cable companies
 

It seems that there is a lot of complaints about Comcast cable.. but what other companies service the villages..and what bundles do they provide.example.. tv.. internet an home phone ? and at what price?

We have Century Link and are quite satisfied. If you are in one of the new areas (we are in Fernandina), you have fiber right to the house, If you live in an area with copper from the backbone or all copper, you probably won't like Century Link as well as it needs the extra bandwidth.

I had to go with comcast as they were the only choice in my area. I opted out of signing the 2 yr contract because as soon as Brighthouse gets to my neighborhood, Comcast will be history.

Love Brighthouse but it is pricey. Has PIP which cuts down on the channel flipping.

I've mentioned this before in a couple of other threads but a cable company is looked at the same way as a public utility. It requires a municipal franchise and can only operate within the single area of that franchise. Comcast is a true cable company. Brighthouse is a true cable company. Century Link is the telephone company, and like a cable company they too operate as a single area utility, however their area is almost always MUCH larger because phone companies tend to service multiple cities and states. Also up until only a few years ago telephone companies were NOT allowed to provide TV services as Century Link now does with Prism. Satellite companies are direct broadcasters and are not under the restrictions that cable companies & phone companies operate under. That is why in some areas you can get ComCast but not in others, the same for Brighthouse.

You have to find out which cable company serves your area. (There's only one per area) If for example your area is served by ComCast, you won't be able to get service from Brighthouse. Your choice would be ComCast, Century Link or one of the Sat-Casters such as Direct-TV or DishNet. If your area is served by Brighthouse you won't be able to get service from ComCast.

South of 466A Comcast Brighthouse or Centurylink
 

Sorry but this is not quite correct. I live south of 466A and I have Centurylink but Brighthouse and Comcast are also both available. Comcast has a fiber drop already placed to each new home as does Centurylink but in most cases Brighthouse has to bury a drop to the homes. Centurylink terminals are the taller light green closures, Comcast are shorter and also light green, and Brighthouse terminals are the smallest terminals and are a darker green color. Centurylink is still a regulated company and the others are not. Centurylink bought out Embark which was a smaller company that used to serve this area. Centurylink Prism uses the same bonded pair technology as ATT Uverse and the equipment is almost identical. If the copper facilities are in good condition it will work fine over copper in areas north of 466A. New companies are reluctant to go into older areas already established due to the right of way problems and additional expenses of building a network where the streets, yards, etc. are already established. Then getting enough customers to switch to their service to make it profitable is also a problem and they come out losing money. Directional boring has helped a lot when facilities have to be placed or repaired since you can go under yards, roads, etc. without disturbing them.

Actually..I am correct. Please read the link below. Cable companies MUST be awarded by municipal franchise and there is under law..one to a customer. The municipal franchise is usually awarded at the lowest level of local government (township or village) but is sometimes awarded on a county-wide basis.

As to why you have the option for both ComCast & Brighthouse in your specific area there are a couple of possibilities. First, since TV is an unincorported community that spans 3 counties and operates with a patchwork of semi-legal CDDs it is possible that there has been some sort of agreement made where both the CDD and the local governing entity (Sumter County?) have granted franchises to competing entities, which is exactly what the Cable Act was designed to eliminate.

Secondly, it is possible that some bright laywer on the payroll of Brighthouse has managed to torture the english language into (at least on paper) making Brighthouse something other than the cable company that it is, thus getting around the municipal franchise law.

In the current situation you are fortunate. But I would think that in your specific area that currently extra available option might not always be available.

