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View Full Version : Information Wars being won "Broadcasters worry about 'Zero TV' homes"




Athan
04-07-2013, 03:44 PM
People are no longer taking their daily brainwashing:
http://news.yahoo.com/broadcasters-worry-zero-tv-homes-154357101--finance.html

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Some people have had it with TV. They've had enough of the 100-plus channel universe. They don't like timing their lives around network show schedules. They're tired of $100-plus monthly bills.

A growing number of them have stopped paying for cable and satellite TV service, and don't even use an antenna to get free signals over the air. These people are watching shows and movies on the Internet, sometimes via cellphone connections. Last month, the Nielsen Co. started labeling people in this group "Zero TV" households, because they fall outside the traditional definition of a TV home. There are 5 million of these residences in the U.S., up from 2 million in 2007.

Winning back the Zero TV crowd will be one of the many issues broadcasters discuss at their national meeting, called the NAB Show, taking place this week in Las Vegas.

While show creators and networks make money from this group's viewing habits through deals with online video providers and from advertising on their own websites and apps, broadcasters only get paid when they relay such programming in traditional ways. Unless broadcasters can adapt to modern platforms, their revenue from Zero TV viewers will be zero.

"Getting broadcast programing on all the gizmos and gadgets — like tablets, the backseats of cars, and laptops — is hugely important," says Dennis Wharton, a spokesman for the National Association of Broadcasters.

Although Wharton says more than 130 TV stations in the U.S. are broadcasting live TV signals to mobile devices, few people have the tools to receive them. Most cellphones require an add-on device known as a dongle, but these gadgets are just starting to be sold.

Among this elusive group of consumers is Jeremy Carsen Young, a graphic designer, who is done with traditional TV. Young has a working antenna sitting unplugged on his back porch in Roanoke, Va., and he refuses to put it on the roof.

"I don't think we'd use it enough to justify having a big eyesore on the house," the 30-year-old says.

Online video subscriptions from Netflix Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. — which cost less than $15 a month combined — have given him and his partner plenty to watch. They take in back episodes of AMC's "The Walking Dead" and The CW's "Supernatural," and they don't need more, he says.

He doesn't mind waiting as long as a year for the current season's episodes to appear on streaming services, even if his friends accidently blurt out spoilers in the meantime. With regular television, he might have missed the latest developments, anyway.

"By the time it gets to me to watch, I've kind of forgotten about that," he says.

For the first time, TV ratings giant Nielsen took a close look at this category of viewer in its quarterly video report released in March. It plans to measure their viewing of new TV shows starting this fall, with an eye toward incorporating the results in the formula used to calculate ad rates.

"Our commitment is to being able to measure the content wherever it is," says Dounia Turrill, Nielsen's senior vice president of insights.

The Zero TV segment is increasingly important, because the number of people signing up for traditional TV service has slowed to a standstill in the U.S.

Last year, the cable, satellite and telecoms providers added just 46,000 video customers collectively, according to research firm SNL Kagan. That is tiny when compared to the 974,000 new households created last year. While it's still 100.4 million homes, or 84.7 percent of all households, it's down from the peak of 87.3 percent in early 2010.

Nielsen's study suggests that this new group may have left traditional TV for good. While three-quarters actually have a physical TV set, only 18 percent are interested in hooking it up through a traditional pay TV subscription.

Zero TVers tend to be younger, single and without children. Nielsen's senior vice president of insights, Dounia Turrill, says part of the new monitoring regime is meant to help determine whether they'll change their behavior over time. "As these homes change life stage, what will happen to them?"

Cynthia Phelps, a 43-year-old maker of mental health apps in San Antonio, Texas, says there's nothing that will bring her back to traditional TV. She's watched TV in the past, of course, but for most of the last 10 years she's done without it.

She finds a lot of programs online to watch on her laptop for free — like the TED talks educational series — and every few months she gets together with friends to watch older TV shows on DVD, usually "something totally geeky," like NBC's "Chuck."

