Comcast's regular rate hike came early this year.

The cable company raised its standard TV rates by 4.8 percent, or $3 a month, beginning with November bills. The monthly package now costs $66 in Oregon and Southwest Washington, plus a few dollars in additional fees that vary by city.

Internet rates are going up, too, between $2 and $4 a month. The monthly cost of Comcast's "Performance" Internet service is climbing to $49, up from $45, for subscribers who also have Comcast TV. The company said it's also boosting download speeds to 15 megabits per second, from 12 mbps.

, when the cost of a standard package went up 5.1 percent. This is the first time Comcast has raised its Oregon rates twice in the same calendar year.

In a statement, the company said it's experiencing increased programming and operational costs but did not directly address why it's raising rates twice this year. Also, Comcast said about half of its customers are on promotional plans and won't pay the higher rates until those promotions end.

Comcast serves nearly the entire Portland area and about 600,000 customers in Oregon and Southwest Washington. It's raised TV prices by an average of 5.4 percent annually over the past 10 years.

With annual inflation in the Portland area currently running around 2.7 percent, Comcast's latest rate hike is "very unfortunate and regrettable," said David Olson, director of the Mt. Hood Cable Regulatory Commission.

Comcast first notified customers of the pending rate hike in their October bills, and it notified cable regulators in September. Federal law largely exempts cable TV rates from local oversight.

Frontier Communications, which offers cable TV in east Multnomah County, Washington County and other communities outside the Portland city limits, has not raised rates this year. But the company raised the installation cost for new subscribers from $79 to $500 in March, and has indicated it's moving away from the cable TV business.

Cable companies have been under pressure from Internet-based programming, as well as a sagging economy that's weighing on viewers' finances. But recent financial reports from the nation's biggest cable operators suggest that

.

Programming costs, and the cost of sports networks in particular, are a big factor in rising cable rates.

Comcast's Northwest sports network is halfway through a 10-year deal for the Portland Trail Blazers' local cable TV rights, paying an estimated $12 million annually -- roughly $1.67 per subscriber, per month.

This year, of course, cable TV viewers aren't getting much basketball for that money. The NBA has locked out its players, and the season is on hold indefinitely.

The NBA is continuing to receive revenue from its national TV contracts during the lockout, according to

. But the league must pay that back if it cancels the season.

Neither Comcast nor the Blazers were able to say Tuesday whether Portland's team is collecting revenue from its local TV contract during the lockout.

-- Mike Rogoway; twitter: @rogoway; phone: 503-294-7699