Got this in my ISP mailbox the other day.
Important Notice Regarding Discontinuation of LAUNCHcast Plus Service
Beginning in February 2009, CBS Radio will power LAUNCHcast Radio. LAUNCHcast Radio will still be accessible from the Yahoo! site. However, it will be hosted and operated by CBS Radio rather than by Yahoo!. As part of the transition to CBS Radio, the LAUNCHcast Plus premium service will be closing on February 12, 2009.
Existing AT&T customers will no longer receive LAUNCHcast Plus as part of their AT&T membership after February 12, 2009.
Even though the LAUNCHcast Plus subscription service will be discontinued, you will still have access to most of your favorite preprogrammed LAUNCHcast stations through the new CBS Radio-powered experience. The difference is that those radio stations will be supported by advertising and there will no longer be a commercial-free option.
With LAUNCHcast Radio powered by CBS Radio, you will also get access to some new features, including a new streaming radio player and CBS Radio's wide variety of local music, news, talk, and sports programming. The new radio player will also be compatible with Macintosh computers and Firefox and Safari browsers. Not all existing LAUNCHcast features will continue, however. Your custom "My Station" and "Moods" Stations will no longer be available after February 12, 2009. Additionally, you will no longer be able to add "Influencers" to your personalized "My Station."
There is no need to cancel or do anything with your service to make the transition to CBS Radio. Yahoo! will not transfer any of your account information to CBS Radio. You will not have to pay for the new LAUNCHcast service since it will be supported by advertising.
We hope you will enjoy our new radio experience and the broader range of radio stations that it will bring.
MORE INFORMATION
For more information about LAUNCHcast Radio and the changes to the service, please refer to our Frequently Asked Questions.
Radio station lineup is subject to change and we cannot guarantee that all stations will be available after the transition to CBS Radio.
My bill keeps going up and they keep discontinuing services. I can't recall all that they've quit offering, but they discontinued their alt binaries access and their Briefcase barely works. I've got the investment in the DSL modem, but I've been thinking of going total cable: phone, TV and internet access for about the amount of money I'm paying now for my phone and internet.
I listened to my LAUNCHcast quite often, at least once or twice a week, sometimes more while I'm cruising the 'net. One reason I clung to Internet Explorer is because the service wouldn't work with Firefox, but after adding the "View in IE tab" to my Firefox browser, I could listen to it.
OTOH, I've checked out the CBS/AOL radio and while it doesn't have the features I liked about LAUNCHcast (I could click through a song I didn't like), the new service does have a wide variety of online radio stations.
Still...this was a service promised to me when I signed up and I think they owe me a discount! I am going to call AT&T tomorrow, see if they can knock some off my bill. I think people would be surprised at how accommodating these companies can be, especially since they're loathe to lose customers.
1 comment:
I like my launchcast too, although I didn't have the premium service, just the free one. I would listen to it and launchcast videos on yahoo and like the variety of artists available.
I have Comcast for my phone/internet and cable bundle and that keeps going up WITHOUT adding any new services. +sigh+
I agree it pays to complain, nicely of course. I remember when my internet changed from AT&T to Comcast I started seeing a cable modem rental charge on my bill. I had bought my own mode at one of the big box stores back when I first signed up for cable internet. I had done the math and with the coupon I had for free installation , plus first 6 months free service it was the money smart way to go.
A simple phone call took that charge off my monthly bill.
Recently I shopped for and bought a new cell phone through AT&T. I didn't upgrade my plan or make any changes to my account. When I got my next montly bill there was an $18.00 "Upgrade of Service" charge. I was livid. All I did was take my simm card out of one phone and put it into the new one. To get the "good" price on the phone I had signed a new 2 year contract with AT&T.
Guess that's what they were charging me for, eh? The privilege of being their customer for 2 more years.
Again, a call to customer service and I got that charge removed.
Make the call Mike, I bet they throw you a bone.
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