[opendtv] Re: White paper from CEA
- From: Tom Barry <trbarry@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Wed, 26 Oct 2005 21:21:02 -0400
I don't have a cable STB because of the money. I loved my Comcast PVR
but then they contacted me and insisted I upgrade to include extended
basic + digital cable + STB + PVR fees.
I'm back down now to the most basic analog tier, limited basic, paying
for none of those extras. For the most part I use cable only for
broadband now and watch TV only on OTA HDTV.
- Tom
Eory Frank-p22212 wrote:
> Bert wrote:
>
>
>>Just because consumers are forced to buy or rent the
>>interface box provided by a TV service provider does not
>>mean that they do this happily. The fact that the
>>majority of cable customers still stick with the analog
>>tier cable, specifically to be able to avoid the STB,
>>should show you what's really going on here.
>
>
> How do you know they do this "specifically to be able to avoid the STB"? I
> suspect the majority of them do so on the basis of costs vs. benefits. The
> digital tier is an extra monthly charge on top of extended (analog) basic,
> AND there are monthly charges for each STB. Sure, you get extra channels, and
> there is a potential if not actual quality difference between digital &
> analog, but there ARE extra costs.
>
> I don't think it's as simple as saying people dislike STBs. But maybe you're
> right. If so, this explains a lot about the lack of availability of ATSC
> STBs. If you are loathe to put a box on top of your TV, then it makes little
> difference whether it's an ATSC box or a digital cable box, or whether you
> are renting it for a few $/month or buying it outright for $60 or $100 or
> whatever. You don't want the box at all -- right?
>
>
>>The desire for zillions of channels, or for premium
>>channels, makes it worth the nonsense of dealing with
>>unnecessary interface boxes. It's a price some people
>>may be willing to pay. It doesn't mean they want to go
>>this way as opposed to a better way, or that this is
>>good for the consumer.
>
>
> It's not nonsense for me, who happily rents a SA 8300HD dual tuner HD DVR for
> $15/month from Cox cable. That "unnecessary interface box" has transformed
> the way my family watches TV and for me is the most effective method I know
> of for time-shifting my favorite HD shows.
>
> Having the option to buy a Tivo or other brand-name HD DVR box with CableCard
> slots, or even a TV set with an embedded DVR is undoubtedly "good for the
> consumer" -- more choice is always better than less choice. But I am not
> inclined to spend big $ to own my DVR -- whether it's a separate box or part
> of the TV set. I spent $3000 on an HD display and that's ALL I want it to be
> -- a display. When Cox begins offering the 8300HD MR (multi-room) in my city,
> or a new model comes out with new features and a bigger hard drive, I will
> happily take my DVR back to the Cox store, get the new box and continue to
> pay the rental fee. I would NOT be too happy about replacing my expensive
> HDTV display just because I wanted the latest & greatest DVR.
>
>
>>With recording devices, the integral tuner is practically
>>mandatory.
>
>
> Absolutely. I would go farther and say "at least two tuners." Motorola found
> out the hard way with it's first HD DVR, which had only one tuner, that a
> single-tuner DVR was a non-starter.
>
>
>>The question you should be asking is whether
>>this recrding device, with integral tuner, should be
>>available on regular store shelves, or whether specific
>>non-standard models should be dictated by each service
>>provider.
>
>
> You know very well that both options -- retail store & provider-specific
> models -- are available. The question you should be asking is "why are
> consumers being forced, after 2006, to pay for DTT tuners in retail recording
> devices, when many of them only want the digital cable tuners or the DBS
> tuners?"
>
> -- Frank
>
>
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