# Getting the runaround from Spectrum about providing a CableCard



## MichaelAinNB (Dec 28, 2013)

I live in Orange County CA and currently have two Bolts. I recently purchased a third Bolt through Amazon. After it arrived, I called Spectrum to ask how I get a third CableCard. I was told I have to go to a Spectrum store. I did that today (9/13/20) and I was told the store no longer carries CableCards, I have to order them over the phone. I asked for a manager and told him I was told over the phone I had to come to the store. He said, "We don't carry them but let me see if I can order one for you and have it shipped to your home." He did some work on a computer and said he was sorry but he could not do anything for me. He repeated I would have to order one over the phone with Spectrum. He also told me there is a $9.99 shipping charge for the card. In the past, I have gotten both CableCards at the brick and mortar location. Is this another example of the cable company making it as difficult (and now expensive) as they can to use a DVR other than their own? Does the FCC still require cable companies to provide CableCards? Can Spectrum charge $10 to have the card shipped because they have chosen not to carry them in their stores?


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## eherberg (Feb 17, 2011)

MichaelAinNB said:


> Does the FCC still require cable companies to provide CableCards?


Not anymore.


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## JKR123 (Feb 11, 2019)

If you end up ordering one I hope you have better luck than I have had. I ordered one last Tuesday and so far no movement with shipping my order yet. They didn’t mention any shipping charges to me.


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## MichaelAinNB (Dec 28, 2013)

JKR123 said:


> If you end up ordering one I hope you have better luck than I have had. I ordered one last Tuesday and so far no movement with shipping my order yet. They didn't mention any shipping charges to me.


I decided it isn't worth the hassle. The new Bolt is going back. This crap with cable companies making it as difficult as they can to use a TiVo DVR has been going on for years and I haven't seen any significant action on TiVo's part to stand up for its customers. If they did, well then not only did they fail but they'll eventually be losing a 20+ year customer. I will keep the two TiVo devices I have and when they die, I will move on.


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## Pokemon_Dad (Jan 19, 2008)

Sad to see that @MichaelAinNB, but not surprised. As of this month cable companies don't have to support CableCARDS anymore. As of this year TiVo business strategy has moved on from DVRs, under the second new set of owners in three years, for whom OTA is too small and cable is a dying business.

I expect existing CableCARD installations to be supported for about five years, but only because there are 55 million cable company boxes out there with cards in them. The 600 thousand existing retail boxes with cards will just be tolerated and ignored, if we're lucky. I'm keeping a Roamio and Minis going, but we're already mostly transitioned to Channels DVR and are ready for a hybrid OTA/OTT future.


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## Jets (Sep 28, 2010)

Doesn't Channels DVR require a CableCard anyway via the HomerunHD tuner?


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## Pokemon_Dad (Jan 19, 2008)

Jets said:


> Doesn't Channels DVR require a CableCard anyway via the HomerunHD tuner?


See Channels - TV Everywhere

Their TV Everywhere (TVE) option uses your login for cable, YouTube TV, Hulu Live TV, and others to obtain many (but not all) channels on those services, no CableCARD required.

At this time TVE is stereo only, no 5.1 sound, so I'm hanging on to my HD HomeRun Prime with CableCARD for now. But for the few cable channels we actually watch (news/talk) stereo would be fine. Everything else we watch is OTA or streaming.


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