The 24-hour news channels make her anxious or depressed, and buzz about the latest hot TV shows like "Mad Men" doesn't make her feel like she's missing out. She didn't know who the Kardashian family was until she looked them up a few years ago.

"I feel absolutely no social pressure to keep up with the Joneses in that respect," she says.

For Phelps, it's less about saving money than choice. She says she'd rather spend her time productively and not get "sucked into" shows she'll regret later.

"I don't want someone else dictating the media I get every day," she says. "I want to be in charge of it. When I have a TV, I'm less in control of that."

The TV industry has a host of buzz words to describe these non-traditionalist viewers. There are "cord-cutters," who stop paying for TV completely, and make do with online video and sometimes an antenna. There are "cord-shavers," who reduce the number of channels they subscribe to, or the number of rooms pay TV is in, to save money.

Then there are the "cord-nevers," young people who move out on their own and never set up a landline phone connection or a TV subscription. They usually make do with a broadband Internet connection, a computer, a cellphone and possibly a TV set that is not hooked up the traditional way.

That's the label given to the group by Richard Schneider, the president and founder of the online retailer Antennas Direct. The site is doing great business selling antennas capable of accepting free digital signals since the nation's transition to digital over-the-air broadcasts in 2009, and is on pace to sell nearly 600,000 units this year, up from a few dozen when it started in 2003.

While the "cord-nevers" are a target market for him, the category is also troubling. More people are raised with the power of the Internet in their pocket, and don't know or care that you can pull TV signals from the air for free.

"They're more aware of Netflix than they're aware over-the-air is even available," Schneider says.

That brings us to truck driver James Weitze. The 31-year-old satisfies his video fix with an iPhone. He often sleeps in his truck, and has no apartment. To be sure, he's an extreme case who doesn't fit into Nielsen's definition of a household in the first place. But he's watching Netflix enough to keep up with shows like "Weeds," ''30 Rock," ''Arrested Development," ''Breaking Bad," ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia" and "Sons of Anarchy."

He's not opposed to TV per se, and misses some ESPN sports programs like the "X Games."

But he's so divorced from the traditional TV ecosystem it could be hard to go back. It's become easier for him to navigate his smartphone than to figure out how to use a TV set-top box and the button-laden remote control.

"I'm pretty tech savvy, but the TV industry with the cable and the television and the boxes, you don't know how to use their equipment," he says. "I try to go over to my grandma's place and teach her how to do it. I can't even figure it out myself."

CaseyJones
04-07-2013, 03:46 PM
Kill The TV!

jim49er
04-07-2013, 03:53 PM
I killed directv a couple of days ago.

Origanalist
04-07-2013, 04:03 PM
Kill The TV!

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/227/505712974_1af91a8cc2.jpg

CaseyJones
04-07-2013, 04:04 PM
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/227/505712974_1af91a8cc2.jpg

mua ha ha

Czolgosz
04-07-2013, 04:04 PM
Once government corrects the internet, Zombieland will continue. Fear not.

MRK
04-07-2013, 04:06 PM
We need to bailout our telebroadcasting industry. How will people stay informed otherwise? What about the people who can't read or figure out how to turn on a computer? THINK OF THE CHILDREN

S.Shorland
04-07-2013, 04:17 PM
'Aunty Beeb' constantly sh#tt#ng into my eyes and ears just became too much.I'm not alone.

Warrior_of_Freedom
04-07-2013, 04:18 PM
I know a lot of family members who don't watch T.V. anymore

enhanced_deficit
04-07-2013, 10:31 PM
Haha nice!

We're using our both TVs for computer watching and only occasionally for OTA broadcasts. TV everything seems so boring once you get used to having a better choice about what you feed to your brain.

oyarde
04-07-2013, 11:39 PM
We have two left in the house , I think , only one is hooked up, when I moved last, left one , gave two away.The Mrs uses the one we have hooked up , except for ball games , occasionally, I do not.

tod evans
04-08-2013, 03:04 AM
No commercial TV since the '70's

Nice to know others are getting on board...

