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Sorry Debunkers, Cord Cutters Are Very Real
They're just not being driven by Internet video yet...

The New York Times recently issued yet another story that aims to downplay the slow but steady rise of Internet video and "debunk" cord cutting, noting that 88% of those surveyed still pay for TV service. But while Internet video is certainly on a slow trajectory, it's silly to downplay the disruptive technology when nobody's really offered the perfect, inexpensive, and Luddite-proof broadband-driven living room solution yet. NewTeeVee notes that there is shift going on, illustrated by last quarter's cable subscriber losses:

quote:
cable companies lost 711,000 subscribers, which represents the biggest quarterly loss in cable TV's history. Six out of eight cable TV operators also reported their worst subscriber losses ever last quarter. Telcos and satellite TV providers were able to pick up some of those customers, posting combined gains of 495,000 subscribers. That still leaves 216,000 subscribers who cut the cord entirely.
Cord cutting is very real, though right now it's being driven primarily by the economy, not broadband video. What happens when Apple, Google, or an unknown upstart finally creates a broadband TV service that provides an inexpensive, simple, a la carte alternative to those annoying bi-annual cable rate hikes? Several studies have shown there's a very significant number of TV watchers who are prepared to make the leap.

TV operators seem prepared to do everything possible to prevent that -- except reduce prices. Lodged in a dance of death between investors who want continual returns, and broadcasters who demand ever-increasing programming fees, the cable TV industry will likely continue to raise prices even as these disruptive upstarts start to seriously nibble at subscriber totals over the next decade.
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AVD
Respice, Adspice, Prospice
Premium Member
join:2003-02-06
Onion, NJ

AVD

Premium Member

somebody?

Its going to be comcast or verizon that will, eventually, roll out an IPTV solution with dedicated set top boxes and some sort of accepted standard. Not a question of IF just when.

SSX4life
Hello World
Premium Member
join:2004-02-13

SSX4life

Premium Member

I've been cordless forever

Started college back in the late 90's and never had a land line. Never had cable TV either.... Skype / Boxee / Netflix is all I need. Can't beat the price of 35.00 for tv and phone and internet

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

1 edit

Nightfall

MVM

A pipe dream

Until....

1. Content you want to watch can be easily found.
2. The technology exists where you can watch it anytime you want.
3. The technology is easy to plug in and go.
4. The content is 720p, 1080i, or 1080p
5. All streams are 100% legal
6. The output to the TV is easy.

You won't see the cord cutting happening widespread. Case in point, I love live sports. What I don't love is trying to find these live sports streamed over the internet. The Versus debacle on Directv is a good case in point. If I wanted to watch hockey on Versus, I had to find a stream for it. Browsing all over the place for the streams and then finding something that would lose its picture was just not acceptable.

So now, here I am hearing about all the cord cutting going on. The fact of the matter is that its all economy driven right now. Until all of the above things happen, you won't see any widespread cord cutting.

ArrayList
DevOps
Premium Member
join:2005-03-19
Mullica Hill, NJ

1 edit

ArrayList

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

or any entire generation of couch potatoes dies off and the next generation of couch potatoes comes forth..

i'm probably an expection, but of all the people I know only those over the age of 30 have cable/satellite. everyone else does netflix, hulu, filesharing, usenet, or goes outside.

djrobx
Premium Member
join:2000-05-31
Reno, NV

djrobx

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

I only know one couple who've cut the cord. They have OTA and TiVo. Cutting the cord is a much easier proposition for people who can still get HD network channels off air.

I would have no problem cutting the cord (I can wait for shows to come out on DVD before I watch them), but compared to my other bills, my satellite TV is relatively cheap and convenient. It's a luxury I don't need to give up.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

FFH5 to ArrayList

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to ArrayList
said by ArrayList:

i'm probably an expection, but of all the people I know only those over the age of 30 have cable/satellite.
That is because they are the ones with jobs; houses; and HDTV's. Those under 30 are living in their parent's basements jobless or underemployed and using a PC screen to watch things.

