Cable television rates will increase in March for Southwest Colorado subscribers to AT&T Cable Services, a company spokesman said Monday.

Residents of Mancos, Dove Creek, Dolores, Durango and Durango West who subscribe to the cable television provider, formerly known as TCI Cablevision, will see an increase of between 24 cents and $1.74 per month reflected in their March bills for the basic service plan. The highest increase will be for Mancos-area subscribers.

AT&T’s Western Colorado Area Manager Frank Gallik said the increases are due in part to inflation, franchise costs and programming fees, but installation costs will decrease so the company can compete with satellite-dish companies.

"We’re trying to attract new customers by dropping the installation charges compared to what a satellite business usually charges," Gallik said from his Grand Junction office Monday.

As a result, installation charges will drop $2.55 in all locations, from $43.50 to $40.95.

"Satellite companies may offer 5,000,000 channels for X amount of dollars, but I don’t know how many channels of Showtime you can watch," Gallik said.

Besides the decrease in installation cost, most other service fees from AT&T Cable such as additional outlets and the company’s hourly service charge will also decrease.