Back in February Bright House cable decided to pull HD channels from their CableCARD customers. This, understandably, created a backlash of complaints from users, as there wasn’t a good reason for the loss of the channels. Bright House did it to ‘prepare’ for deployment of SDV, but that isn’t happening until late in the year. By that time the Tuning Resolver should be available for TiVo users.
This time it looks like the complaints paid off, not only is Bright House restoring the HD channels they took away, but they’re also giving CableCARD customers access to the new HD channels added on February 1st, as well as the digital SD History and Biography channels. Bright House has started emailing those who complained:
Dear [Customer],
Thank you for getting in touch with us regarding our cable programming services. This letter is to advise you that Bright House Networks will activate for your cable service the following channels on an interim basis at no additional charge:
TBS HD Discovery HD
History HD Animal Planet HD
Food HD National Geographic HD
HGTV HD History International (SD)
Biography (SD)When interactive Switched Digital Video (SDV), or other interactive advanced delivery technologies are deployed, Bright House Networks may need to reclaim these and other channels to create those platforms We expect the first of these new technologies, interactive Switched Digital Video to be available in our service area later this year. You will be notified thirty days in advance of this change.
If you have TiVo equipment, Bright House Networks fully supports the cable industry and TiVo initiative to design an external adapter to support Interactive Switched Digital Video. This external adapter will enable TiVo digital video recorders that use CableCards to access digital cable channels without using a set top box. Based on our understanding, the external adapter will be designed to attach to TiVo Series 3 HD DVRs. Once the external adapter is designed and made available, customers with this equipment will be able to directly access digital channels offered by Bright House Networks.
Thank you for being a Bright House Networks customer; we appreciate your business.
Sincerely,
Sherrie Wrenchey
Customer Care Quality Manager
Bright House Networks Central Florida
I give Bright House credit for listening to their customers and reversing their decision to benefit their CableCARD customers until they really need the bandwidth and need to deploy SDV, by which time the Tuning Resolver should offer a more permanent solution for users.
Picked up from EngadgetHD.