XTreat
04-08-2013, 03:11 AM
I haven't paid for tv since about the time I discovered Ron Paul in late 2008. Not sure why the coincidence, but none the less.

ClydeCoulter
04-08-2013, 05:03 AM
It's not the TV, it's the content. Get it? No, they don't. They think they need to repackage the same shit with a new label. "It's shit in any box you have, it's not just the old shit in a box, it's shit in every orfice."

idiom
04-08-2013, 05:17 AM
Total failure to understand the point of the article.

People are not turning off from tv, they are turning off from linear broadcast tv. Its a pain in the arse for advertisers, but the brainwashing isn't tamped down at all.

roho76
04-08-2013, 06:08 AM
I haven't paid for tv since about the time I discovered Ron Paul in late 2008. Not sure why the coincidence, but none the less.

Same here. I cancelled in 07 right after I discovered Ron and seen the way the TV Jesters treated him. I was looking for ways to reduce monthly expenses and that just sort of fit. I now use an Apple TV and stream Netflix, Hulu for a total of $15 a month.

PatriotOne
04-08-2013, 06:27 AM
I just bought a new 42 inch flat panel TV (Emerson HDTV ACL 1080). Can I hook my internet up to it and use it like I do my computer monitor? Browsing internet? Streaming video's? Etc. It says it has a PC input.

2young2vote
04-08-2013, 08:10 AM
I just bought a new 42 inch flat panel TV (Emerson HDTV ACL 1080). Can I hook my internet up to it and use it like I do my computer monitor? Browsing internet? Streaming video's? Etc. It says it has a PC input.

Does it also have HDMI (HDMI looks like a USB plug in, but slightly different with an angled side)? If it does have HDMI, you may be able to hook your computer up to it if your computer has HDMI as well. HDMI would transmit both video and sound so you wouldn't have to worry about speakers.

If your TV and computer only have VGA, then you would have to hook it up using VGA then hook up external speakers from your computer.

But I will probably do the same thing as everyone else. Just use internet services to get my tv show fix. There are maybe only two shows at any given time that i actually want to watch. I can usually find them on the networks website and when I use adblock, I don't have to watch 30 second + advertisements.

PatriotOne
04-08-2013, 08:13 AM
Does it also have HDMI (HDMI looks like a USB plug in, but slightly different with an angled side)? If it does have HDMI, you may be able to hook your computer up to it if your computer has HDMI as well. HDMI would transmit both video and sound so you wouldn't have to worry about speakers.

If your TV and computer only have VGA, then you would have to hook it up using VGA then hook up external speakers from your computer.

But I will probably do the same thing as everyone else. Just use internet services to get my tv show fix. There are maybe only two shows at any given time that i actually want to watch. I can usually find them on the networks website and when I use adblock, I don't have to watch 30 second + advertisements.

Thanks for the reply. The TV box says it has HDMI X3. Not sure about my computor.

jbauer
04-08-2013, 08:47 AM
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=A5588916&dgc=ST&cid=72662&lid=1838884&acd=123098073120560

There you go. It beats the pants off of other TV boxes like apple and roku. We've yet to entirely pull the plug but we're close. Its amazing what you can collect over time. We've got 10ish terabits of video files on a server.

presence
04-08-2013, 08:53 AM
Zero TV household since 2001.

enjerth
04-08-2013, 09:21 AM
That's funny.

I wonder how long it will take them to figure out that, when they wait a week after airing an episode before running it online for me to catch an episode I missed, or they don't run it at all online, I'll be less interested in sticking with the broadcast after missing an episode on a weekly linear series.

evilfunnystuff
04-08-2013, 10:32 AM
Cord cutter since 08, convinced over half a dozen others close to me to do the same, including my 50_something parents.

MRK
04-08-2013, 11:03 AM
Total failure to understand the point of the article.

People are not turning off from tv, they are turning off from linear broadcast tv. Its a pain in the arse for advertisers, but the brainwashing isn't tamped down at all.