FRANCHISE RENEWAL

Quote from original post:
You have to find out which cable company serves your area. (There's only one per area) If for example your area is served by ComCast, you won't be able to get service from Brighthouse. Your choice would be ComCast, Century Link or one of the Sat-Casters such as Direct-TV or DishNet. If your area is served by Brighthouse you won't be able to get service from ComCast. Quote


The statement above is INCORRECT. I did and do disagree with the statement above that both Comcast and Brighthouse cannot operate in the same service area. Come over to this area south of 466A and see for yourself if you like. ,

I spent 35 + years in the business and deregulation has changed many things of which a lot of people may not be aware. Telephone companies could not provide the content and then the bonded pair technology wasn't available for copper were some of the reasons telephone companies could not get into the business a while back. Fiber was just beginning to be deployed and there was not enough in place to provide entertainment services. No need to worry Centurylink TV, Brighthouse, and Comcast are here to stay as this is a common arrangement if they want to spend the money to put in the network and take a chance on being able to lure enough customers to their service to make it profitable. They do not have to do anything except spend a lot of $$ to build a network and they certainly won't abandon their investment and disconnect all their customers. Centurylink must provide service for telephone since they are the provider of last resort regulated carrier for this area so it only makes sense for them to try and provide entertainment services as well since they have to build a network for telephone service anyway.

A lot of the local electric companies have started to try and provide CATV as well since they have the poles in place already and only have to place the COAX or fiber cable. Some areas have the electic company, two cable providers, and their electrical service provider all able to sell them entertainment services. Cell antennas are now placed on high voltage tranmission line towers which was unheard of just a short while ago.

I have spent nearly 40 years in the broadcast business and I am aware of FCC laws & regs. I mentioned WHY you might have access to both services above. I DID NOT SAY THAT IT WASN'T HAPPENING.

Quote from original post Mack184:
You have to find out which cable company serves your area. (There's only one per area) If for example your area is served by ComCast, you won't be able to get service from Brighthouse. Your choice would be ComCast, Century Link or one of the Sat-Casters such as Direct-TV or DishNet. If your area is served by Brighthouse you won't be able to get service from ComCast. Quote


Here is the original posters actual question which was apparently forgotten...I'm done

Cable Companies
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It seems that there is a lot of complaints about Comcast cable.. but what other companies service the villages..and what bundles do they provide.example.. tv.. internet an home phone ? and at what price?

is there one location where we can go to ferret out the services and prices of same? Am new to TV and will be in V of Fernandina.

3 Locations or Phone
 

Not sure but I think Brighthouse is on Hwy 301 right in Wildwood, Comcast has an office in Leesburg, follow 441 where 441 and 27 split, go south it is on the left but actually faces another smaller road just before Babetts furniture, you'll see it if you just look left as you travel, Century Link has a location in a small strip mall right in front of the Target Store on 441 in Lady Lake. Century Link is right on the end up from Staples but not in the same strip mall. Don't confuse Clear Link with Century Link as Clear Link is the installation team for Comcast that the Villages talks about for some reason.

All 3 can be called or use the internet as an option but not as easy to determine the prices and products.

I just purchased a spec home in Pinellas which is south of 466A. Am trying to decide on a phone, cable, internet and home security carrier. I am confused by the postings about the different carriers. Some say Comcast is terrible, some say CenturyLink is not good. I have spoken to Brighthouse but no one else. Do you live in Gilchrist or Pinellas? Are you totally happy with CenturyLink? I did not think Brighthouse was that expensive and had no contracts. Do you have a contact at CenturyLink I should contact?

Sanibel
 

No contracts, if you go over to their store in front of Target you can see and use the remotes etc. CenturyLink Official Site is 1 (855) 617 2394 or CenturyLink | Local Provider of High Speed Internet, Phone, Mobile & TV Services but I would go to the store rather than call unless you just need information but it is not a must. I live in Sanibel which is close by and south of 466A. I have not had any problems except for once when there was some picture freezing. Problem was a central office card and was fixed within a day or so after I reported it and hopefully it also helped others having the same problem a couple months ago. Century Link is still a regulated company which I prefer but Comcast was OK at the rental we had in Golden Grove off Canal. Some like Brighthouse better so I guess it is just something that the individual has to decide for themselves. I do have phone, internet, and Prism TV.

Everyone wants to believe they made the best decision on their service which is understandable. I picked the one I did for the price of the services I needed, might be totally wrong for someone else that uses different services.