgrade-HD" and $1.95 for "Digital Cable Card"; I don't have any other cable device but the TiVo HD with a multi-stream CableCard.

[Just a J0e]

Does anyone here have experience with Knology (HSV) and the TiVo Premiere Elite?

I am wondering if it's "Only records digital channels" means I only get the channels that are currently available above 100 on my cable box. Are channels 4 - 77 "simulcast" in digital by Knology?

[burdellgp]

The analog channels on Knology are only available in analog, except for the channels also available in HD. If you want to use a TiVo Premiere Elite and get all the channels you pay for, you'll have to switch to Comcast.