Triple-play service offers voice, Internet and cable in one package.

Households with cable service have the option of a $3,000 package offered through Direct Connect Jamaica, in partnership with two cable companies, or $7,147 more charged by Jamaica Amalgamated Cable Systems (JACS).

Flow, whose service roll-out is still confined to specific areas of the capital, Kingston, charges $12,000 to install and provide the bundled service.

Increase in cable bills

This new phenomenon of buying packages is likely to increase monthly cable bills by more than 100 per cent.  The typical cable customer currently pays $800 to $2,200, on average.

Local cable operators are restricted by the Broadcasting Commission to operate in two or fewer zones, so for now, the bundled services are not widespread.

But Flow's plan to acquire some 18 cable companies, if successful - it has only announced a partnership with one so far - could change the landscape.

After Flow's announcement last November to offer the triple-play package to the Jamaican market, there has been much euphoria among consumers wanting to explore this option of what the new company promised would be cheap rates.

But Flow's roll-out has not been as fast as anticipated.  In the meantime, Direct Connect, an associated company of telecommunications carrier Jamaica Network Access Point, has secured deals with at least three cable providers so far, including Entertainment Systems Limited, who would use Jamaica Network Access Point Limited's (JNAP) infrastructure to package voice and Internet with cable for their customers.

The Direct Connect product, called One Network, has no set up costs.  The package, offered by Entertainment Systems at a flat monthly rate of $3,000, includes unlimited high-speed Internet, basic un-metered landline calls within the network, and more than 100 cable channels.

All local cable companies partnering with Direct Connect will be able to offer the triple service at the same $3,000 rate, according to JNAP's Dean Panton.

In comparison, Flow's 'super triple play' will cost new and even existing cable users an installation fee of $3,995 plus GCT, a refundable security deposit of $2,000, and a monthly fee of $5,749.33, inclusive of GCT, totalling $12,403.

This low-deal package offers 175 cable channels, 300 minutes of international calls to the United States and Canada, local calls at $1.95 per minute to Cable and Wireless Jamaica (C&WJ) landlines, and $9.50 and $10 per minute to C&WJ and Digicel mobiles, respectively.

The package gives Flow's customers high speed, four megabytes per second connection and unlimited Internet access.

JACS triple play

JACS, which started offering Internet service two years ago, according to marketing coordinator Pamela Fishley, has stepped up to triple play.

The Portmore company is charging an additional $3,072 to offer the three-in-one service - which includes the current $800 charge for cable - plus a $4,075 installation cost to be paid one month in advance.

It will cost existing JACS clients $7,147 to acquire 60 basic channels, plus Internet and voice service, which is provided by JACS Verge, another arm of the company.

But, outside of a one-off installation fee, consumers contemplating a switch will have to compare monthly rentals for cable charged by the three groups offering bundles - $3,000 for Direct Connect and its partners; $3,872 for JACS and $5,749.33 for Flow.

article link