CABLE'S NEW PIRATES

Four months after swallowing AT&T Broadband, Comcast has begun jacking up its rates for cable broadband. Comcast told former AT&T Broadband customers last month if they didn't subscriber to cable programming services, their monthly charges for Internet service would go up as much as $15. So much for the consumer good times this deal was supposed to bring when the FCC gave its go-ahead. Everyone understands bundling — you buy multiple services, you get a deal. Reasonable people also understand that sometimes a provider has to raise prices. And to be fair, the RBOCs won't sell a DSL line unless a voice comes with it. But Comcast's shenanigans aren't an example of simple competitive pricing. This is Comcast, glistening from the sweat of its merger effort, forcing video programming onto its customers. A price increase is one thing. But a 35% price hike only for customers who want Internet access? That's extortion, and an attempt to drive digital broadcast satellite players out of the market. Doesn't Comcast have any shame? It's doubtful anyone ever believed that the Comcast/AT&T Broadband merger would have any positive benefits for the industry or the consumers who feed it. (Even the FCC, moments before it rubber-stamped this unholy union, didn't buy the “increased competition” arguments Comcast was selling.) But does Comcast have to flaunt its utter disregard so blatantly?