Is Cable going the way of the Dinosaur

[slpeters]

Eliminating cable would at least for the moment literally not save us a single penny. I'm kind of glad because I do from time to time enjoy real TV, although it is all mediated through a DVR. Dh will occasionally actually flip through the channels live and it annoys me so I guess the transition to all streaming content won't be that jarring.

 

[kdonnel]

I hope not. Streaming options suck in Canada so we’d miss out on a lot. Plus, I like channels over individual shows. Plus plus, I watch a lot of live sports..doesn’t seem like anyone offers streaming for that.

YouTube TV is extremely sports heavy.

A quick count finds 17 channels dedicated to sports included ESPN, ESPN2, SEC ESPN, ESPN U, ESPN NEWS, FS1, FS2, FOX Sports Southeast, FOX Sports South, NBCSN, NBA TV, MLB Network, BTN, CBS Sports Network, NBC Golf, Olympic Channel, and Tennis. The channel list is customized based on your location. Plus there is all the sorts that air on other channels that are not dedicated to sports.

At least in the US, streaming is definitely an option for sports fans.

 

[kdonnel]

I like channels over individual shows.

With all the streaming options I tried the concept of a channel still exists, as does live TV. While YouTubeTV does not have a full traditional guide, there is a Live tab that shows you each channel and what is on live. Very easy to choose what to watch. If you want to park the TV on a channel it will just keep playing live just like a cable or satellite box.

 

[sam_gordon]

I only add HBO as an option while GoT is airing. As soon as the season ends, I drop the channel. I do the same for other premium channels that offer original content.

I'm sure there are some people that do that. By the same token, there are others who get HBO and don't like GoT. Believing a single show ending will bring down an entire network is naive IMO.

 

[sam_gordon]

At least in the US, streaming is definitely an option for sports fans.

The problem is dedicated fast internet does not cover 100% of the country. Sure, in cities and around major areas it's fine, but if you get out into "the boonies", the quality/speed of the internet connection drops. No (or poor) internet = poor streaming.

Yea, supposedly we'll eventually get fast internet everywhere, but I'll believe it when I see it.

And again, newspapers (printed) are still around. So is terrestrial radio. Why do you need radio when you can stream every artist you'd like?

 

[dclpluto]

The problem is dedicated fast internet does not cover 100% of the country. Sure, in cities and around major areas it's fine, but if you get out into "the boonies", the quality/speed of the internet connection drops. No (or poor) internet = poor streaming.

Yea, supposedly we'll eventually get fast internet everywhere, but I'll believe it when I see it.

And again, newspapers (printed) are still around. So is terrestrial radio. Why do you need radio when you can stream every artist you'd like?

You are saying there is cable companies in the USA that doesn’t have fast internet In the areas they have cable?

 

[kdonnel]

The problem is dedicated fast internet does not cover 100% of the country. Sure, in cities and around major areas it's fine, but if you get out into "the boonies", the quality/speed of the internet connection drops. No (or poor) internet = poor streaming.

Yea, supposedly we'll eventually get fast internet everywhere, but I'll believe it when I see it.

And again, newspapers (printed) are still around. So is terrestrial radio. Why do you need radio when you can stream every artist you'd like?

Printed newspapers and printed magazines are slowly going away.

Terrestrial radio and TV will go away as well.

Might not be my life time but they are all going away.

As for high speed internet it will become available everywhere. My brother in law lives in the middle of nowhere in middle Georgia. He can now get a fixed wireless service from AT&T. He went from 1.5Mbps DSL to 60Mbps fixed wireless.

It’s coming.

 

[sam_gordon]

Printed newspapers and printed magazines are slowly going away.

People have been saying that for DECADES. Guess what, newspapers and magazines are STILL around.

Terrestrial radio and TV will go away as well.

Might not be my life time but they are all going away.

Well, I think everything will eventually go away, I just think it will be a lot longer than people think.

As for high speed internet it will become available everywhere. My brother in law lives in the middle of nowhere in middle Georgia. He can now get a fixed wireless service from AT&T. He went from 1.5Mbps DSL to 60Mbps fixed wireless.

It’s coming.

Of course it is. My point is it will still be quite a while. And there will always be people who like the convenience factor of "one box" that cable/satellite provides.

 

[kdonnel]

People have been saying that for DECADES. Guess what, newspapers and magazines are STILL around.


Well, I think everything will eventually go away, I just think it will be a lot longer than people think.

Of course it is. My point is it will still be quite a while. And there will always be people who like the convenience factor of "one box" that cable/satellite provides.

I am only 46 and I have lived through the death of vinyl, the rise and death of 8 tracks, the rise and death of audio tapes, the rise and death of cds, the rise and death of VHS, the rise and decline of DVD, the rise and decline of BluRay, the rise and decline of cable tv, and the rise and decline of satellite tv.

Technology is accelerating the pace at which prior technology remains viable and relevant.

Newspapers embraced the internet to slow their decline but the printed version is going to go away.

Many magazines have gone to an online only presence.

As for the convenience factor of "one box", you need to look into how streaming technologies work.

I have "one box" that consolidates all my streaming services. If I want to watch a show or movie I search in one place and get presented with my free/paid options from the subscriptions I have for watching that show or movie. Selecting one of those options takes me directly to my choice. Extremely easy and all in one place.

 

[mnrose]

Yes.

 

[Planogirl]

I think that people spending so much time in cars helps traditional radio. Radio is of course free and that certainly appeals plus news and talk and so on are right there which helps keep bored drivers entertained. Or it does me at least. Music is great but relaxes me a bit too much.

