I just discovered something I find disturbing. I have Comcast for my cable service. There didn’t seem to be an alternative at the time, since the apartment complex where I live won’t permit a dish.

From the beginning Comcast has behaved like a monopoly with their constant rate increases and making me attach a box to keep only the channels I already had — and have paid top dollar for. It cost me $25 for someone to attach the box, and I’ve received nothing more from it since.

I finally decided to save my sanity and update my online service from dialup to something faster and more consistent; so I began investigating packages of phone, cable and internet service. Reluctant to go with Comcast, I took a friend’s referral to Broadstripe, which she has living five miles away.

The individual I spoke with at Broadstripe said he was sorry, but they didn’t service my street. I said, but you have a customer five miles from here. And he said yes, but they don’t have Main Street in Coupeville, that’s Comcast’s territory. Broadstripe has other streets in the area, but Comcast is the sole service for the actual township of Coupeville.

Can anyone say, monopoly? Price-fixing? They behave like a monopoly because they are. The man at Broadstripe told me that the arrangement was done in agreement with the town of Coupeville. I visited our mayor, who acknowledged that Comcast has an exclusive longterm contract with the town, but there was no one else who wanted to bid on the contract. Although Broadstripe services the area only blocks away. And who let the town decide my access to cable?

It’s becoming pretty old-hat that corporations do this sort of thing. Money changes hands; people get to go to Vegas and spend exhorbitant amounts of money. Carving up Coupeville between two corporate giants (Comcast just bought NBC) is all too believable.

But that doesn’t make it right. And we’re all paying more for cable, internet, etc., than we should as a result. Anyone have any suggestions?

Patricia Brooks

Coupeville