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The benefits of cable/satellite TV

whit979

whit979

With today's announcement that the ABC family of networks is joining NBC and Fox by bringing their programming archive to Hulu, I'm going to pose a question to the board: What are the continued pros of subscribing to cable or satellite television?

I can think of only a couple:
- Internet connectivity is not always as reliable as TV
- Quality is lower on streaming products

Others thoughts?
 
Well, forget hosting big parties based on sporting events or other "community" programs. A laptop screen is hard pressed to take the place of a big-screen LCD HDTV.

Also, internet connectivity can vary and computers can be finicky. At best, your blown up full-screen program looks a little blocky; at worst is freezes up now and then or the sound precedes the choppy video. I've had all of these issues from time to time with Hulu.

Don't get me wrong. The day is coming where the internet will probably supply all programming through a computer that is connected to the aforementioned big screen unit. We're not there yet though. The bandwidth still isn't there. Perhaps that will be possible with the new internet2 system that's coming in the future.
 
whitfm said:
With today's announcement that the ABC family of networks is joining NBC and Fox by bringing their programming archive to Hulu, I'm going to pose a question to the board: What are the continued pros of subscribing to cable or satellite television?

I can think of only a couple:
- Internet connectivity is not always as reliable as TV
- Quality is lower on streaming products

Others thoughts?
Click to expand...

Live sports over the internet is still not always available, even with a paid subscription.

Baseball games on MLB.TV are blacked out within about 500 miles of the teams' home markets (depending on the location) as well as during Saturday games on Fox. Not sure about the NBA or NHL. At least CBS streams the NCAA Tournament live and for free (but it's only supported on Windows).

At least it looks like the NFL is changing its tune. They streamed some games last year, and part of their new deal with DirecTV is that they will stream the games starting in 2012 at the latest. Even people who don't have DirecTV service will be allowed to subscribe.

Link: PaidContent.org

Even radio feeds are subscription-only in most cases (MLB, NFL, NBA, and most major colleges). Only the NHL is completely free AFAIK, usually through the teams' flagship stations.
 
After having been a cable/satellite customer since it first came to my neighborhood in 1980 I will be disconnecting DirecTV at the end of the NHL Stanley Cup playoffs this coming June. The reasons are several:

1. I have to subscribe to an upper tier package to gain access to ONE of my favorite services (total cost = about $70/month).
2. I watch about 5 of the 200+ services available to me on that package.
3. The overwhelming majority of shows are old network reruns - most of which I didn't watch when new, or reality unscripted junk, or religious or infomercial trash.
4. 2 of the 5 most watched shows are available via the Internet at no cost.
5. The number of commercials and having to watch the same 5 commercials 100+ times per day.
6. The other two people inhabiting my home don't ever watch satellite.

I will miss those few shows I do like (hockey and some racing) which are not on OTA TV in my area.
 
KeithE4 said:
Even radio feeds are subscription-only in most cases (MLB, NFL, NBA, and most major colleges). Only the NHL is completely free AFAIK, usually through the teams' flagship stations.
Click to expand...

Correction: NBA audio feeds are also free if one signs up for All Access (but that's free, too). I'm not sure what they charge for live video as that's done for this season.
 
KeithE4 said:
Live sports over the internet is still not always available, even with a paid subscription.

Baseball games on MLB.TV are blacked out within about 500 miles of the teams' home markets (depending on the location) as well as during Saturday games on Fox.
Click to expand...

That's not completely true. Baseball games for subscribers of MLB TV are blacked out for those who are within a given team's home market - not 500 miles. The catch is that they read your IP address and cut you off based on that. I remember accessing from home one night when I was still connected through my company's network. I wanted to see a Red Sox game in Fenway and I was blocked out because the IP address shown was Massachusetts. I disconnected from the network and then had access. For the 'average' game, only the markets concerned are blacked out - based on your IP address. For national games, I'm pretty sure you're right - they black those out. Basically, if you can get the game on TV they don't let you see it through the internet.

