by Pa Rock
Consumer Advocate
Unbelievably, the Valley of Hell has one cable provider - Cox. There are some options (Dish Network, Direct TV, and radio), but basically Cox has a lock on the market. They also provide Internet and telephone service. Cox apparently has some sort of quid-pro-quo going with the local electric provider, Arizona Public Services (APS). When a new arrival calls to get their electric hooked up, APS ends the phone call with something like, "Now may I transfer you over to Cox so that you can get your cable set up?"
I guess that monopolies can be a good thing - if they provide quality service at a fair price - but neither of those qualifiers describe Cox. Service is mediocre on its best day, and the cost is outrageous.
I have a friend who cancelled their Cox service two weeks ago, and I cancelled mine today. We compared notes on the extrication process. The ladies handling our cancellations gave identical spiels telling each of us that the satellite companies (my friend went with Direct TV and I will be using Dish) will be higher than Cox once their specials end. Nope, that's a lie. When the Dish special ends - after six months - it will still be much cheaper than Cox. And, as my friend pointed out, there is no way that the satellite service could be any worse than that of the Valley's only cable provider.
Our economy runs better when consumers have a choice. What the Valley needs is a few more cable providers giving Cox some competition and getting its prices down and its service up.
So long, Cox. Don't wait up because I won't be back!
