Last week the long-awaited Comcast Xfinity TV Channel on Roku Players finally arrived. Many had hoped that they would be able to use their Roku to replace the cable boxes and monthly fees that Comcast now requires for every TV.
That means even if you use your own Roku player to stream the TV you already pay Comcast for over the Internet you pay Comcast for, Comcast will be charging you a fee for every for the right to use their Roku Channel.
If you use the Xfinity Roku Channel as a “secondary outlet” (meaning you still have a DVR or other Comcast box in your house as the main box) you will have to pay a $9.95 a month fee. (You will get a $2.50 credit per Roku box, but we do not know how long that credit will last.)
Over a 2-year contract the new Roku fee will add up to $238.80 for every Roku you use with Comcast. (Not counting the $2.50 credit, because we do not know how long that will be good for.)
If you use your Roku player as the main box in your house you will not get an additional fee because Comcast already includes the primary box fee in your monthly bill. You can only count one box in your house as a primary box.
Comcast and others already charge these fees for cableCARDs and set-top boxes. Although it may make sense to charge a monthly fee to rent a box or card from Comcast, the idea of paying a monthly fee to use a Roku Player you own seems just crazy.
This clearly shows how many cable companies see these fees as a way to make more money from subscribers without having it in the advertised rates.
Source: Multichannel
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