Quick price question- prepay costs more?

[MichaelK]

Sorry I haven't been paying that much attention to pricing of late and the Giant thread about hte price changes isn't even a day of light reading...


Am I missing something or is it SUPPOSED to cost more to pay for a year of service on another box then if I just go month to month?

I have an "old" S2-DT that i used before I got my 2 S3's. I was thinking of adding it back on my account but when I go to tivo.com to price it, it looks like it's 10.95 a month for a 1-year commitment (or 131.40). But if I dont make the monthly payments and opt to just pay it all right now (and give them the use of my money for a year) it costs almost FIFTY dollars more to buy a full year at $179.

Am i missing something or is that the intent of the new pricing model???

I guess there's no discount for multiple boxes if I prepay?

[c3]

There is no prepay option for MSD.

[MichaelK]

thanks

I guess I'll keep my money and pay them each month....

[wolflord11]

Whats the point with Prepay if you do not get a discount and in fact pay alot more?

Just another of the Tivo Payment Plan mysteries. :D

[c3]

Nobody is telling you to prepay. If you want MSD, pay monthly. Simple. What mystery?

[GoHokies!]

Whats the point with Prepay if you do not get a discount and in fact pay alot more?

Just another of the Tivo Payment Plan mysteries. :D
The point is you don't prepay if you get the MSD.

Cost options (highest to lowest):
1. Monthly full price
2. Prepay
3. MSD

While that may be a mystery to you, it isn't that hard to wrap your mind around.

[Arcady]

They should offer MSD prepay plans that are lower than paying monthly MSD. I'd pay $199 for 3 years on a MSD box.

[c3]

Prepay for MSD does not make sense because that rate is dependent on another unit in your account. Your "3-year MSD prepay" is no longer good for 3 years if you discontinue the qualifying unit.

[mick66]

Whats the point with Prepay if you do not get a discount and in fact pay alot more?

Just another of the Tivo Payment Plan mysteries. :D


see post #2

[mattack]

Wasn't there a point where people *could* prepay and the prepaid amount was simply deducted at the MSD rate rather than the current monthly rate?

If there was, I thought there was actually some logic in doing it that way, but I can't remember what it was..

[c3]

Yes, for whatever reason, there are people who REALLY REALLY REALLY don't want to pay monthly. You can buy a TiVo gift card and sign up with MSD.

[Arcady]

They could just make it $5 a box no matter what, and be done with it. Or just charge me what the box really costs to make, plus 25%, and make the service free.

[jfh3]

Wasn't there a point where people *could* prepay and the prepaid amount was simply deducted at the MSD rate rather than the current monthly rate?

If there was, I thought there was actually some logic in doing it that way, but I can't remember what it was..

Yes, you still can - use a gift subscription (non-lifetime) or a gift card.

[ZeoTiVo]

Wasn't there a point where people *could* prepay and the prepaid amount was simply deducted at the MSD rate rather than the current monthly rate?

If there was, I thought there was actually some logic in doing it that way, but I can't remember what it was..
I did that - the logic was grabbing one of the deals where the "rebate" was taken off upfront and you did not have to maill anything in :) TiVo closed that loophole though on such deals

[MichaelK]

Yes, for whatever reason, there are people who REALLY REALLY REALLY don't want to pay monthly. You can buy a TiVo gift card and sign up with MSD.

I think that's the move I'm going to make actually. It's a long story....

[parzec]

Everybody always seems to forget to factor in the loss of compound interest on that money if you elect to pay one lump sum in advance --- it turns out pre-pay is really not as good a deal as one might think.

[MichaelK]

Everybody always seems to forget to factor in the loss of compound interest on that money if you elect to pay one lump sum in advance --- it turns out pre-pay is really not as good a deal as one might think.


sometimes there are other factors besides what is the most economical choice.

ease, convenience, etc.

[ZeoTiVo]

Everybody always seems to forget to factor in the loss of compound interest on that money if you elect to pay one lump sum in advance --- it turns out pre-pay is really not as good a deal as one might think.
you are talking just a small amount on 300$ though.

[classicsat]

They could just make it $5 a box no matter what, and be done with it. Or just charge me what the box really costs to make, plus 25%, and make the service free.

Most of the public doesn't think that way though.