Television

Bell ExpressVu Account Information:
The phone number associated with the account is 705-743-5348 (Mother's number, not the cottage number). The address is GD Woodview, Ontario, K0L 3E0. The pin number is just 0520. This pin number allegedly allows us to do transactions, including starting and stopping service, by automated phone service (see below). Security is tighter here than at CSIS. Only mother and David are listed as persons permitted to deal with Expressvu. A number to reach them at is 1-888-759-3474.
Information on the service is available at http://www.bell.ca/shop/PrsShpTv_Landing.page. We can log in to view our account with Username "Thelonious" and password "Mickey05" at that site or http://www.bell.ca/selfcare. Username and password are case sensitive.
Bear in mind when dealing with Bell Sympatico that nothing is ever the same, policies change like the desert sands, and four different representatives will always give you four different answers.
Programming:
We always have the Digital Standard Service which was $27 a month and went up to $31 in February 2007. This includes over 100 channels. We have always also ordered a package of extra channels for those cold wet days and nights when there is nothing else to do.
In 2007 we ordered the Digital Essentials, which added five theme packs to the Digital Standard Service. These theme packs are: News and Learning 1; Sports 1 and 2; Variety 1; and Lifestyle 1. We can add additional theme packs for $5 each. This service does not include the Premium Movies. The cost of this package is: Digital Standard Service at $31.00; 5 themes at $20.00; total cost = $51.00. Our monthly bill, with tax, is $58.14.
In 2006 we changed packages because the one we had previously used no longer existed. We had the "12 Themes and Premium Movies" package. Our 12 themes were; Family 1 and 2, More Movies, Sports 1 and 2, News & Learning 1 and 2, Variety 1, 2 and 3, and Lifestyle 1 and 2. This package costs $61.00 a month, not including the Digital Standard Service. We also had some things called Buzztime Trivia, Kidswise, and Playin Combo. These together cost $14.00 a month. Monthly total when these were all added up was $102.00 a month, not including taxes. There was consensus that this was too expensive.
In 2005 we had the "Ultimate 7" package, which was the basic service plus 7 Theme Packs, plus movies. We paid a total of $73.58.
Suspending and Starting Service:
To suspend service therefore, you go to the site and enter username Thelonious and password mickey05, and then enter the pin number 0520. The site you want is "My Bell".
For 2009-10 service was suspended on November 4 and is scheduled to come back on on May 21, 2010.
We are allowed to suspend service for as little as six weeks and a maximum of seven months (it used to be six months).
We have to suspend the service in the fall. We generally keep it on until after Thanksgiving, in case anyone feels it important to watch Texas lose another big game. It appears that there is a charge of $15 a month if we suspend service through a service representative, but only $10 a month if it is done through the automated service.
Seven months after we turn the service off, the service is turned back on automatically. If we want it turned on earlier we can contact them. We are supposed to be able to do this also through the automated phone service. They say they need 24 hours notice.
When we suspend service we will receive some money back, since when we make our monthly payments we are paying for the month ahead. In 2007 we received a credit at the end of the year of $46.00 but this is not shown in the figures for 2007 but rather was deducted from our first bill in 2008, and so it shows up in 2008, since we are on "real time" accounting.