00:00 Welcome back to the TV6 News. Both Flo and Digicel are set to increase their cable and
00:08 internet prices in June, but with both service providers having increased prices within the
00:13 last year, customers are crying foul. However, the companies explain that they too are facing
00:18 additional economic pressures, resulting in them having to increase their costs. Vanessa
00:23 Kutting has more.
00:26 Following both Flo's and Digicel's announcement of pending price increases yet again, members
00:31 of the public are already up in arms, with some even threatening to cancel their subscriptions.
00:37 So TV6 News is out here on the streets of Port of Spain today to find out from customers
00:42 exactly how they feel about the matter, and exactly what, if anything, they're prepared
00:47 to do about it.
00:50 Digicel has notified customers of pending increases in the cost of some products due
00:54 to "increased content costs from international suppliers" and the growing expenses associated
01:01 with off-island internet traffic, primarily fuelled by the rising usage of services like
01:07 Android TV boxes and Netflix, which put additional strain on its network. But Digicel customers
01:15 say they too are under strain.
01:18 Another price increase is ridiculous.
01:22 The price is increasing effective June, so are you prepared to pay it? And if not, then
01:26 what would you do?
01:27 I don't know what I will do. I moved from another network into Digicel. I figured they
01:33 provided the best service. But if they up the price again, I may have to reconsider.
01:39 So I want to tell your company to reconsider before they think about another price increase.
01:45 I'm not too pleased, I'm surprised though. I'm surprised that so soon that we will get
01:50 an increase, you know, judging by the state of the economy right now and people's salaries,
01:56 you know, wages not that substantial on the average citizen, you know, living, you know,
02:01 more paycheck to paycheck. It's not a real good, good, it's not good information for
02:08 me at the moment.
02:09 Which provider are you with?
02:10 Digicel.
02:11 Okay, so you are aware of the pending increases?
02:13 Yes, I got an email. I did.
02:15 How do you feel?
02:16 I'm not very happy at all. Because I mean, our salary has not gone up in years. And Digicel
02:21 keeps doing that they keep announcing raising prices. And yet their service is not 100%
02:27 as they claim to be. So it's unfortunate for us. But what can we do as a people? Unfortunately,
02:33 Trinidadians, we only talk and we don't do anything. So at the end of the day, we take
02:37 the stick and we just go with the flow. And even flow is not even doing as good as Digicel
02:42 because I heard that they are doing the same thing as well, raising prices. So I am not
02:46 happy at all, at all.
02:47 And as per your recollection, when was the last time that your bill was increased?
02:52 I think it was probably a year ago.
02:55 For Flow customers, it's a double whammy, as rates were just increased two months ago
02:59 in March by 4.5%. Now Flow is advising of an additional 5% increase effective June.
03:08 So are you a Flow or Digicel customer?
03:10 I am a Flow customer.
03:12 You're aware that prices are increasing again?
03:15 Well, someone called me last week and was reminding me about how much money that I have
03:20 for them. And the lady told me it's 320. And I told her no, I say I normally pay 295 for
03:27 my bill. And then eventually she told me she said, well, no, the price is just increased.
03:33 I said, well, just like that. I said you already didn't inform anybody.
03:36 Despite the increases and further pending increases, it turns out most people aren't
03:42 willing to do without internet connectivity. And so they will be paying the additional
03:47 costs. One young lady believes the only way out is a better alternative.
03:52 How do you feel about the pending increase?
03:56 I believe that they should get a new service provider that has some lower rates to give
04:01 them a little competition. It might be better for the country.
04:06 Vanessa Cutting, TV6 News.
04:09 In a response, Flowcell's customers are invited to visit its website to see if any of the
04:14 new plans better suit their needs. Flowcell remains committed to keeping its plans at
04:19 competitive prices. And the price adjustment will allow the company to continue to invest
04:23 in the network and other necessary improvements to meet and exceed customer expectations.
04:30 TV6 PeopleMeter, brought to you by Accel Health TT, the official supplement of the CPS.
04:37 Now to our PeopleMeter. Tonight we ask, are you prepared to pay more for cable and internet
04:46 services? To vote, text "YES" or "NO" to the number 7664886 or 7664 TV6. We'll have
04:53 the results for you at the end of this newscast.
04:55 (upbeat music)
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