ArrayList
DevOps
Premium Member
join:2005-03-19
Mullica Hill, NJ

ArrayList

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by FFH5:

said by ArrayList:

i'm probably an expection, but of all the people I know only those over the age of 30 have cable/satellite.
That is because they are the ones with jobs; houses; and HDTV's. Those under 30 are living in their parent's basements jobless or underemployed and using a PC screen to watch things.
are you being serious? or are you just trolling? I was being serious. I own my home. I choose to save over $1200/year not owning a tv and subscribing to cable. I do have an 1080p capable monitor that plays blu ray just fine. I know many under 30's that live on their own (condos, apartments, etc) that have hdtv's too. they just choose to watch ota.

hdtv's are not a status symbol.

FFH5
Premium Member
join:2002-03-03
Tavistock NJ

1 edit

FFH5

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by ArrayList:

I know many under 30's that live on their own (condos, apartments, etc) that have hdtv's too.
And I know many that are not living on their own.

»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bo ··· neration
He cites Canadian census statistics showing that, in 1981, 27.5% of Canadians aged 20–29 lived with their parents; in 2001, the figure had grown to 41%. In United States the proportion of adults ages 20 to 34 living with their parents has increased from 9% in 1960 to almost 17% in 2000.
The Japanese have an interesting name for it: Parasite Single:
»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pa ··· e_single
According to a 1998 survey by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, about 60% of single men and 80% of single women between the ages of 20 and 34 live with their parents.[citation needed] These numbers have been steadily increasing since 1976.
It appears to be a world wide situation in industrialized countries.

ArrayList
DevOps
Premium Member
join:2005-03-19
Mullica Hill, NJ

1 recommendation

ArrayList

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

ah. i forget about those people. I graduated years back with many many of them. Thanks for reminding me. Took me about a decade to forget that people are that unambitious.

I think of mom's and dad's that pay for every last thing for their kids. For christs sakes people teach your children some damn independence. sink or swim. whats it gunna be?

disconnected
@snet.net

2 recommendations

disconnected to FFH5

Anon

to FFH5
I think you may find a correlation between the numer of 'parasite singles' and the size/cost of government. In the old days, it was possible to own a home, nice car and have the wife stay home and raise the children, all while having enough left over to save for the future. Oh, eh, income tax back then was less than one percent and property taxes... $12/year.

Dryvlyne
Far Beyond Driven
Premium Member
join:2004-08-30
Newark, OH

Dryvlyne

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

BS... ever heard of the credit crunch? People in this country don't own anything but debt. Personal debt in this country has skyrocketed over the past 3 decades and is part of the reason why the current recession is so painful.
56403739 (banned)
Less than 5 months left
join:2006-03-08
Naples, FL

56403739 (banned)

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by Dryvlyne:

BS... ever heard of the credit crunch? People in this country don't own anything but debt. Personal debt in this country has skyrocketed over the past 3 decades and is part of the reason why the current recession is so painful.
I think you missed the humor...

$12 property taxes....
less than 1% income taxes...

I own lots of things, and they are all debt-free. Personal responsibility and smart money management can be a wonderful thing.

JammerMan79
Premium Member
join:2004-05-13
Prince George, BC

JammerMan79 to disconnected

Premium Member

to disconnected
or because the "free market" artifically brought prices for houses etc up to a price that younger people can no longer afford

gettagrip
@141.191.20.x

gettagrip to FFH5

Anon

to FFH5
These stats are deceptive due to the age range. I'd bet the numbers are heavily weighted towards the 20-23 age group. Many of these people are likely still in college and many of them still live with their parents while school is not in session. College attendance is also up compared to years ago. And lets not forget those who enlist in the military straight out of high school and continue to list their parents' address as their home address until their tour of duty is up.

I'd be willing to bet the numbers would greatly change if you narrowed the age range to 24-34.

dvd536
as Mr. Pink as they come
Premium Member
join:2001-04-27
Phoenix, AZ

dvd536 to ArrayList

Premium Member

to ArrayList
said by ArrayList:
said by FFH5:
said by ArrayList:

i'm probably an expection, but of all the people I know only those over the age of 30 have cable/satellite.
That is because they are the ones with jobs; houses; and HDTV's. Those under 30 are living in their parent's basements jobless or underemployed and using a PC screen to watch things.
hdtv's are not a status symbol.
concur. you can't even buy a new tv that isn't hd these days.

DavePR
join:2008-06-04
Canyon Country, CA

DavePR to ArrayList

Member

to ArrayList
Local TV comes in mighty handy when the mountains are on fire and you want to know where it's going next. I'm terrain sheilded and must use cable TV to watch my local channels.

