There are different ways how every internet and TV provider in the United States operates. The policies vary from area to area. If you are with one provider and moving to another address, many providers give you the option to take the equipment with you and set it up at your new place. After setting it up, the connection is activated. Similarly, others just give you new equipment for setting up at your new place. You are also obliged by the provider to return the equipment if you are canceling your services. Otherwise, you are charged a hefty fee if you resume your services even after a year.
Can you have two TV providers in one house? I have worked in the customer service department of internet, cable and phone authorized retailers. We get this question now and then. Let’s understand how this works:
How do you get a connection?
Whenever you sign-up for a service, you either go for self or professional installation. The self-installation is for those people with everything already set up in their homes. The professional installation has certain technicalities and they make sure you have a work cable outlet, your house is wired, and everything else. Once you sign-up for a provider, you get your connection through a dedicated cable, DSL, or fiber line.
However, to hook you up with the service, they have to run cable lines on the power poles. Once they run these cables on the poles, you get a working connection, depending on the location you are living.
Getting two cable TV providers in the same house
As we have discussed earlier, cable providers have a network of coaxial cables that reach each house in the footprint. Now to get the cable TV service at your home from two different providers, you will have to run parallel cables on the power poles. Each of the cables has to reach your home. Now, the only complication is that you need to have multiple cable outlets with different cable connections. This is quite complicated and requires a technician to perform the wiring. Once you have a technician at home from either of the two providers, you can have a separate line for both providers. The technician will use a piece of equipment called a cable splitter. This splitter will ensure that you have two cable TV providers in the same house.
Is it worth it to have two providers in one house?
There are some drawbacks to this. The only advantage seems to be the segregation of the service. If you have rented out one portion of the house, you may have two different cable TV providers. The person who is renting out your place has a choice. Depending on the monthly charges he could afford, he can get someone else.
Excessive monthly charges
Let’s face it. With an exception of a few providers, cable TV providers are expensive. On average, a basic cable TV plan may cost you $60 per month. You will have to add the charges for the cable boxes on top and some local broadcast charges as well. This amounts to $80 for the basic plan. Multiply it with two, this is the amount you will be paying for the two cable connections.
Installation cost
The installation of two cable TV providers will incur some additional installation costs. Usually, one provider charges $50 just for installation.
How to use your cable box at a different address?
The legal way to use your cable box at a different address is just by calling the customer service of the concerned provider. It is better than the person speaking at your end must be the one that has the service under his or her name. Any other person without authorization might not get you the result.
Once you reach the customer service, just ask them that you are moving out from this address. Now you have two options. You return this equipment and sign up for a new connection at the new address. The other option is to tell the customer representative that you wish to take the equipment to this new address and continue the service from there. If the new address does not have a cable outlet, the provider will send a technician. If it already has a line, you will just plug the box and wait for the activation. The box shall be activated within 48 hours after taking the authorization.
If you want a new connection, we recommend Spectrum. It has tons of amazing channels and some premium channels.
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