Hello,
When I was a child, for some reason, I believed that a cable connection cost 200 DM per month and that this included the ability to watch TV. For a long time, I was still under the impression *uncertainty*: that simply having the cable connection and the possibility to receive digital TV—even without a contract with the local cable network operator—already incurs basic cable fees.
Question 1: Is that correct? Or do I only have to pay a monthly fee for a cable connection if I do have a contract with the provider?
Question 2: Is it possible that if I don’t have a contract, I cannot receive TV via the cable at all, meaning I get or have been disconnected? (I’m asking because in our apartment building, we also receive TV via cable without a subscription, where there is a box from Unity Media in the basement for all residents. The connection fees for that are most likely paid directly by the landlord and passed on to us tenants.)
Question 3: Can I only get a cable connection if the street is equipped for it, meaning if the operator has actually expanded the network accordingly?
Question 4: How much does such a connection cost (up to the property boundary, with presumably another 20-30m (65-100 ft) needed on the property itself)?
According to my research, I currently understand this as: a flat rate of €600 for up to 20m (65 ft) plus €70 for each additional meter (3.3 ft).
Cheaper if, for example, a trench already exists, such as from water utilities.
Possibly cheaper if a contract is signed directly.
Question 5: What are the costs for a telecom connection accordingly?
According to my research, I currently understand this as: a flat rate of €350 plus €25 per meter (3.3 ft).
Cheaper if, for example, a trench already exists, such as from water utilities.
Possibly cheaper if a contract is signed directly.
Question 6: Does it make sense, aside from the extra costs, to install both connections to keep options open for the future, or am I overestimating the advantage of having both options available?
When I was a child, for some reason, I believed that a cable connection cost 200 DM per month and that this included the ability to watch TV. For a long time, I was still under the impression *uncertainty*: that simply having the cable connection and the possibility to receive digital TV—even without a contract with the local cable network operator—already incurs basic cable fees.
Question 1: Is that correct? Or do I only have to pay a monthly fee for a cable connection if I do have a contract with the provider?
Question 2: Is it possible that if I don’t have a contract, I cannot receive TV via the cable at all, meaning I get or have been disconnected? (I’m asking because in our apartment building, we also receive TV via cable without a subscription, where there is a box from Unity Media in the basement for all residents. The connection fees for that are most likely paid directly by the landlord and passed on to us tenants.)
Question 3: Can I only get a cable connection if the street is equipped for it, meaning if the operator has actually expanded the network accordingly?
Question 4: How much does such a connection cost (up to the property boundary, with presumably another 20-30m (65-100 ft) needed on the property itself)?
According to my research, I currently understand this as: a flat rate of €600 for up to 20m (65 ft) plus €70 for each additional meter (3.3 ft).
Cheaper if, for example, a trench already exists, such as from water utilities.
Possibly cheaper if a contract is signed directly.
Question 5: What are the costs for a telecom connection accordingly?
According to my research, I currently understand this as: a flat rate of €350 plus €25 per meter (3.3 ft).
Cheaper if, for example, a trench already exists, such as from water utilities.
Possibly cheaper if a contract is signed directly.
Question 6: Does it make sense, aside from the extra costs, to install both connections to keep options open for the future, or am I overestimating the advantage of having both options available?
Kaspatoo schrieb:
What I long believed / still believe *uncertainty*: just having a cable connection and the associated possibility to receive digital TV, even without a contract with the local cable provider, already causes basic cable fees.
Question 1: Is that true? Or do I only pay monthly fees for a cable connection if I actually have no contract with the provider?
No. You can be connected to the cable network without incurring ongoing costs. You do not necessarily have to sign up for a service.
Question 2: Is it possible that if I do not have a contract, I cannot receive TV over the cable at all, meaning I get disconnected? (I ask because in our apartment building we can watch TV via cable without a contract with the provider; there is a Unity Media box in the basement for all residents. The connection fees are probably paid directly by the landlord and passed on to us tenants.)
Yes, a local block will be applied and sealed, or you will be disconnected. In your apartment building, the landlord likely has a contract covering all units (which is somewhat cheaper) and recoups the costs through additional rent charges or service fees. However, there are also “lucky” cases where the landlord is not aware or the cable provider cannot disconnect individual users in the building.
Question 3: Can I only get a cable connection if the street has the infrastructure, meaning the provider has actually expanded the network there?
