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About half of Cox Communications' Tucson-area cable television customers will see their bills increase in February, the company said Thursday.

Cox announced a 3 percent price increase effective Feb. 15 for its limited basic and digital cable customers.

The increase does not affect subscribers to Cox Classic, one of the company's most popular packages. The classic package will remain $39.95.

The company has about 300,000 subscribers in Southern Arizona. The rate increase affects customers in Tucson, Sahuarita and Green Valley; rates in Cochise County are unaffected.

Cox joined two other national cable television companies in announcing rate increases in recent weeks. Cox's price increase in Tucson was less than the 6 percent average increase for markets served by Comcast, and similar to the increase announced by Time Warner Cable. Comcast has not yet announced when that rate increase will take effect for its customers in unincorporated Pima County, Marana, Oro Valley and northwest Tucson.

Nationwide, the average monthly cable bill was $45.32 in 2003, according to Federal Communications Commission statistics released last February. Cable rates rose by an average of 7.5 percent annually between 1998 and 2003, according to the FCC.

As for the Cox price hike, rates will increase $2 per month for limited basic to $19.95, the company's least expensive cable package.

The rate will increase $4 to $49.95 for the digital cable package, which offers more than 270 channels.

Critics of the cable-TV industry — including Arizona Sen. John McCain — have pointed out that cable rates have risen faster then inflation for the past several recent years while the industry reaps healthy profits. McCain has urged cable providers to offer customers the option of buying individual channels or smaller channel packages to trim their bills.

Mónica Contreras, spokeswoman for Cox Communications in Tucson, said the price increase is necessary to cover rising costs, including the fees that Cox pays cable networks and broadcasters for rights to transmit their programs.

"A lot of people believe or have the notion that channels are free," Contreras said, "and they cost us money to get the rights. For news and sports channels, programming fees have increased 26 percent the last three years."

Cox said customers can avoid a price increase by signing up for the Cox Digital Home Pak, in which the consumer purchases cable, phone service and high-speed Internet. Prices for the combined services begin at $99.95, not including taxes and fees.