:confused:

I think people realize this. The cable is being turned off. The one to many approach of media is dying, and being replaced by many to many. Therefore there is less of an opportunity for a small cadre to influence hundreds of millions unilaterally.

Romulus
04-08-2013, 11:05 AM
Ok, so how do I get my local channels??? I've done cut off from cable.. but I want the locals for the ball games and stuff...

georgiaboy
04-08-2013, 11:10 AM
Cord cutter since 08, convinced over half a dozen others close to me to do the same, including my 50_something parents.

I'm interested in exploring doing this myself. How do you do it? What replaced it?

jbauer
04-08-2013, 11:12 AM
Ok, so how do I get my local channels??? I've done cut off from cable.. but I want the locals for the ball games and stuff...

That's our issue, we're to far out to get over the air channels. However, Direct Tv has a locals only package that they don't advertise for $10is/mo. I think we're going to do that. I'll miss some History channel stuff that I like at odd hours of the night but that's about it.

torchbearer
04-08-2013, 11:18 AM
Ok, so how do I get my local channels??? I've done cut off from cable.. but I want the locals for the ball games and stuff... antenna, if you must. if the show is specific to the company(and not a local show like news), like nbc, tbs, or something- their website often have full episodes sometime after their original air date.

georgiaboy
04-08-2013, 11:24 AM
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=A5588916&dgc=ST&cid=72662&lid=1838884&acd=123098073120560

There you go. It beats the pants off of other TV boxes like apple and roku. We've yet to entirely pull the plug but we're close. Its amazing what you can collect over time. We've got 10ish terabits of video files on a server.

this is new technology to me. what's it do? what's different from this and say, xbox 360 for streaming?

CaseyJones
04-08-2013, 11:36 AM
Tech upstarts threaten TV broadcast model

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/07/us-broadcaster-threats-idUSBRE9360E220130407


Two fledgling technologies could dramatically reshape the $60 billion-a-year television broadcast industry as they challenge the business model that has helped keep broadcasters on the lucrative end of the media spectrum.

On April 1, a U.S. appeals court rejected a petition by the major broadcasters including Comcast's NBC, News Corp's FOX, Disney's ABC and CBS, to stop a service called Aereo, which offers a cut-rate TV subscription for consumers by capturing broadcast signals over thousands of antennas at one time.

It was the second time in recent months that TV broadcasters failed to block a new technology that undercuts revenue they generate for their television shows.

more at link ^

torchbearer
04-08-2013, 11:41 AM
Tech upstarts threaten TV broadcast model

http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/04/07/us-broadcaster-threats-idUSBRE9360E220130407



more at link ^

the companies website: https://www.aereo.com/

axiomata
04-08-2013, 11:42 AM
We cut the cable this year. Did install an antenna in the attic above the garage to pick up OTA HD broadcasts. Did not want the eyesore on the roof so got an amplifier to get it through the shingles. Picked up a roku for hulu, amazon prime instant, and a number of other internet channels. Plex runs on my computer to serve up any video files. Xbox360 can also be used to get content such as ESPN3 Would highly recommend.

The big hurt is not getting baseball games. Considering the $130/yr MLB.TV package to stream those games.

presence
04-08-2013, 11:53 AM
That's our issue, we're to far out to get over the air channels. However, Direct Tv has a locals only package that they don't advertise for $10is/mo. I think we're going to do that. I'll miss some History channel stuff that I like at odd hours of the night but that's about it.

History Channel Full Episodes:
http://www.history.com/videos

jay_dub
04-08-2013, 12:00 PM
We had Direct TV up until 2005. Then we just had our local channel. I gave my living room TV away last year and now have only the one in the bedroom with no antenna. We now just watch videos....movies and series. I like watching series like that. Some, with a continuing story line, work better when seen all at once. Other than that, I get my news from the web and watch youtube for other stuff.

I don't miss the other crap at all. In fact, it's downright strange to go to someone's house and see "TV".