Yes. Additionally, cable providers rarely expand their networks nowadays, often not even in new development areas.
Question 4: How much does such a connection cost (up to the property boundary, with an additional 20-30m (65-98 feet) probably needed on the property itself)?
Based on my research, I currently understand the following: a flat rate of 600€ for up to 20m (65 feet) + 70€/meter (21.3 feet) for each additional meter.
It is cheaper if, for example, a trench already exists due to water installation.
Potentially cheaper if a contract is signed immediately. In NRW, according to Unitymedia’s price list, from 398€ including VAT, including civil engineering work and installation to private property up to 10 m (33 feet), if a service contract is signed for at least one year at the same time. Without such a contract, the price is 949€.
(So ordering a service package generally makes sense financially.)
Question 5: What does a Telekom connection cost accordingly?
Based on my research, I currently understand: 350€ flat + 25€/meter (3.3 feet),
cheaper if a trench already exists,
potentially cheaper if a contract is signed immediately. I haven’t checked this recently. The 3xx € range is outdated or only applies if the connection ends at the outside wall. I believe the cost is now about 600€ for internal installation, with discounts offered if you sign a contract.
Question 6: Aside from additional costs, does it make sense to install both connections to have a better choice later, or do I overestimate the benefit of “keeping both options open”? You can of course do both, but it is expensive. If I had to decide today, I would skip the Telekom connection. The copper twisted pair is probably the worst transmission medium (besides wireless). Although VDSL vectoring now squeezes about 100 Mbps out of it, and maybe higher speeds will be possible in the future... purely from a physical standpoint, coaxial cable is the superior medium, and fiber optic would be the best. You can also request fiber from Telekom; in some cases, they provide it to new development areas if enough customers are interested and if they planned to expand VDSL anyway.
Kaspatoo schrieb:
What cable fees? The ones in the contract?
If I sign up for UnityMedia Two Play for 25€/month, does that include the cable fees? If not, what are these cable fees and how much do they cost?
From what I understand so far, cable fees only apply if there is an active contract, according to your previous answers. Sort of. The basic connection fee (20.99€) for standard TV reception is not included in any packages.
However, this is not mandatory if you subscribe to 1play or 2play packages. They apply a block filter in your unit so you can use data services but do not receive TV signals.
Kaspatoo schrieb:
Which cable fees? The ones from the contract or something else?
If I sign up for UnityMedia Two Play for €25/month, are the cable fees already included? If not, what exactly are cable fees and how much do they cost? From what I understand based on your answers, cable fees only apply if there is an active contract. I can’t say much about that. Since I no longer live in a multi-family building, I don’t have cable anymore. It’s too expensive for me.
I prefer satellite, and if possible, a connection to a fiber-optic line.
Internet service through both providers does not differ only in terms of downstream speed. With Telekom, I have 100 Mbps download, 40 Mbps upload. With UM, I would have 200 Mbps download and 10 Mbps upload. No one fully utilizes the download speed for an extended period today.
By the way, Telekom gave us a discount of 400€ (about $435).
By the way, Telekom gave us a discount of 400€ (about $435).
Alex85 schrieb:
I haven’t checked recently. But the 3xx € fees are a thing of the past or only apply if the connection is installed on the exterior wall. As far as I know, it’s now 600€ for the interior installation, with a discount if you sign up for a contract. Uwe82 schrieb:
By the way, Telekom gave us a 400€ discount. There are so many different statements here. I completed the paperwork last week.
In our case, it’s like in the two quotes above. The connection cost is 600 EUR, and you get a 400 EUR discount if you subscribe to at least Magenta Zuhause M (40 EUR per month for 50 Mbit/s internet flat rate and unlimited phone calls). So it’s a math problem.
Both Telekom and Unitymedia offer 100 Mbit/s here. Since I prefer satellite TV, cable connection is not an option for me.
ONeill schrieb:
Why cable? Fast internet! I guess it depends on what’s available. For example, we have fiber optic installed. In the cloud era, upload speed is also extremely important, and that is usually much better with DSL/VDSL. I’m not certain, but I believe that fiber optic could be much faster in its final rollout stage (right now, only speeds up to 200/40 Mbps are offered). It just isn’t in high demand yet, so it’s not widely offered. For comparison, a UHD stream requires about 15-25 Mbps. With 200/40 Mbps, you could watch 10 of those streams simultaneously.
Similar topics