KeithE4 said:
Even radio feeds are subscription-only in most cases (MLB, NFL, NBA, and most major colleges). Only the NHL is completely free AFAIK, usually through the teams' flagship stations.
Click to expand...

Yes, you certainly need to pay for MLB radio. I think that the TV is roughly $20 per month and radio is $10. Radio never gets blacked out and you can choose which team's feed you want - unlike MLB TV. You cannot access a game via the stream of a station who carries it either. Those are blacked out per league rules. So, you have to pay, pay and pay some more.
 
BRNout said:
That's not completely true. Baseball games for subscribers of MLB TV are blacked out for those who are within a given team's home market - not 500 miles. The catch is that they read your IP address and cut you off based on that. I remember accessing from home one night when I was still connected through my company's network. I wanted to see a Red Sox game in Fenway and I was blocked out because the IP address shown was Massachusetts. I disconnected from the network and then had access. For the 'average' game, only the markets concerned are blacked out - based on your IP address. For national games, I'm pretty sure you're right - they black those out. Basically, if you can get the game on TV they don't let you see it through the internet.
Click to expand...

Out here in the west it comes close to 500 miles, although that was a rough estimate on my part. I think it depends on where the games are able to be received on cable (FSN, Comcast, etc.). What's strange is that they go by zip code block rather than physical area. For example, the Padres are blacked out in Yuma, which has an 853 zip code. So the entire 853 block is blacked out, including the western third of metro Phoenix! The rest of the Phoenix metro (850xx and 852xx) can get Padres games.

Yes, you certainly need to pay for MLB radio. I think that the TV is roughly $20 per month and radio is $10. Radio never gets blacked out and you can choose which team's feed you want - unlike MLB TV. You cannot access a game via the stream of a station who carries it either. Those are blacked out per league rules. So, you have to pay, pay and pay some more.
Click to expand...

TV is $20 a month for Premium, and $15 a month for basic. Radio is $15 for the entire season (a full 52 weeks starting in March) and no games are blacked out, even in the teams' markets. I can hear Diamondbacks games that are carried on KTAR (English) and KSUN (Spanish) in Phoenix, although there is a 30-60 second delay.
 
I guess the real benefit of cable and satellite TV is the bill you get every 30 days. :D

Having adopted an internet-only method of viewing (outside of free OTA TV) for close to 15 years I don't feel I've missed a thing. The only thing I might miss is watching shows live if it's on cable (sports is never a problem) but with the advent of DVRs fewer and fewer watch programming live anyways.

I'm glad ABC jumped to Hulu though, their web player was horrible and didn't run well at all for me.
 
BRNout said:
Well, forget hosting big parties based on sporting events or other "community" programs. A laptop screen is hard pressed to take the place of a big-screen LCD HDTV.
Click to expand...

It is very easy to connect a laptop to an LCD tv. I do it all the time. You probably won't get HD quality but it's still pretty good.
 
ansky212 said:
It is very easy to connect a laptop to an LCD tv. I do it all the time. You probably won't get HD quality but it's still pretty good.
Click to expand...
Running a PS3 as a media server to your HDTV rig also works very very well.
 
I get the slowest Internet that isn't dial-up. $9.95 a month currently, about $14.95 I think after I've had it a year.

I'm afraid to go to any sites other than a few "approved" ones. For anything else there are libraries in my area, some of which don't care how long I stay ont he computer because I don't go at peak times. I don't watch video at those for those most part because, with one exception, earphones are not provided any more. You buy your own. I don't want to carry them around and I don't like to wear them.

I don't watch video at home because I'm afraid of messing up the computer--plus there is that speed issue. It has done very well. Plus I don't like noise so I never hooked up the speakers.

Cable is $8.88 a month for the first year and about $13 after that. I get pretty much all the channels I want. I hate missing certain shows, but I watch too much TV anyway.
 
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