'The era of the evil known as bundled cable is coming to an end'

[itshappening]

Wow, there are 5 million fewer subscribers to cable now than in 2007.

-
The slow-motion streaming-television revolution continues with a device called Aereo, which allows consumers to stream any local television station already available over their airwaves. This includes what is known as the Big Four: ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox.

After winning a major court battle last week, Aereo has Fox Television so freaked, the network is considering becoming a cable channel, which would mean yanking their broadcast from the public airwaves:

At the National Association of Broadcasters’ annual trade show on Monday, Carey, the News Corp. president, said, “We will continue to aggressively pursue our rights in the courts, as well as pursue all relevant political avenues, and we believe we will prevail.”

Carey added: “One option could be converting the Fox broadcast network to a pay channel, which we would do in collaboration with both our content partners and affiliates.”

That might seem like a counter-intuitive move if you are still under the naïve belief television revenue is all about eyeballs. But that is simply not the case anymore. Television networks and those who own them (like News Corp.) make a fortune from cable television. That is the golden goose these days, not ratings.

Let me explain:

Right now, you and I pay outrageously expensive monthly cable bills because we are forced to pay for dozens of channels we never watch. Even if you never watch MSNBC, you are still subsidizing Rachel Maddow and every other channel in your cable package, because most every network in your cable package receives a monthly fee for every customer forced into a cable package that includes them.

How do you think all these lousy networks manage to stay alive? Trust me, MSNBC is not making a whole lot of money from advertisers with fewer than a million viewers. What keeps junk like Oprah and MSNBC afloat is the monthly fee we involuntarily pay when we are forced to purchase packages that include 200 channels, even though all we really want is Fox News and Turner Classic Movies.

And what keeps many of us from running away screaming from the bundled cable racket is that there is a lot of programming we cannot yet get on the internet: Sports and the latest episodes of Modern Family and NCIS, for example.

Aereo changes much of this. Basically, Aereo removes a major obstacle for anyone desperate to get out from under their cable bill but still hanging on because of American Idol and the Super Bowl.

For $10 a month you get every local channel available over the air (including the networks) along with DVR capability. Add another $7 and you can stream Netflix.

What more do you need?

Though only available in New York City currently, Aereo has thus far won every major court battle against those desperate to hang on to their cable fees and now, according to the Washington Post, plans to expand into Washington, D.C. and 21 other markets this summer.

Even without Aereo, there are five million fewer cable subscribers today than there were in 2007. The population might be increasing, but young people are getting used to watching content online.

Thanks to the wonders of technology, capitalism, and market choices that brought us streaming, the era of the evil known as bundled cable is coming to an end.

http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Hollywood/2013/04/09/Streaming-Revolution-Fox-Television-Threatens-to-Go-Off-the-Air

[Working Poor]

good..

[tangent4ronpaul]

That's going to have major political consequences.

-t

[fisharmor]

Wow, I mean, cable TV has only had the ability to offer a-la-carte programming since, like, 1965.
We should give them a break... you can't call someone evil simply because they haven't responded to market demand for a mere 47 years.

[angelatc]

Right now, you and I pay outrageously expensive monthly cable bills because we are forced to pay for dozens of channels we never watch. Even if you never watch MSNBC, you are still subsidizing Rachel Maddow and every other channel in your cable package, because most every network in your cable package receives a monthly fee for every customer forced into a cable package that includes them.

How do you think all these lousy networks manage to stay alive? Trust me, MSNBC is not making a whole lot of money from advertisers with fewer than a million viewers. What keeps junk like Oprah and MSNBC afloat is the monthly fee we involuntarily pay when we are forced to purchase packages that include 200 channels, even though all we really want is Fox News and Turner Classic Movies.

I remember when Oprah was launching her new network, and the fact that she wanted to have the cable company pay her instead of vice versa was a big deal.


Aereo changes much of this. So does a TV antenna. And it doesn't cost $10 per month.


For $10 a month you get every local channel available over the air (including the networks) along with DVR capability. Add another $7 and you can stream Netflix.

What more do you need? BBC America, TNT and AMC come to mind immediately.