There's a trend not mentioned of people in their late teens finding the internet quaint. Stuff goes in cycles. Plug and play rules.

ArrayList
DevOps
Premium Member
join:2005-03-19
Mullica Hill, NJ

ArrayList

Premium Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by DavePR:

Local TV comes in mighty handy when the mountains are on fire and you want to know where it's going next. I'm terrain sheilded and must use cable TV to watch my local channels.
can you get AM radio? i would imagine that there are plenty of emergency am stations that can announce that stuff.
56403739 (banned)
Less than 5 months left
join:2006-03-08
Naples, FL

56403739 (banned) to DavePR

Member

to DavePR
Good luck with that cable when the fire burns through it...
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned) to Nightfall

Member

to Nightfall
said by Nightfall:

Until....

1. Content you want to watch can be easily found.
2. The technology exists where you can watch it anytime you want.
3. The technology is easy to plug in and go.
4. The content is 720p, 1080i, or 1080p
5. All streams are 100% legal
6. The output to the TV is easy.

You won't see the cord cutting happening widespread. Case in point, I love live sports. What I don't love is trying to find these live sports streamed over the internet. The Versus debacle on Directv is a good case in point. If I wanted to watch hockey on Versus, I had to find a stream for it. Browsing all over the place for the streams and then finding something that would lose its picture was just not acceptable.
Yeah the streams you found sucked because they were illegal. The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

1 edit

Nightfall

MVM

Re: A pipe dream

said by 88615298:

said by Nightfall:

Until....

1. Content you want to watch can be easily found.
2. The technology exists where you can watch it anytime you want.
3. The technology is easy to plug in and go.
4. The content is 720p, 1080i, or 1080p
5. All streams are 100% legal
6. The output to the TV is easy.

You won't see the cord cutting happening widespread. Case in point, I love live sports. What I don't love is trying to find these live sports streamed over the internet. The Versus debacle on Directv is a good case in point. If I wanted to watch hockey on Versus, I had to find a stream for it. Browsing all over the place for the streams and then finding something that would lose its picture was just not acceptable.
Yeah the streams you found sucked because they were illegal. The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
For $160 for the season AND blackout rules apply.

Remember, the whole idea behind cord cutting is to be able to view the same content on the TV like we do with DVRs today at the same quality level for free or at least a very limited cost. I don't know many people who would drop that kind of money to watch in a crappy format over the internet. Not only to the content providers need to get their crap together, but the internet speeds as a whole need to go up and the caps need to disappear.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by Nightfall:

For $160 for the season
The expectation of getting everything for FREE is the biggest hinderance to getting more content online.
AND blackout rules apply.
I live out of market. So for me $2 a game does not seem that outrageous.
bt
join:2009-02-26
canada

bt to 88615298

Member

to 88615298
said by 88615298:

The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
For out-of-market games only.
tjb122982
join:2009-09-22
Terre Haute, IN

tjb122982

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by bt:

said by 88615298:

The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
For out-of-market games only.
Blackouts is the biggest reason why I am not going to cut the cord. When the sports leagues decide to drop their stupid blackout rules and put more of the games online. I'll cut it.
nsayer
join:2004-09-30
Santa Clara, CA

nsayer

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by tjb122982:

Blackouts is the biggest reason why I am not going to cut the cord. When the sports leagues decide to drop their stupid blackout rules and put more of the games online. I'll cut it.
You'll wait forever.

The purpose of the blackout rules is to insure that they have fans in the stadium to watch the game live.
tjb122982
join:2009-09-22
Terre Haute, IN

tjb122982

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by nsayer:

said by tjb122982:

Blackouts is the biggest reason why I am not going to cut the cord. When the sports leagues decide to drop their stupid blackout rules and put more of the games online. I'll cut it.
You'll wait forever.

The purpose of the blackout rules is to insure that they have fans in the stadium to watch the game live.
That's only the NFL. MLB's policy is based on protecting local broadcasters.

I can't watch the Cubs on either Extra Innings or MLB.tv because MLB wants to protect CSN Chicago but the thing is that Time Warner in Terre Haute doesn't carry CSN Chicago; and all my attempts to get my parents to switch to satellite have failed.

»en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ma ··· t_policy
bt
join:2009-02-26
canada

bt

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by tjb122982:

That's only the NFL. MLB's policy is based on protecting local broadcasters.
Somewhat the same for the NHL, except they also use it to protect a team's territory. Without Center Ice, you can't watch most games that aren't national broadcasts (exempt from regional blackouts) or involve the team who's broadcast region you're in.

