PORTLAND, Ore. -- Another cable television choice has come to Portland. CenturyLink just launched its new fiber-optic video service called Prism.
Besides satellite, for the first time in years, Xfinity from Comcast now has competition in the core of the city.
"We have the ability to bring new and differentiating features into the marketplace that have not been here before," said CenturyLink Vice President Chris Denzin.
Prism boasts the most HD channels of any provider, the fastest channel changing and you can watch four channels at once to keep tabs on news or sports. Also, you can rent additional wireless cable boxes that can instantly link up to other TVs in your home when you bring it into the room.
Social media applications like Facebook and Twitter are built in to the menu, and you can log in to your account without having a smart TV.
Prism uses fiber-optic lines instead of a coaxial port, so your channels come through super fast internet.
But are all the bells and whistles too little too late? On the streets of downtown Portland, 9 out of 10 people KGW asked didn't have a TV provider. Instead they use the Internet, a la carte style.
"We can pick and choose more easily so we kind of shorten the time we're watching TV," said college student Tara Brodie. "We're not just sitting there watching whatever happens to be on."
"I like watching The Daily Show, I can just go to ComedyCentral.com and watch that, or the stuff on Netflix. There's no need in this day and age to buy 800 channels for the two things you watch," said Kyle Morrill.
Perhaps the biggest gripe by customers, that sneaky pricing tactic many companies use.
CenturyLink's ad says you'll pay less than $35 a month for Prism's most basic TV package. KGW found in reality, when you add up all the required fees for basic HD, it's two and a half times that: $89.92
That's because you have to buy their special fiber Internet service to even get the channels, plus the set top box.
KGW added up the most basic HD cable package at competitor Comcast, which does not include internet, and it's $70.99.
CenturyLink's Prism service is available in the Sunnyside, Hawthorne, Belmont, Richmond, Mt. Tabor, Kerns, Hosford-Abernethy, Creston-Kenilworth, Sellwood-Moreland, Buckman, Brooklyn and Laurelhurst neighborhoods.
