Aereo - The death of a new idea

Since the United States of America turned off the analog TV signal and went digital, I lost my ability to view over-the-air content.  The simple fact is this:  I live in the shadow of a mountain, meaning the new digital TV signal is being blocked by a mountain.  If you look at a signal map, my house is in the mountain's "shadow".  Therefore, if I want to watch TV, I must get cable or satellite TV.  Even for basic cable (local broadcast channels), the fee is between $15 and $20 per month.  I don't like TV enough to pay for that.

Then along comes Aereo.  They open in my market.  Problem solved!  I subscribe for a Netflix price of $8/month and I get my local content streamed to me over the Internet, plus a DVR in the cloud.  Happy days!  Long live Aereo!

Then on June 25, 2014 the Supreme Court of the United States of America issued a ruling that effectively killed Aereo.  Aereo changed tactics and decided to become a cable operator, but on July 17th, they were again snubbed by the US Copyright Office and they weren't given a chance to operate even as a cable TV operator.

Here is what I believe the crux of the whole problem.  People are paying a lot of money for content they don't watch.  If you have cable TV, how many channels do you regularly watch?  I could care less about MTV, VH1, all the various cooking and home shopping channels.  They are fluff.  People realize that they are paying $50 per month ($600 per year) for a lot of stuff that really doesn't matter to them.  They want to get the content they are interested in at a reasonable price.  They are even willing to go without.  I am willing to pay a nominal fee to get some local channels and possibly some sports games, but I don't want more than that.

I think the broadcasters may have won the battle, but over time, the demographic will change on them.  Broadcasters will need to think about how they will appeal to a new generation of people who are willing to go without because the service being offered to them isn't a significant value to the end user.  My advice...  Cut the cord.  The more people who cut the cord, the more clearly the consumer voices will be heard.  Broadcasters are in it to make money.  So you have to reward or punish them with your money.  Sooner or later they will figure it out and follow the money.  Too bad it will now be later than sooner.

Going cold turkey - No more cable TV

Last Friday I called my cable provider and asked them to disconnect me.  I thought they were going to do it yesterday, but they didn't.  Instead, they came by today and disconnected us.

My first reaction was "Finally!"  But then I thought about it a bit and realized that there won't be any "entertainment" on any more.  If I want to watch something, it will have to be from the video collection.  Or I'll have to hook the home PC up to the TV and watch something over the Internet.  Ick!

So we'll see what happens.  I may have it reconnected at the end of the week.  Then again, maybe never!  But right now, it is a relief that I don't have to pay one more thing that I really don't use much or need to have in my house.  One less distraction for me and my family.

Google TV - no more cable TV

A week or two ago I purchased a Logitech Revue.  I bought it Friday night.  Took it home.  It was late, so I didn't even bother to take it out of the box.  I slept on it and the next day I realized that I had made a $300 mistake.  So I took it back to the store the next day for a full refund.  The inner geek wants it.  The realist in me knows that I have no time to waste sitting in front of the TV watching garbage or surfing the Internet.  And we've had some expenses that have taken a toll on our savings account.  I guess I'm just trying to be fiscally responsible this year or something.

I also decided to cancel our cable TV subscription as well.  I called on Friday and they will be shutting it off today.  It is only $15/month, but there is just so much trash on TV that I really don't think we'll miss it.  There is a lot of stuff on the Internet.  If we go through withdrawals, we can sign up again or hook the home PC up to the TV and watch TV via the Internet.  Or I may break down and get that Roku player that I've been thinking of getting....  Naw.  We'll just go without.  We'll be OK.