SpaethCo
Digital Plumber
MVM
join:2001-04-21
Minneapolis, MN

SpaethCo to 88615298

MVM

to 88615298
said by 88615298:

Yeah the streams you found sucked because they were illegal. The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
It's still no comparison to broadcast HD game coverage. It's great in a pinch, but it is only an acceptable alternative to broadcast HD if your standards are very low.

Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI

Nightfall

MVM

Re: A pipe dream

said by SpaethCo:

said by 88615298:

Yeah the streams you found sucked because they were illegal. The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
It's still no comparison to broadcast HD game coverage. It's great in a pinch, but it is only an acceptable alternative to broadcast HD if your standards are very low.
This is the same for every stream I have found. Yes, I can watch Lost in HD right on ABC's website. No, I can't put it on my HDTV without getting some kind of TV out card or cable from my PC. As you said, its great in a pinch, but not where it needs to be.

The real cord cutting will happen eventually, but it will probably take 10-20 years.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by Nightfall:

said by SpaethCo:

said by 88615298:

Yeah the streams you found sucked because they were illegal. The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
It's still no comparison to broadcast HD game coverage. It's great in a pinch, but it is only an acceptable alternative to broadcast HD if your standards are very low.
This is the same for every stream I have found. Yes, I can watch Lost in HD right on ABC's website. No, I can't put it on my HDTV without getting some kind of TV out card or cable from my PC.
So what if you have to spend less than $100 on a card and HDMI cord? People pay that for just ONE month of cable. Also last time I checked ABC is a BROADCAST network surely you have a ABC station near you.
88615298

88615298 (banned) to SpaethCo

Member

to SpaethCo
said by SpaethCo:

said by 88615298:

Yeah the streams you found sucked because they were illegal. The NHL offers legal broadband streaming.
It's still no comparison to broadcast HD game coverage. It's great in a pinch, but it is only an acceptable alternative to broadcast HD if your standards are very low.
No my standards are not low. If paying $1000 a year or more in cable bills is worth getting hockey in the "HD" that is acceptable to you then more power to you.

SpaethCo
Digital Plumber
MVM
join:2001-04-21
Minneapolis, MN

SpaethCo

MVM

Re: A pipe dream

said by 88615298:

No my standards are not low. If paying $1000 a year or more in cable bills is worth getting hockey in the "HD" that is acceptable to you then more power to you.
On a 60" display the NueLion feeds are flat out painful to watch.

Between DirecTV and Shaw Direct (Canadian satellite) my bills are a bit north of $1k/year, but considering the cost of my Wild season tickets, even paying for Center Ice and basic service for both providers is the best value in the world.

gettagrip
@141.191.20.x

gettagrip

Anon

Re: A pipe dream

Man, I am so lucky that I hate sports.
nocannothave
join:2006-10-14
Kennewick, WA

nocannothave

Member

Re: A pipe dream

said by gettagrip :

Man, I am so lucky that I hate sports.
+1

My only vice is WRC, and as far as I know, it's not aired in the states.

cableties
Premium Member
join:2005-01-27

cableties

Premium Member

Cost reality check...

I imagine that some households require that +$100/month subscription. But not the majority.
(Sports packages, 3 or more HDTV DVRs, PPV, ...) but some I know have cut the cord (due to cost and quality).

Extra box fees.
Almost bi-monthy channel re-org (under the guise WE ARE ADDING MORE CHANNELS).
Moving good channels to higher-cost tier.
Charging more per hour/per household.
Yes, the economy. I think the figure is more like 14% unemployed or greater number of employed with pay cuts, no more bonuses, and poor annual increase.

When salaries go down or flat, and prices get inflated...something is going to break.(Hopefully them before me!)

BTW, I cut the cord on FiosTV a year ago. How about you?
Happydude32
Premium Member
join:2005-07-16

Happydude32

Premium Member

Re: Cost reality check...

$100/month? Yeah right. My cable bill exceeds $300/month on a regular basis depending on what sports are in season. Digital cable with HBO, Cinemax, Showtime, Starz, Encore, Sports Tier, HD Tier, Latino Tier, NHL Center Ice, MLB Extra Innings, ESPN Game Plan, 2 HD DVRs, Road Runner Turbo and Digital Phone. Disney On Demand, Stern On Demand, the gay channel, the Russian channel, NBA League Pass, MLS Direct Kick and ESPN Full Court are the only services I don’t subscribe to.
quote:
Extra box fees.

