Cablevision: New Services but More
Channel Changes
by Ned Benton
(November 14, 2002
) In the face of stock-market adversity and satellite
tv competition, Cablevision is betting its financial
future on a new set of services, most of which are now
available in Larchmont. In addition to traditional cable
television, there's cable internet access, and, as of
this month, iO-TV, a
digital version of cable tv that offers added channels
and on-demand movies.
Channel Changes
 If
that's not enough news, grab your remote, because Cablevision
is once again making room for new channels by relocating
many of your favorite standby's. Just when you finally
finished programming your remote in response to the
relocation of our local access LMC-TV to channels 71,
72, and 73, Cablevision is announcing another set of
changes, effective December 12, 2002. The changes include:
- MetroTV's prancing
models that replaced LMC-TV on Channel 16 will be
strutting on up to channel 60.
- The weather programs that appear on channels 10
and 17 will move to weather wilderness -- channels
60 and 61.
- Independent channels that now occupy the same cable
and broadcast location will be scrambled. For example,
WXTV, known in broadcast land as channel 41, will
switch from cable channel 41 to 8; WNYE channel 25
will move from cable 25 to 22; WPXN channel 31 will
go from cable 31 to 3.
- Other frequently-watched channels will also move,
such as CNN from 8 to 25.
- The C-SPAN channels will move from 19-20 to 65-66
and will no longer come bundled in the "Broadcast
Basic" services. Viewers will have to upgrade to "Family
Cable" to watch the pols make speeches about "family
values."
- The good news is that LMC-TV will not be moving
again; they'll stay at channels 71, 72 and 73.
Flash: Update: December
4, 2002 Cablevision announced yet
additional changes that do affect LMT-TV. See
Cablevision Announces More Channel Changes Including
LMC-TV.
Perhaps out of sympathy for viewers having to cope with
another shake-up in the channel lineup, Cablevision is
offering three new channels about people in motion. In
addition to hip-hopping and rocking on MTV2,
Cablevision will give you the Speed
Channel with race car and motorcycle programming,
and other shows you've been pining for like Car
Crazy. If you overdose on rock and racing, the Travel
Channel will feature exotic get-away vacations.
The new channel assignments are available online at:
Cablevision
Southern Westchester Channels Effective December 12,
2002.
Speedy Internet
Cablevision's channel-changing may be unpopular, but
their high-speed internet access service, Optimum Online,
has been well-received by many local users, and favorably
reviewed by credible sources such as PC
Magazine which gave it an A+ rating. According to
MHS senior Austin Shea, who is both an avid computer
user and a Microsoft certified professional, "The service
has been excellent since the day I got it at the beginning
of the summer. I could set it up and use it the same
day I got the equipment, and I have never been disconnected
since."
The alternative broad-band service, DSL, is available
in Larchmont from local, regional and national sources
such as Westchester-based Cloud9
Consulting , or
Verizon,
Earthlink and AOL.
At the moment, Cablevision's basic service is cheaper
and faster than that of its DSL competitors.
However, perhaps because they are local and nimble,
Cloud9 now offers better protection from viruses and
email spam. Cloud9 delivers "MailArmor" and
"SpamAssassin" that scan for viruses and unsolicited
blasts of email. MailArmor is particularly effective
because it deletes email viruses before they reach your
computer. You receive the uninfected part of the message
and a description of the deleted virus. Optimum Online
is expected to be rolling out several comparable services
before the end of the year.
Rolling out right now on Cablevision, though, is the
new digital television service iO-TV.
This service adds new channels starting above 100. These
channels are delivered via a digital signal, which provides
sharper images and cd-quality sound. Viewers can watch
current HBO and Showtime shows on demand, access commercial-free
music channels, and (with an optional wireless keyboard)
send and receive e-mail through a television.
In the spirit of Larchmont Gazette's selfless service
to community, and to provide complete data for a thorough
analysis, this reviewer ordered the complete package.
The technician arrived as scheduled, "sometime
between 9:00 and 5:00" only to find that a different
technician was needed to tweak the signal out at the
pole. So Larchmont Gazette's iO-TV review will be delayed
for a week or two. Stay tuned...
Another new service that may eventually come to Larchmont
is a residential version of Lightpath,
Cablevision's local telephone service. Today, Lightpath
is the provider for Westchester
Telecom which provides County government telephone
and data service. Westchester Telecom also offers inexpensive
high-speed service for schools, local governments and
libraries. But don't cancel your local phone service
just yet, as Lightpath has no plans set to offer residential
service in the near future.
Send
this page to a friend
Discuss this topic in our forums,
or send a letter
to the editors.
|
