[opendtv] Re: TV Programmers Put Subscriber Caps on Skinny Bundles | Media - Advertising Age

  • From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Wed, 15 Apr 2015 02:19:36 +0000

Craig Birkmaier wrote:

And how are these new channels doing in terms of audience and
commercial viability?

Irrelevant. The point is that new channels have been added, whereas that would
not happen in an oligopoly.

In both cases, the problem is the same - appointment TV is dying,

Even more irrelevant. I watch programs from the major TV networks all the time,
and never "by appointment," and hardly delayed a few hours at most. Your
"oligopoly" mantra amounts to conspiracy theory, Craig. If you feel they are
yanking you around by the nose, it's only because of your choice of
distribution medium.

The oligopoly owns Hulu, and made Netflix possible.

So the fact is, that high value content is made available at multiple price
points, on multiple channels, from multiple intermediaries, even direct from
the source. That doesn't sound like any oligopoly to me.

You define competition as repackaging, with a slightly lower
price that you are not willing to pay.

Competition manifests itself in distribution as well as in the content itself.
And absolutely yes, different pricing options are part of it. When you have a
choice of supermarkets, that doesn't mean that only one can carry Kellogg's
products, Craig. It means that the price of Kellogg's products remains under
control, because no one supermarket can mark it up too much. And then there's
the OTHER competition, e.g. from Post, which keeps the wholesale price that
Kellogg's demands also under control. Same with your TV content, when it's
available from competing outlets, and from multiple competing TV networks.

Not if you have lots of options. If you focus on only the channels you
want, open competition says that some clever site out there will
create a bundle that's way more in line with your tastes, for much
less money than you're paying now.

I'm eagerly awaiting this possibility.

No you aren't. You prefer to wax ever more verbose about why unwalled
distribution doesn't work, doesn't save, is technically impossible, and all
manner of other uninformed complaints. Competition always works, if it's
technically feasible.

Obviously, the technology behind Internet distribution of content
scales well, but is not free.

As opposed to ...?

And the last mile does not scale well;

The last mile, and the concurrent improvement of core ISP networks, already
passed the threshold level needed for Internet TV. That's the whole point,
Craig.

we are still beholden to the same old monopolies dressed in a
new suit.

That's why we now need a strong net neutrality mandate. Those local monopolies
that provide broadband (unless/until wireless becomes truly an alternative)
also have that competing business model, and consequent conflict of interest.
Repeating, repeating, repeating.

You may be content to consume what they still give away
(with ads), but most Americans are not.

Americans are not the loyalists you are, and want them to be. They are moving
away from your walled up experience. For some reason, you can't grasp this fact.

Saying that Sling's highest value content is sports is like saying
we all need oxygen to live. It is the highest value content because
people are willing to pay for it.

Another obvious thing that Craig can't seem to grasp. People most likely to be
interested in Sling are the (live) sports fans, Craig. That's what makes it
unique. ESPN without MVPD subscription. The rest of the content is more
replaceable, or available elsewhere like Hulu Plus.

Sorry, but the networks are no longer watched more than other
channels.

Wrong. I saw the figures in my recent search for Internet usage. As individual
channels, the TV networks programs are watched way more than other individual
channels. Maybe not as an aggregate, but as individual cannels.

What about the sites operated by MLB, the NFL, the NBA, and
the NHL,

I don't enjoy going around in circles as much as Craig does, clearly. We
already discussed how those other sports have unwalled themselves, and more
than once. That's OLD NEWS, Craig. ESPN unwalling itself is NEW NEWS.

HBO never had more than 30% of U.S. homes, and now has about 28%.
All of the premium movie channels suffered declines during the
economic downturn.

I wonder how many years after the downturn Craig will be using that excuse. The
simple fact is, in 2013, Netflix surpassed HBO. That was during the downturn, I
suppose you might say, so your old excuse does not work. HBO has to compete
better now. And is starting to.

All I know is that this VOD of all manner of cable channels
has been available here for many years - much longer than
HBO Go.

How do you know this? Word of mouth?

I know this because we saw articles written to that effect, years ago when
in-system VOD was being introduced, and sure, also from word of mouth.
Incredibly, Craig, you might be the only person who was unaware of this. VOD is
not unique to, nor originated by, Netflix streaming.

Tablets now outsell PCs, with more than 200 million units a year.

Outsell evidently does not mean that people don't use PCs. It only means that
people already have their PCs. PCs used to watch TV may very well be laptops,
among other reasons, because they don't depend on special "apps" to do so.
Trade scribes tend to focus on hype only, and when a new product creates big
sales, that's perfect recipe for hype.

I have consistently asked you to let me know when the number reaches
70%.

You really want me to show where you're wrong? One time you asked about 80%,
and damned if it didn't fall to 80% within just a couple of days.

By the way, the number is still above 85%.

Not for your much ballyhooed "the bundle." Remember? We been over this too,
countless times. Cord shavers being a bigger drop than cord cutters.

Bert


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