Cable companies lease out hardware. They don't get the terminals free from Motorola or Cisco thus they charge a fee.
quote:
Almost bi-monthy channel re-org (under the guise WE ARE ADDING MORE CHANNELS).

quote:
Moving good channels to higher-cost tier.

For every one analog channel that is removed on put on digital, two HD channels can be added. That is a good thing for three reasons. 1) Bandwidth is used more efficiently 2) More HD channels 3) No more fuzzy analog channels. How and why people can want analog cable is beyond me. Plus this is 2010, the word 'analog' should be removed from the dictionary.

Analog removal and requiring digital terminals is a very good thing.
quote:
Charging more per hour/per household.

????

markofmayhem
Why not now?
Premium Member
join:2004-04-08
Pittsburgh, PA

markofmayhem

Premium Member

Model isn't changing, delivery doesn't matter

quote:
What happens when Apple, Google, or an unknown upstart finally creates a broadband TV service that provides an inexpensive, simple, a la carte alternative
Who knows, as Apple is not providing an inexpensive, simple, a la carte alternative. The show is a rental, 24 hours delayed, and more expensive. As I read another reporter say (paraphrasing, couldn't find source again): "If I watch 2 hours of TV with my wife per day and my kids watch 1 hour of TV per day, on a weekly average, it will cost me $90/month for Apple iTV's 720p only, 48 hour deleted rental, 24 hour delay after airing product, with no solution for live events, news, weather, or sports".

GoogleTV is NOT a product in competition with cable, sat, nor Apple's iTV. GoogleTV is just like Android for the cell phone (Android didn't knock off Sprint, nor Verizon, nor AT&T), it is nothing more than a gateway/interface to combine traditional pay-TV with Web 2.0 Google solutions. It is a marriage of cable and Youtube. Why would Google take the time to do this? Because Google is about to compete directly with Netflix, iTV, Amazon, etc. GoogleTV is in competition with Rovi, TiVo and Moxi.

People are choosing food over TV. This is great news! It is refreshing to see that in an economic downturn, TV is not increasing. Finally! It is the only way to correct the market for entertainment. Unfortunately, it has zero to do with how the 1's and 0's are sent to our homes to make images. QAM, 8PSK/QPSK, ATSC, IP... really? It makes a difference, huh?

Frink
Professor
Premium Member
join:2000-07-13
Scotch Plains, NJ

1 edit

Frink

Premium Member

My expierence

I haven't gotten a "bi-annual rate hike" hit in a very long time. Years. Once FIOS competition arrived to compete with cable company monopoly, my rates have gone down significantly - for vastly better service. I do need to sign contracts, but for zero price increases over the last two, and the foreseeable future, it's worth it. Sure I won't be cutting the cord anytime soon, but I need live football anyway, something my newsgroups have yet to provide a solution for

Edit: forgot the no-contract changes recently. There goes the contract.
tmc8080
join:2004-04-24
Brooklyn, NY

tmc8080

Member

if your paying...

more than $100 for triple play entry level is highway robbery... doesn't matter which company!

Yes, eventually consumers not locked into buying cable-tv because they can't get OTA for free plus a HPTC server for video aren't really getting the best value for the dollar. You overpay for set-tops, franchise fees, taxes (yes, they're in there somewhere), etc. More and more hardware are doing the streaming video feature... LCD-TVs, Blue Ray Players, Consoles, HTPCs, DVRs, probably even some HD Tuner boxes with the feature by now (for the analog tv hold-outs). Compare that with a dumb set-top which is a almost compeltely walled garden and makes you jump through hoops for vod, value added and other features.

All this is pointing to the cable companies & the entertainment industry being screwed in the coming years. They better get on the video distribution bandwagon sooner rather than later because about 25% of the residential footprint of the country (think population, not geography numbers), have 6+ megbits available to them.. and they will download for free if a competitive legal alternative isn't forthcoming. By competitive that doesn't necessarily mean FREE, but AT LEAST must fit the criteria as more user friendly than torrent hunting, lacking restrictive DRM, e t c .
Bobcat79
Premium Member
join:2001-02-04

1 edit

Bobcat79

Premium Member

Alternative = "OFF" button

I canceled my overpriced Cablevision service. They were charging $54/month for a whopping 45 channels. Getting more channels would have raised my bill to over $80/month, just for TV.