VoluntaryAmerican
04-08-2013, 12:02 PM
I didnt see anybody mention Netflix. But for $100 a year, it's not a bad substitute and I know some people who use just Netflix. It also started original shows now, copying HBO's model. The shows are pretty high quality. House of Cards being one show that I watched that was very good from Netflix.

dannno
04-08-2013, 12:28 PM
http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dhs&cs=19&sku=A5588916&dgc=ST&cid=72662&lid=1838884&acd=123098073120560

There you go. It beats the pants off of other TV boxes like apple and roku. We've yet to entirely pull the plug but we're close. Its amazing what you can collect over time. We've got 10ish terabits of video files on a server.

With appletv you can stream something off youtube on your ipad or iphone or your apple computer and send it to appletv instantly. Does that WD media player have a web browser or youtube or any way to stream directly from another source like that?

What streaming services do you have direct access to (i.e. youtube/netflix/hulu/etcc)

jbauer
04-08-2013, 12:37 PM
History Channel Full Episodes:
http://www.history.com/videos

Gotta figure out a way to get it on the TV in our bedroom. I can do an Ipad connection via a cable but I would like to be able to have it when I can't turn my mind off. History channel has helped me fall asleep several times. My biggest fear is I'll pick something I want to watch and thus not be able to fall asleep as easy!!!

The Ipad app is very nice, I imagine that the industry will head toward something like an app that you pay $1/mo or something of that nature.

jbauer
04-08-2013, 12:48 PM
With appletv you can stream something off youtube on your ipad or iphone or your apple computer and send it to appletv instantly. Does that WD media player have a web browser or youtube or any way to stream directly from another source like that?

What streaming services do you have direct access to (i.e. youtube/netflix/hulu/etcc)

Sure the WD TV can do all of those. I like the WD because it is BY FAR the best for local content (streaming off a server, or usb drive). I've downloaded and ripped a bunch of stuff that we like to watch and have 24/7/365 access to it with or without an internet connection.

It was my understanding that the Apple TV doesn't allow you to install apps like an Iphone or Ipad does. Is that still the case?

For anyone who is considering the WDTV, don't get the stupid new one (WD Play). Its a POS. "Last years" model will play dang near ANY type of media. (avi, mkv, mp4, flv, on and on and on) You can mess with the audio or subtitles if they get off with the video (don't know of another that lets you do that). Subtitles actually work unlike most others. The interface is changeable so if you want to rip your movie collection you can store a thumb of what the movie is about etc. You can download the trailer and put it in the same folder.

I have a roku and highly dislike it. I have seen the new WD one. I've seen a couple of the cheap ones. I've used a PS3 at my brother-in-laws. I don't even like WD hard-drives but they did well with their SMP. So that all the product pitching I'm going to do.

jbauer
04-08-2013, 12:55 PM
this is new technology to me. what's it do? what's different from this and say, xbox 360 for streaming?

It'll stream the common ones, youtube, hula, amazon etc. If you want the super odd ball ones Roku does have more content. I love mine and have set up lots of friends and families on their system. I mostly watch local content off my server. So anything that you want to download, ripped movies/tv series, etc. Make your server wireless you can stream to any device you might have. You can also set up a slingbox at another location and leach TV off of them. Thought about doing this for the NFL games that I want.

Supposedly there are a couple companies coming out with apps for WDTV's that will allow you to play local channels for free. Once the Apple/Android Apps become easily available on a TV, cable and satellite are dead in the water.

enhanced_deficit
04-08-2013, 01:25 PM
Ok, so how do I get my local channels??? I've done cut off from cable.. but I want the locals for the ball games and stuff...

