NEWS: WouldnÂ’t It Be Nice?

GEEK: Wouldn’t It Be Nice?

I have always wondered why cable and satellite subscribers could not choose the channels they want to watch, at a per-channel rate, and leave the rest out. It doesn’t seem fair to pay for channels that you never watch. A recent study funded by the cable industry tells us why. Apparently, an “a la carte [system] would hurt cable networks.”

The FCC has called bullshit. Yesterday in a meeting “the Federal Communications Commission grilled cable industry reps Thursday about their opposition to letting viewers pick their channels individually…”

The gist of the cable companyÂ’s argument is that such a system would hurt their networks, kill the return on ads, and destroy their entire universe as they know it.

Consumer advocacy groups and the FCC are asking them to prove their prophecies of doom. Should cable companies fail to show the FCC that such a change would cause armageddon, the FCC's findings "could determine whether Congress passes a bill to force cable companies to offer channel menus."

The cable companies do have a point. LetÂ’s say one thousand cable subscribers who pay $35 per month for fifty channels cut it down to five or ten. Profits would go from $35,000 per month to $3,500-7,000. ThatÂ’s quite a dip! A system where more popular channels were more expensive might save companies from such a massive drop in revenue, but any sort of restructuring would make them lose money.

Do you think an “a la carte” system would obliterate the cable industry, or are you shouting “Five channels or death!” towards your computer monitor as you finish reading this? If there is a trade-off, would you take it? Say service and quality for a price cut?

The more I think about it, the more a five dollar cable bill nice, as long as the consumer doesn't suffer because of it.

My boyfriend has wished for that forever. It would make things so much easier

thanksfully we have the internet now where you can download just the shows you want, comercial free... so for me i could care less what the cable companys do.. i dont even subscribe anymore... good by cable hello bittorrent

Ive always suggested that they should offer a per channel rate for people that only watch a few channels. That's right. I said always. Yes, even in the womb.

if I could do that, it might be worth getting cable after all. Because yeah, I'd only watch 5-10 channels.

Who cares. There is so much more shit for the FCC to worry about (perhaps not being douchebags would be a thing to consider), and cable companies need'nt worry much, as they (namely clear channel) will just buy the congress people they need to veto such a descision.

I reiterate: who cares?

people pay for cable?

Yeah, but what about when you were just a gleam in your Daddy's eye? I don't recall you waving a "Fuck the Cable Company" banner back then...

While this sounds nice, certainly I would have liked to have a lower cable bill, considering that $40-45 had been tacked onto it for high speed Internet access, this might limit "minority voices" on cable, meaning that less popular but still very important programming might disappear because cable companies supposedly can't make a profit from that programming anymore.

Do I need any of those shopping channels, like QVC? No.

Do I want to be able to watch TLC or the Discovery Channel from time to time? Yes.

Where do you draw the line?

Americans prefer to have choices in their entertainment, but that does not necessarily mean that they are willing to pay more for everyone to be entertained.

fuck that, i just want my cablemodem without the damn cable tv....but Comcast charges $55 a month or so for cablemodem without cable tv and $80 a month for both.

so i'm paying $80 a month for hi-speed internet and the comedy channel because that's all i ever watch.

the more i think about it, the more it pisses me off.

fuck the cable companies. if we force them to give the consumers what they want, they'll have to come up with a programming/pricing model that works in order to stay in business. right now they're just resting on their laurels, raking in the cash and providing little to no customer service because they have monopolies in their respective areas.




-pb

i don't have television or cable because i am not willing to pay that much. if they offered something where i could pay less and just get the channels i wanted, i would do it. so in my case, they would make money off me. currently they get nothing from me.

Furthermore, ethnic programming like BET might be viable in large, urban cable markets for cable companies, but what about viewers who live in smaller concentrations in rural areas? Will this mean that you have to live in a decent sized city to be able to watch BET? That doesn't sound fair to me.

Satellite companies like Echostar Dish Network and Hughes DirecTV could really put pressure on the cable companies by doing this (and vice-versa). One or the other could offer a per-channel package to consumers and suck customers away from their competitors.

There may be some collusion involved regarding this matter. Traditional cable companies and satellite cable companies could be agreeing not to compete in this way, much like competing gas stations sometimes agree not to lower gas below a particular price. This way, everyone is guanteed a certain profit margin at the expense of consumers. Some practices like this are considered illegal, others are not.

I still think cable is a superior product, simply because high speed Internet is so much better on cable as compared to satellite; however, the expansion of WiFi Internet may change this dynamic entirely someday. It also is much easier getting local channels on cable as compared to satellite, although this is changing now, more slowly in rural than urban markets.

whoa


an actual GOOD IDEA from the FCC???

I thought of this years ago. In fact, I envisioned Ozzy (well before he was a TV star) to be the spokesman.

He could sing "NO MORE TIERS"

I would just have ESPN, ESPN2, Comedy Central, Cartoon Network, and Galavision.

IÂ’m looking foreword to the day when I can pay for just the shows I want.

E doesn't like E! - Enternainment Television?

What's Galavision?

I don't think that we get that on Dish Network.

Yeah, I'm all for the individual channel thing. The only reason I have cable TV right now is because I recently wanted cable internet and it wasn't all that much more to have cable TV tacked on. I would have considered cable TV a worthwhile purchase for the years, however, if I could have gotten a package with five basic cable channels for $20, maybe $30 a month. That's up to $360 a year I might have spent on the service that I didn't because it was just too damned expensive.

Let's face facts, most cable channels are owned by the same company to begin with. There are very few exceptions to this rule.

But beyond that, the per-channel argument that it would cut into ad sales is asinine. It reminds me of the roadblocks I've personally faced when helping traditionally print publications make the transition to the Internet and Internet ad models. They are always afraid of change and perceive change as harmful. When in the long run all it means is that the ad sales structure is changing and they should adapt.

And if you allow people to purchase only the channels they want, guess what? You get a more focused audience who DEFINITELY likes that channel, will DEFINITELY watch it more and as a result ANY ad placed on that channel will be more effective. It's basically a captive audience and cable companies are either dumb or ignoring that fact. Advertisers always want to target ads in as focused a manner as possible. And have ALWAYS paid more for targetted advertising. So none of the cable company's logic makes any sense.

Unless of course they are so addicted to screwing consumers over that they can't stop. And in that case well, I guess there is a point to their logic. But I have no sympathy.

Cable companies are constantly swimming in money. This is just them being greedy and stupid.

This is exactly what I do. But we still have cable... I think it's a package deal with our internet.

Galavision es uno canal muy beuno! Es uno canal en Espanol y es muy caliente!

(apologies for my weak Spanish...)

Caliente, eh? What is on this channel, pray tell?

It's hard to argue with this option if you're willing to pay out the ass for it.