[fisharmor]

So does a TV antenna.

Not really.

Right after the conversion I got brilliant reception from my roof antenna. And I really enjoyed having broadcast TV.
Then I sided the house and the antenna had to come down. After all, there are people on YouTube making them out of 2x4 and coathangers, and they work great, right?
Right?

No, not right. The reception on the antennas they sell specifically for digital broadcast is spotty at best, so coathanger specials are also spotty at best. You still need to get the antenna up on the roof and get it oriented properly in order to get great reception.
And there's a big difference now - if you don't have great reception, you don't have reception. In the old days you could put up with a little snow or lines going across your picture and still watch something.
Now, anything wrong with the signal translates to pixellation, blackouts, and garbled sound. A slightly distorted digital signal is unwatchable.

The feds should seriously just shut the broadcasts down and repurpose those bands, too. It's a failed idea.

[jbauer]

Not really.

Right after the conversion I got brilliant reception from my roof antenna. And I really enjoyed having broadcast TV.
Then I sided the house and the antenna had to come down. After all, there are people on YouTube making them out of 2x4 and coathangers, and they work great, right?
Right?

No, not right. The reception on the antennas they sell specifically for digital broadcast is spotty at best, so coathanger specials are also spotty at best. You still need to get the antenna up on the roof and get it oriented properly in order to get great reception.
And there's a big difference now - if you don't have great reception, you don't have reception. In the old days you could put up with a little snow or lines going across your picture and still watch something.
Now, anything wrong with the signal translates to pixellation, blackouts, and garbled sound. A slightly distorted digital signal is unwatchable.

The feds should seriously just shut the broadcasts down and repurpose those bands, too. It's a failed idea.

I forget the website but you can put in your coordinates and it'll tell you which channels you'll receive. You then can say how high of an antenna you want and it will rate how that will change your reception. For me to receive anything over local pbs we'd need at least a 1000' antenna. I'd be curious if this Areo thing goes off the internet or if you're still required to capture it via over the air feeds.

[angelatc]

Not really.

Right after the conversion I got brilliant reception from my roof antenna. And I really enjoyed having broadcast TV.
Then I sided the house and the antenna had to come down. After all, there are people on YouTube making them out of 2x4 and coathangers, and they work great, right?
Right?

No, not right. The reception on the antennas they sell specifically for digital broadcast is spotty at best, so coathanger specials are also spotty at best. You still need to get the antenna up on the roof and get it oriented properly in order to get great reception.
And there's a big difference now - if you don't have great reception, you don't have reception. In the old days you could put up with a little snow or lines going across your picture and still watch something.
Now, anything wrong with the signal translates to pixellation, blackouts, and garbled sound. A slightly distorted digital signal is unwatchable.

The feds should seriously just shut the broadcasts down and repurpose those bands, too. It's a failed idea.

Curious - do you live in the city? When I was a kid, my Dad had a TV antenna on the roof. It had a motor.

Now I live farther away from the broadcast towers, but lots of my neighbors still use antennas instead of cable. (Surprises me too.) Their pictures are much better than ours was back in the day. I thought it was because technology had improved.

[Nirvikalpa]

Hmm. This is available in NYC? How did they around the Time Warner Cable monopoly?

Edit: OFU... it's available for the NYC metro, including NJ and LI.

Edit2: Just did the free trial... :)

[Cleaner44]

"converting the Fox broadcast network to a pay channel"
I think that would be really bad as it would reveal just how few people value Fox and would be willing to pay for it.

[KerriAnn]

I don't know anything about Aereo yet, but I have a Roku and turned off my cable about 6 moths ago. Me and the family don't miss it at all. Especially since netflix introduced cartoon network shows a few days ago.

The roku gives me netflix, amazon, hulu plus and a lot more. I guess those who can't function without their morning news from mainstream media would miss that, but I certainly don't!

[V3n]

I don't know anything about Aereo yet, but I have a Roku and turned off my cable about 6 moths ago. Me and the family don't miss it at all. Especially since netflix introduced cartoon network shows a few days ago.

