Time Warner Cable, a well known cable operator in the U.S. that claims technologically advanced, clustered systems located in five geographic areas including New York State, the Carolinas, Ohio, Southern California and Texas, introduced a new video-only package named Time Warner (News - Alert) Cable TV Essentials, which has been designed to address the video needs of customers facing difficult choices during these tough economic times.

The company will begin commercial trials of its TV Essentials Package in New York City and Northeast Ohio divisions in the coming weeks, while it has been planning further launches for the next year.

Offering its services to more than 14.7 million customers who subscribe to one or more of its video, high-speed data and voice services, Time Warner Cable also offers customized business oriented phone, Internet, Ethernet and advertising solutions through its allied arms.

In a statement, Glenn Britt, president, chief executive officer and chairman at Time Warner Cable, said that the company understands that people are under pretty serious economic duress and would like to have more choice and the option of paying for less programming. Britt continued that this video-only package isn’t for everyone, but Time Warner Cable hopes that some of those most hard-hit by the current economic conditions find it to be a helpful option.

Under the Time Warner Cable TV Essentials package, a bouquet of various TV channels to fulfill the needs of all segments of viewers has been designed. These channels include the Basic tier of Time Warner Cable, including local channels from ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC and PBS. It also features 12 of the top 20 Nielsen-rated cable channels, and representative channels from each major genre such as news/information, sports, kids, music, lifestyle, shopping, and general entertainment.

Additionally, the package consists two standard-definition digital cable set-top boxes, featuring an on-screen guide and Music Choice, and is equipped with a number of enhanced TV features such as StartOver and LookBack, which are accessible upon availability in the area.

The new package also includes the access to the library of new release movies through Time Warner On Demand through a paid VOD mode only. The company has valued the package at a subscription rate of $49.99 per month, and for a promotional phase of 12 months, has been offering it at a discounted price of $39.99 per month in New York City and $29.95 per month in Northeast Ohio.

Earlier this month, Time Warner Cable Business Class, the business-to-business or ‘B2B’ arm of Time Warner Cable launched its ‘HD Video for Hospitality’ service for Hotels in New York City area to provide cost-effective high-definition or ‘HD’ TV programming.

Raja Singh Chaudhary is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Raja's articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Jaclyn Allard