Now I don't watch any TV.

I don't care about "alternatives", either. I simply don't watch TV at all. (Well, I downloaded a whole 3 pirated TV shows this year. Not 3 series. 3 episodes total.)

•••
maubs
join:2010-02-26
Farmington, IL

maubs

Member

Was THIS close to cutting the cord

And then I moved to a house that can only get 650 kbps DSL service. Ugh! No streaming for me!
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: Was THIS close to cutting the cord

said by maubs:

And then I moved to a house that can only get 650 kbps DSL service. Ugh! No streaming for me!
This is why people need to research about their broadband options BEFORE moving into a place. I'm not sure why they don't.

jester121
Premium Member
join:2003-08-09
Lake Zurich, IL

jester121

Premium Member

Cutting the cord isn't always by choice

cable companies lost 711,000 subscribers, which represents the biggest quarterly loss in cable TV's history. Six out of eight cable TV operators also reported their worst subscriber losses ever last quarter. Telcos and satellite TV providers were able to pick up some of those customers, posting combined gains of 495,000 subscribers. That still leaves 216,000 subscribers who cut the cord entirely.
And how many of those 216K households were evictions or non-payment shutoffs due to the awful economy?

It's just as silly to twist a news story to fit one's pipe dream of a free content broadband-driven media utopia that punishes those evil cable companies.

••••

skuv
@rr.com

skuv

Anon

So...

It's just an assumption then that the lost cable subscribers are cord cutters using Internet video, and not people who can no longer afford any service, or people who had to move because of foreclosure or no longer being able to afford their mortgage in this economy? Or people who lost their jobs?

And the Internet video services are only going to be as good as the content providers will let them be. If Disney suddenly wants to force Internet video services to charge per subscriber if they want to carry ABC and ESPN shows, even if those subscribers don't watch, then where will all of this be?

That's what happens to cable, satellite, and telco TV right now. It would be naive to think that the content providers won't try to continue the same thing with the Internet if they lose TV revenue.

funchords
Hello
MVM
join:2001-03-11
Yarmouth Port, MA

funchords

MVM

My (not) cord-cutting plan

I'm a TV junkie, but it's mostly older shows in re-runs and news/talk.

Next spring, I plan to cut back to the most basic tier cable-TV service for the local stations (there is very little OTA here). I'll supplement that with online video (free and Netflix), a budget for (mostly used) DVDs, and more activities out of the home (which is why I'm waiting until spring).

As a result, the cord won't get cut, but it will be significantly thinned.
88615298 (banned)
join:2004-07-28
West Tenness

88615298 (banned)

Member

Re: My (not) cord-cutting plan

said by funchords:

I'm a TV junkie, but it's mostly older shows in re-runs and news/talk.

Next spring, I plan to cut back to the most basic tier cable-TV service for the local stations (there is very little OTA here).
You're quite wrong about that. I see plenty of OTA in your area. You're not going to get it in with rabbit ears on the TV but OTA is doable.

funchords
Hello
MVM
join:2001-03-11
Yarmouth Port, MA

funchords

MVM

Re: My (not) cord-cutting plan

How far can I expect to get OTA from a transmitter site when I have no line of sight? Zip 02675
bt
join:2009-02-26
canada

bt

Member

216k is trivial

That still leaves 216,000 subscribers who cut the cord entirely
216,000 sure seems like a big number, but it works out to under 0.2% of US households cutting the cord. (based on US Census Bureau projections for 2010 household count).

Yes, it's enough to show that cord cutters exist. It also shows that (for now), they are a trivial fraction of US households. It's less than the typical margin of error on this kind of statistics work. This is not the start of the TV revolution, it's standard quarterly fluctuations.

Oh, and the very article that points that number out also has this to say:
SNL Kagan expects the industry to gain a total of 900,000 subscribers in the third and fourth quarter.
Internet video is very likely the future, but cable/satellite is definitely still the present.

battleop
join:2005-09-28
00000

battleop

Member

Re: 216k is trivial

The economy sucks right now. How many of those 216k people made cut backs to do things like pay the light bill, or put food on the table? They probably have the lowest tier of internet so watching video is probably not the top of their list.
exseven8
Premium Member
join:2003-05-23
L8E0G6

exseven8

Premium Member

Re: 216k is trivial

How many cut the cord because they moved back home for the summer from college/university

Morac
Cat god
join:2001-08-30
Riverside, NJ

Morac

Member

Paying too much for cable

After watching the Emmy's last night I obviously don't watch that much TV since I had no idea who many of the people who won or who were in the opening number were. That makes me wonder why I'm paying all this money for cable TV.