 

[sam_gordon]

I am only 46 and I have lived through the death of vinyl, the rise and death of 8 tracks, the rise and death of audio tapes, the rise and death of cds, the rise and death of VHS, the rise and decline of DVD, the rise and decline of BluRay, the rise and decline of cable tv, and the rise and decline of satellite tv.

But you can still buy (I saw them at Meijer, so no special store or online) record players. And CDs are still being sold, as are DVDs and BluRays. As I mentioned, cable and satellite will still be around for a while. As Mark Twain said "The news of my demise is premature".

 

[tvguy]

But you can still buy (I saw them at Meijer, so no special store or online) record players. And CDs are still being sold, as are DVDs and BluRays. As I mentioned, cable and satellite will still be around for a while. As Mark Twain said "The news of my demise is premature".

I agree 100%. While cable and satellite are declining, they are still a huge distribution system for programming and critical to the bottom line of broadcasters and still offer contend you can't get via streaming or downloading. Why do you thing TV station owners still get their feathers ruffled when a cable or satellite operator threatens to drop their channel then they get in a dispute over re-transmission fees?

I even saw an ad on TV for a program on DVD that included the line "available to enjoy right now, without the hassle of streaming or downloading"

We got a subpoena at work for some video and the subpoena specified it had to be provided on VHS or DVD only. No Drop Box etc. Our IT guys balked at having to get us set up a DVD burner for me as they had taken them out, but after some legal advise, the company ordered them to put together a place where we can transfer every format we ever used to DVD and VHS. So as of this week we know have a 3/4, Beta, DVCam and non-linear dub station

 

[kdonnel]

But you can still buy (I saw them at Meijer, so no special store or online) record players. And CDs are still being sold, as are DVDs and BluRays. As I mentioned, cable and satellite will still be around for a while. As Mark Twain said "The news of my demise is premature".

As for vinyl it has come back but only in a nostalgic or hobby sense.

I specifically said they will probably not go away in my life time.

We are argugreeing.

I believe they will become irrelevant in my life time though.

Cable and satellite companies will not be the driving force for innovation and content in the next 20 years.

I see it first hand at my job. I work in a dying industry, wireline phone service. It will still be around for years but will be totally irrelevant in less then 10.

 

[kimblebee]

YouTube TV is extremely sports heavy.

A quick count finds 17 channels dedicated to sports included ESPN, ESPN2, SEC ESPN, ESPN U, ESPN NEWS, FS1, FS2, FOX Sports Southeast, FOX Sports South, NBCSN, NBA TV, MLB Network, BTN, CBS Sports Network, NBC Golf, Olympic Channel, and Tennis. The channel list is customized based on your location. Plus there is all the sorts that air on other channels that are not dedicated to sports.

At least in the US, streaming is definitely an option for sports fans.

Not one of those would show me my Jets games. Canadian hockey teams just don’t get the love. If it was Jets football, maybe I’d have a shot lol

 

[wenrob]

I’m personally not ready for all streaming but that’s mostly because I’m lazy and don’t want to figure out what services to use for what shows etc. I have noticed I’m less and less interested in mainstream TV. Have not picked up any new shows this season and have abandoned a couple I used to watch. More and more I find myself tapping into DD’s Netflix account or searching through Prime for something to watch. I think when the time comes going to all streaming will be a natural transition for me. I do think cable will go the way of the dinosaur and probably sooner than we think. People want their media tailored to them and cable doesn’t do that.

To the other points in no particular order and not that anyone cares:

I think HBO is long past it’s prime. What it did was offer stuff no one else had but now so does everyone else. If you want to see an HBO original series you only have to wait for it to come out. Not a big deal since most people don’t watch things in real time anymore anyway. We somehow got it “free” with our phone package and not one of us has bothered to watch it.

I haven’t picked up a paper magazine or newspaper or listened to the radio in a decade. Come to think of it I can’t remember the last time I saw a newspaper rack.

I still buy Blu-ray because I like it but I won’t buy one that doesn’t include a digital copy.

Vinyl has made a comeback in a big way. I wouldn’t discount that. Cassettes are making a comeback too. My 22 year old DD still buys CDs. She streams for convenience but when she wants to *listen* to an album she’ll choose a vinyl or CD over streaming any day.

 

[kdonnel]

Not one of those would show me my Jets games. Canadian hockey teams just don’t get the love. If it was Jets football, maybe I’d have a shot lol

The list of channels changes based on region.

You should petition Google to offer YouTubeTV in Canada. There must be regional sports channels to offer.

 

[kdonnel]

My 22 year old DD still buys CDs. She streams for convenience but when she wants to *listen* to an album she’ll choose a vinyl or CD over streaming any day.

My kids(young adults 16 and 20) and their friends have mentioned they have never used their own money to buy a CD.

They are very happy with the music leasing model and would prefer paying Apple Music or Spotify or Pandora monthly forever over having to physically own a CD.

It is a big mental shift to accept that there is not anything physical you own, you just own a license to view/listen.

 

[kimblebee]

The list of channels changes based on region.

You should petition Google to offer YouTubeTV in Canada. There must be regional sports channels to offer.

I could, but I don’t care that much lol

 

[NotUrsula]

Take it from someone who has been dealing with licensed content since 1997; the prices only go up as the alternatives fall away, and the barriers get more and more complicated and error-prone as the vendors try to prevent piracy. Censorship is also a huge problem in the streaming world -- if the license's vendor decides that the content is objectionable, it disappears forever, even if subscribers have saved it, and having paid for it makes no difference at all.

Broadcast radio is not going anywhere for the long foreseeable future, not least of which because it is Federally mandated as the basic method of US emergency communication. Streaming does not work in conditions of widespread communications failure, but radio does. You can broadcast with no infrastructure at all, just a car battery.