No need to buy any cable service, this Mohu leaf paper-thin antenna delivers super clear digital picture. It is the size of a paper sheet and can be hidden behind a painting. In our near city area, over 20 local channels including multiple PBS/CBS/ABC/NBC channels appear super clear (though about half of them are trying to sell products/God or are in Spanish).

http://www.amazon.com/Mohu-Leaf-Paper-Thin-Indoor-Antenna/dp/B004QK7HI8/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1365447088&sr=8-1&keywords=paper+thin+antenna

Even if I can afford, spending money on cable seems like an obscene expense. Netflix plus occasional local channels been working great for us.

evilfunnystuff
04-08-2013, 02:46 PM
I'm interested in exploring doing this myself. How do you do it? What replaced it?
For the non-geek I'd recomend Netflix, or Amazon Prime both stream instant video on demand commercial free, lots of movies and series I believe both offer a free month trail with no charge. With prime you also get free ups 3 day shipping for anything you order on amazon. There are things like hulu also but i refuse to pay for somethin with commercials.

If your a geek and tech inclined look into bit-torrent, and a vpn.

Your computer should be able to hook up to most any reasonably modern tv through HDMI or VGA. If you need help with that I could dig up a tutorial or somethin. Dont overpay for cords thiugh you can get em for 5 bux on ebay or newegg etc.

With the money you save on the cable in 1 year you could get 1 or 2 new chromebook laptops a netflix subscription [like 9 bux a month] and still have saved hundreds and be able to enjoy your video without commercials on your own schedule.

jbauer
04-08-2013, 03:23 PM
For the non-geek I'd recomend Netflix, or Amazon Prime both stream instant video on demand commercial free, lots of movies and series I believe both offer a free month trail with no charge. With prime you also get free ups 3 day shipping for anything you order on amazon. There are things like hulu also but i refuse to pay for somethin with commercials.

If your a geek and tech inclined look into bit-torrent, and a vpn.

Your computer should be able to hook up to most any reasonably modern tv through HDMI or VGA. If you need help with that I could dig up a tutorial or somethin. Dont overpay for cords thiugh you can get em for 5 bux on ebay or newegg etc.

With the money you save on the cable in 1 year you could get 1 or 2 new chromebook laptops a netflix subscription [like 9 bux a month] and still have saved hundreds and be able to enjoy your video without commercials on your own schedule.


Torrents are illegal and should not be downloaded by anyone.

evilfunnystuff
04-08-2013, 03:37 PM
Torrents are illegal and should not be downloaded by anyone.

Torrents are not illegal.

XTreat
04-08-2013, 03:42 PM
Torrents are illegal and should not be downloaded by anyone.

oops

Brian4Liberty
04-08-2013, 04:05 PM
This is a tragedy. Everyone needs to have access to affordable television. It would be cheaper if only everyone subscribed to a provider. Perhaps Obama and the Democrats can get together with the major networks and come up with a national television plan so that everyone will get TV? Employers should pay for it, and others will be mandated to sign up with a provider or face fines or jail time. It will bring down costs.

All of our problems will be solved. A perfect public/private solution to the tragedy of people without television.

evilfunnystuff
04-08-2013, 04:08 PM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1xadoX2E7wY

CaseyJones
04-08-2013, 04:11 PM
Torrents are illegal and should not be downloaded by anyone.

has anyone received one of those ISP 6 strikes letters/emails yet?

jllundqu
04-08-2013, 04:13 PM
My TV died long ago...

kcchiefs6465
04-08-2013, 04:34 PM
has anyone received one of those ISP 6 strikes letters/emails yet?
Not yet.

Then again, I follow all laws and would never consider downloading a movie.

kcchiefs6465
04-08-2013, 04:40 PM
Netflix isn't bad. Watched that movie 'The Devil's Double' about Uday Hussein (Saddam Hussein's eldest son) and the man who was forced to be his body double the other day. Was pretty historically accurate from what I know on the subject.

Pretty graphic so I wouldn't recommend watching it around the kids.

presence
04-08-2013, 05:35 PM
I'm interested in exploring doing this myself. How do you do it? What replaced it?

methadone for a few months

WM_in_MO
04-08-2013, 05:41 PM
Torrents are not illegal.

Torrents are a legitimate form of decentralized file sharing. The content they share is "Illegal"

enhanced_deficit
04-08-2013, 05:46 PM
Even actors in TV shows themselves are pleading "do not watch" their TV shows lol

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr8pfRxVvTY