Cable TV

Supply and demand? That old economics rule doesn't seem to apply to the cable industry. More people are cutting their cable services and prices for cable TV service are expected to keep rising.

Cable TV service is expected to rise from today's average of $86 a month to more than $100 by 2015 -- $200 by 2020, according to a new report from analyst firm NPD. Meanwhile, 3.58 million U.S. cable subscribers will cancel their service, an increase of 35 percent over cord cutters in 2011, reports Convergence Consulting in its annual study "The Battle for the American Couch Potato."

What's happening? The licensing fees for movies and shows continues to rise and the cable companies pass the cost along to you.

If you've had enough, you can quit cable. The transition may be tough for ardent HBO fans, but others may find they can get as much entertainment as they want for less than half the cost of cable. I know, I did it and that's with a houseful of teenagers.

A teacher in central Illinois has been suspended after showing segments of Comedy Central's "The Daily Show" in his class.

SEATTLE — In real life, he was Erik Martin, a foster child with severe health problems and a rare form of cancer. But in his imagination he was Electron Boy, a superhero who saved Seattle from the forces of darkness and evil one spring day last year.

Erik died Friday at home. He was 14.

LOS ANGELES — Andy Whitfield, who played the title role in the hit cable series “Spartacus: Blood and Sand,” has died at age 39, say representatives and family.

Whitfield died Sunday in Sydney, Australia, 18 months after he was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, said manager Sam Maydew.