GRF has new cable service provider

INTERACT SOLUTIONS

Don’t do anything, pay $80 a month for cable TV. Take this offer, pay $29 a month.

What is the problem? Leisure World has had a longterm bulk cable TV arrangement with Superwire to provide basic Spectrum TV service and on-site customer service for about $30 per month. On Dec. 31, that arrangement will end. At that point, Spectrum will take over the Superwire accounts and increase the TV service fee from its present $30 monthly rate to about $80.

Also ending will be the personal on-site customer service Superwire has provided to LW residents. Instead, customer service would be outsourced to offshore call centers, which could prove frustrating to some residents.

Under the Superwire agreement, Spectrum served about 4,100 of Leisure World’s 6,608 residential units. Approximately 900 other residents subscribe to cable services through Frontier, Dish and other providers for up to $150 per month for the lowest priced TV and Internet packages.

Why is it our problem?

If you are one of the 4,100 Spectrum TV subscribers you may see your monthly bills increase by as much as $50 beginning January 2023. If you are a subscriber to one of the other TV and Internet providers you may be paying much more than is necessary. If you sometimes need help getting your TV service to work, you may have to spend hours and hours on the phone and may end

up frustrated.

Is there a solution?

Yes. The existing main TV service providers required that all of the 6,608 residential units subscribe to their service in order to get a discounted rate. However, the GRF Bulk Cable Ad Hoc Committee has identified a TV and Internet service provider named Interact Solutions ( www. Interactsolutions. net) that will provide state-ofthe- art TV service packages, plus a Showtime subscription, beginning at $29 per month. Fast Internet service starts at $38 per month. With these services you can access your favorite programs on your own smart phone or tablet in all Leisure World buildings. Customer instruction and ongoing service will be provided by Best Buy’s Geek Squad, which many LW residents know and now rely on for expert and personal service.

How can residents be a part of the solution?

In order to get these services installed throughout Leisure World, at least 70% of the residences must subscribe to the Interact Solutions TV services. That is 4,626 units. There is no minimum number of subscribers for the Internet services. You can be part of the solution by subscribing to the Interact Solutions service.

What do residents get when they subscribe?

There are several choices of TV service and several more choices of Internet service being offered. However, here is the package duplicating what many residences have now: After purchasing an access box for your set for a one-time fee of $99 (or $5 per month for 24 months), the Basic Pack TV Programming Package costs $29 per month. It offers:

• 139 channels of television programming for up to five TVs or devices.

• Showtime at no added cost.

•An electronic programming guide and a remote control device.

• One-hundred hours of DVD storage and 200,000 hours of video on-demand content.

• Features such as live pause, start-over and 72 hours of catchup TV.

Residents can opt for enhanced options:

• 146-channel Basic Plus Pack with Showtime, $35 per month.

• 167-channel Expanded Pack with Showtime, $50 per month.

• 24-channel Sports Pack, $13 month.

• 16-channel STARZ, $14 per month.

• 13-channel HBO/MAX, $20 per month.

Residents can choose other streaming TV providers such as DirecTV, Hulu Live and Sling TV; over-the-air channels (ABC, CBS, NBC, PBS, FOX) are available for no charge with an access box.

Home telephone service can be arranged for a nominal added cost.

The company’s Internet services offer these speed options:

• Silver: 100 Mbps (megabytes per second) receiving, 100 Mbps sending for $38.

• Gold: 500 Mbps receiving, 500 Mbps sending, $58.

• Platinum: 1,000 Mbps receiving, 1,000 Mbps sending, $83.

Bills are sent to the subscriber. No portion will be included in GRF or Mutual monthly assessment.

The Bottom Line

Residents subscribing to Spectrum who do nothing will see their TV programming cost rise to $80 per month and have to call for service, which will most likely be based overseas.

Residents who subscribe to Interact Solution’s plan will pay for programming starting at $29 per month and will have a nearby Geek Squad technician to help when they call for service.

The Interact Solutions service will be available by December.

Residents can get on board now with an RSVP by calling (888) 988-4123 or visiting https:// www. interactsolutions. net/lwsb.

This is our grandkids’ TV and Internet that for once we get to use before they do! —Nick Massetti, chair Bulk Cable Ad Hoc Committee