How to tame an inflated entertainment budget — CNet News.com/NYT

You probably spend more on entertainment than you do on groceries, clothing or gasoline.

If you don’t believe it, take a few minutes to total your monthly costs, starting with the services that have you locked in: basic cable television, and any premium channels, like HBO or Showtime; Netflix to rent videos; TiVo for digital recording; your high-speed Internet connection; and perhaps, satellite radio and streaming music like Yahoo Music. You are already up to about $200 a month, or $2,400 a year.

Don’t forget your iTunes music and video downloads, plus magazines, movie rentals, movie tickets, live shows and sporting events. Add in your cellphone and any of its video, data and premium content.

I haven’t added ours up, but I’m sure it’s pretty scary. I don’t know that DSL is really an “entertainment” expense; I consider it more of a “utility” like electricity or water. The article also includes mobile phones as “entertainment”; again, I would disagree. If you adjust the category to “entertainment/communications” then I could see these expenses included.