LA - Southern LA price jacking

Once again.... ~snip~ Cox, AT&T, DirecTV and Dish Network are all increasing monthly rates in January, blaming the increases on the rising fees they have to pay national cable networks and local broadcast networks in order to carry their programs. “It’s the cost of doing business, what we pay to be able to broadcast content,” said Sharon Bethea, a Cox spokeswoman. Cox’s increases are set to take effect Jan. 14 across its south Louisiana market. The exact amount of the increase will vary, based on the channels a customer receives or any bundling with Internet or digital phone service. Bethea said the average increase for customers will be less than $12 per month. “We’re sensitive about the impact our prices have on customers,” Bethea said. But programming costs are going up much higher than the national rate of inflation, she said. One of the biggest drivers in the rising cable rates is the cost of carrying sports channels, such as ESPN, Fox Sports 1 and The SEC Network, set to launch in the summer. Full Story....http://theadvocate.com/news/business/7995740-123/cable-satellite-costs-to-go "Less" than 12 dollars? That my friend is quite a bump. Especially for the fact that no one at this address watches sports. The cost of doing business with cox (et al) is getting out of hand.