The roku gives me netflix, amazon, hulu plus and a lot more. I guess those who can't function without their morning news from mainstream media would miss that, but I certainly don't!

Same here! (roku) The only thing I regret was not doing it sooner!

[CaseyJones]

Not really.

Right after the conversion I got brilliant reception from my roof antenna. And I really enjoyed having broadcast TV.
Then I sided the house and the antenna had to come down. After all, there are people on YouTube making them out of 2x4 and coathangers, and they work great, right?
Right?

No, not right. The reception on the antennas they sell specifically for digital broadcast is spotty at best, so coathanger specials are also spotty at best. You still need to get the antenna up on the roof and get it oriented properly in order to get great reception.
And there's a big difference now - if you don't have great reception, you don't have reception. In the old days you could put up with a little snow or lines going across your picture and still watch something.
Now, anything wrong with the signal translates to pixellation, blackouts, and garbled sound. A slightly distorted digital signal is unwatchable.

The feds should seriously just shut the broadcasts down and repurpose those bands, too. It's a failed idea.

right on man the Digital Television Transition and Public Safety Act of 2005 was the everybody get cable law and it's blowing up in their faces mua ha ha ha

[frodus24]

One $10.00 antennae from Big Lots in Roanoke, VA gets me the basic reception. That is all I need. Funny though, once you start reading books, you become more informed and knowlegable.

[AGRP]

How do you think all these lousy networks manage to stay alive? Trust me, MSNBC is not making a whole lot of money from advertisers with fewer than a million viewers. What keeps junk like Oprah and MSNBC afloat is the monthly fee we involuntarily pay when we are forced to purchase packages that include 200 channels, even though all we really want is Fox News and Turner Classic Movies.

http://madarameharunobu.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/pennywise.gif

[talkingpointes]

Not true, not even in the least bit. Cable companies and telcos are going to join mobile device sellers and 4g+ tower owners. I have been predicting this for a while. T-mobile no longer sells long term contracts, and now is going to sell monthly service, and the phones without a discount. Digital service will get it's act together and try to compete with youtube. What if Verizon buys vimeo and joins comcast. Just saying we all still watch media - just in different areas. The companies that fail to see this will fail. Sprint joined Virgin and now you can get unlimited everything for a month with phone for less then 100$. How can they compete with that.

Also anyone with a brain look at wireless speeds on a chart and land line speeds. LOL

[jclay2]

Here is a crazy thought. Ditch tv/cable and all the other brainless media for something that trully does enhance your life.

...Like RPF

[torchbearer]

about time. the tech has been here for awhile. i'd pay for such a service.

[WM_in_MO]

I've been wanting something similar for a while, I don't want to pay for channels I'll never tune in to.

[moostraks]

I don't know anything about Aereo yet, but I have a Roku and turned off my cable about 6 moths ago. Me and the family don't miss it at all. Especially since netflix introduced cartoon network shows a few days ago.

The roku gives me netflix, amazon, hulu plus and a lot more. I guess those who can't function without their morning news from mainstream media would miss that, but I certainly don't!

We also use roku with netflix, hulu plus, and amazon prime and now I am not beholden to the network line up. We choose what and when to watch.I also know exactly what has been watched and can control the content so much better this way as they know I know what they watch :p We were pushing $200/month for basic cable and now we are paying roughly $25 per month with more choices we want to see. My children were also surprised at the new cartoon network shows they got the other day :)

For news we use nowhere tv on the roku. There are so many channels for various local news and so we found one nearby and bookmarked it and now when I want the local weather or layest news I can check on my schedule rather than news at 11 which I never seemed to catch.

http://streamfree.tv/roku-channels/nowhere-tv/

Many of the latest shows are available on amazon prime for a small price per show so if it is a must want to watch at immediate release then you can pay and own the episodes. I did this for Downton Abbey's latest season and halfway through the season if you bought the season package then you got a discount and all the rest of the season before it came out on PBS in the states.

I would never go back to regular cable again...

[Uriah]

good..

exactly what I said.

[Athan]

good..
and BUAHAHAHAHA!

[BAllen]

I cut my tv when broadcast went digital. Many more channels to watch, now.