I probably watch a handful of channels, but have to subscribe to all channels to get them. I've very seriously considered dropping cable and using the Internet, but considering how often I have problems with the Internet in my area lately that's probably not likely to happen.

Cableco Emp
@blackberry.net

Cableco Emp

Anon

Really?

It's a risk in coming years, yes. However, the difference in net sat/telco adds and net cable losses could be the number of middle-aged women who got married or began cohabiting, and gave up their seperate homes. Not an official cableco opinion, I'm low man on the totem pole. But it's not time to get hysterical yet. It's time to fix the business model before hysteria arrives.

vdiv
Premium Member
join:2002-03-23
Reston, VA

vdiv

Premium Member

Re: Really?

That's what AT&T was saying about VoIP back in the year 2000. Four years later they exited the consumer voice business and a few months later were gobbled up by SBC.

fifty nine
join:2002-09-25
Sussex, NJ

fifty nine

Member

Antennas

Sounds like a lot of people are shifting to antennas to get their TV.

Like Karl said, it's not broadband. Rather, people are realizing that they mostly just need the big four and they can get that OTA, in full quality with an inexpensive antenna.
kjpwv
join:2006-10-24
Fairmont, WV

kjpwv

Member

I want to cut the cord, but...

... my connection is EVDO Rev A, a frontier dsl box just went in up the road and comcast is almost here, but that does nothing for me today.

And even when I do get some land based solution there is still the sports problem. While watchable, sports streams (at my speeds at least) always suffer from some motion blur, and when the stream stutters, you miss game action.

Case in point - My Dish TV went out, the evening of the Super Bowl. We a heck of a winter and somehow the freeze thaws ate the connection to the ground block. Not that I knew that then, it was dark and the game was about to start. So I hit the net and the best quality I could find was a french stream, I don't care what language its in its football, I'll understand. The picture was good, just some motion blur, oh and NO COMMERCIALS. Seriously this is why it hasn't caught on in other places, 2/3 of the coverage was dudes just standing around. No wonder they think we are lazy.

There were typical stream problems, the occasional stutter, the need to reconnect, I enjoyed the game but keeping that feed up was more work than I wanted. With sports I want the easiest most thought free solution so I can enjoy the game, not wonder about the quality of the stream. My Dad bought access to college basketball games from CBS this year and that feed was total sh*t even over his office cable connection despite being a paid service.

So until they improve both my connection and the digital delivery of sports I'm keeping the cord.
elray
join:2000-12-16
Santa Monica, CA

elray

Member

Except That

Apple and Google are making it pretty clear that they WON'T be providing an inexpensive, simple, ala carte alternative.

CableSatelCo has nothing to worry about, and they know well that the average 2+ person household is not going to disconnect at any price.

While Generation Y and Z will grow up watching streams on 15" laptop screens, when they graduate high school, they will attend colleges that have discovered new revenue streams: mandatory dorm residency - with one flavor of "basic cable" for everyone - you'll pay for it whether you watch or not.

GeekJedi
RF is Good For You
Premium Member
join:2001-06-21
Mukwonago, WI
ARRIS TM1602
Apple AirPort Extreme (2013)
Ooma Telo

GeekJedi

Premium Member

I cut the cord

I echo some of the commenters here. I realized that most of what I was watching was from the "Big 4" and with DTV I have about 25 channels now OTA.

I canceled my Sat TV sub and now use TiVo to record OTA and stream Netflix. TiVo also has a great import/export program that allows me to convert other video and have it sit on the "Now Playing" list.

I was paying almost $100/mo for TV programming. The initial equipment purchase paid for itself in 4 months and I'm now paying $10/month to TiVo and $10/month to Netflix. The extra $70/mo goes right to the savings account. After six months, I still don't miss pay TV.
33358088 (banned)
join:2008-09-23

33358088 (banned)

Member

tv out card and whats the problem?

1999 said good buy aint looked back at cable or whatever
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