"I’m willing to pay for content – its why I have a netflix subscription and am fine with ads, but I’m not willing to pay for thousands of shows I’m not interested in"
@Michell, One aspect which I love about television is it throws up surprise program everytime I scan through channels, and I feel this spontaneity is missing in netflix subscrition.
Thats a good point - some sports, especially football, are hard to find online. Though it is getting better. Just last year the World Cup was available to watch online, though it was posted a day late I believe.
There are a couple resources for getting sports, though most likely you'd have to purchase an On Demand package - The NHL offers access for $170 a year, so maybe not a bad deal, depending on what you want.
Try hooking up your laptop / tablet to your TV via HDMI cables (iPad offers connectors for about $40) - you probably won't notice the difference between streaming internet video (some of which are in HD) directly to your TV vs cable. Or, if your TV & phone are MHL enabled, hook up your mobile phone to your TV. Just because we are abandoning Cable, doesn't mean we have to abandon our DTVs. I stream Netflix to my HDTV via my iPad regularly.
More and more people are abandoning cable, and eight of the nine largest cable providers lost subscribers last quarter.
@Michell, thanks for the post. Not sure why people are adbandoning cables, but I think I will stick to cable TV because I get to watch shows on my 32" widescreen with Dolby Digital surround sound. Moreover I would have to spend a lot of money to have a PC system that comes close to the performance of my home theater.
I've been cable/DirecTV-less for portions of my adult life and I agree that Hulu/Netflix/etc. can be a viable alternative for most entertainment. But I can think of one big reason why it's difficult to ditch cable/satellite at this point:
Sports.
If you like watching sports, it is very difficult to ditch cable. There are very few alternatives... short of going to a sports bar every time you want to watch a game, I suppose.
If I wasn't a football fan, I'd probably be able to leave cable (well, DirecTV, more accurately). But I am, and I can't.
Thanks for the informative post. It is really panic to have option less. We need to stuck to one provider by paying more money and still not having full satisfactory results. Its good time for new provider to enter the market with a quality idea at reduced the price.
@Eldredge, I have just the exact same dilema. What is even worse is the cable companies in my area have subdivided the entire county into service regions that each company serves, meaning I am stuck with the nonsense they provide. I am definitely going to look into the alternatives mentioned in response to this post. Thank you all.
Yes, I would. In addition to the outrageous pricing cable has, the service also dictates what we can watch and when we can watch it. Which is why HDMI / MHL connectors and mobile device trends are important to watch for in this debate – they allow us to watch / listen on our own time in our own way.
I’m willing to pay for content – its why I have a netflix subscription and am fine with ads, but I’m not willing to pay for thousands of shows I’m not interested in while having to arrange my schedule around the TV Guide (luckily a trend on a steep decline).
At the beginning while I was reading your article, I thought that you don't like cables generally, and I was very curious to read the "why" part of your article and then I realize than your article is about cable TV connection, and I want to ask you if cable TV was free would you have the same opinion about it?
I can't agree more with that. But you see, I don't have to "eat" what the majority of the people want to be served. I like choosing my own food according to my own preferences when I feel like "eating" my choices. :D Good films and series are always on my menu and that's all what I need.
There is an increasing tendency of many other people who have started to do just the same. As for free television, well, may be for some people work well. I don't care about television in any form or shape.
Online services are replacing cable and television.
EBN Dialogue enables and encourages you to participate in live chats with notable leaders and luminaries. Not only editors and journalists, but the entire EBN community is able to comment and ask questions. Listed below are upcoming and archived chats.
Archived Dialogues
Thailand Stages a Comeback Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Euro-Crisis: What It Means for High-Tech Firms Join EBN Editor in Chief Bolaji Ojo and Contributing Editor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday, July 12, at 10:00 a.m. EDT for a Live Chat on high-tech and Europe's economic difficulties.
Microsoft Surface: Potential Winners & Losers What are the implications for the electronics industry supply chain of Microsoft Corp.'s decision to launch its own tablet PC? Join industry veteran and EE Times' systems and OEM expert Rick Merritt on Tuesday, July 3, at 12:00 pm EDT for a Live Chat on this subject.
Join EBN contributor Jennifer Baljko on Thursday August 23, 2012, at 11:00 a.m. EST for a live chat on how electronic manufacturers in Thailand have shored up their supply chain to reduce the impact of future natural disasters.
Peter Drucker famously said "Trying to predict the future is like trying to drive down a country road at night with no lights while looking out the back window." Yet in the razor's-edge world of electronics—with a lean supply chain and just-in-time demands—the need to know the future is vital.
You've heard the saying "the No. 1 supply chain risk is your people." That hasn't always been the case. But today's complex global supply chain requires a new type of multitalented employee. It's one who understands, finance, marketing, economics, is savvy with technology, graceful with relationships and can think analytically.
Where are these people? Are universities properly preparing the next generation supply chain professionals? How do train your existing workforce for these new, demanding positions?
Brian Fuller, editor-in-chief of EBN, will lead a 60-minute Avnet Velocity panel discussion that will ask and answer these and other questions swirling around today's supply-chain talent challenges.
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