[Speed Gibson,
Friday December 2, 2005 at 12:13am]
Channels a la Carte
Hugh Hewitt decided to throw himself into this tempest in a teapot wherein cable subscribers are wondering and/or demanding to be able to pick and choose just the channels they want. Hewitt went a couple of rounds with an industry spokesman. Hugh punched and jabbed like he did with the Miers nomination, but lost on points.
Somehow people think their cable bill would drop dramatically if we could delete the channels we seldom watch or would be willing to live without. After all, the thought of getting rid of MTV, Animal Planet, ESPN 2-8, and non-English speaking channels is appealing. But it really won't lower your bill all that much, and it might even go up.
Rates are based on wide subscriptions and related revenue. Don't want to watch the Twins on FSN? If half drop FSN, the price for those who remain doubles. In fact, it goes still higher because FSN's ad revenues take a hit from a smaller audience. And it goes a little higher yet because of the extra staff they'll need to handle everyone calling in and changing their profiles. As I said, if you prefer the less popular or more expensive channels, your bill could go up.
The cable companies are not the bad guys here. They're really just wholesalers, and in the fight of their lives right now with Dish and DirecTV. Unlike satellite, cell phone, and wireless providers, they have to get franchises from the cities because of the utility rights of way needed to string the wires, just like the utilities and telephone companies. But there is no real legal block against a second or third cable operator. It's really a financial hurdle, many millions to put in all that cable and associated equipment.
The whole concept of television is changing, given TiVo/DVR, On Demand video, and even Internet video. Maybe NBC will offer "premium memberships" so you can watch Law & Order on demand, without commercials. Maybe we'll pay to watch the whole race on Nascar, not just half like today. Maybe we'll be able to watch the Masters winner play all 72 holes. Maybe they'll offer Gray's Anatomy without commercials and without sexual content. (Wow, that was a short episode, roll the credits!) Maybe cable service will simply evolve into an Internet firehose, getting voice, data, audio, and video via IP at 100 mbps or higher.
So take my advice and don't sweat the small stuff of a la carte pricing. Much bigger changes will occur by 2010. But if the cable companies have to offer it, it's only fair to require the same for the dish providers.
Somehow people think their cable bill would drop dramatically if we could delete the channels we seldom watch or would be willing to live without. After all, the thought of getting rid of MTV, Animal Planet, ESPN 2-8, and non-English speaking channels is appealing. But it really won't lower your bill all that much, and it might even go up.
Rates are based on wide subscriptions and related revenue. Don't want to watch the Twins on FSN? If half drop FSN, the price for those who remain doubles. In fact, it goes still higher because FSN's ad revenues take a hit from a smaller audience. And it goes a little higher yet because of the extra staff they'll need to handle everyone calling in and changing their profiles. As I said, if you prefer the less popular or more expensive channels, your bill could go up.
The cable companies are not the bad guys here. They're really just wholesalers, and in the fight of their lives right now with Dish and DirecTV. Unlike satellite, cell phone, and wireless providers, they have to get franchises from the cities because of the utility rights of way needed to string the wires, just like the utilities and telephone companies. But there is no real legal block against a second or third cable operator. It's really a financial hurdle, many millions to put in all that cable and associated equipment.
The whole concept of television is changing, given TiVo/DVR, On Demand video, and even Internet video. Maybe NBC will offer "premium memberships" so you can watch Law & Order on demand, without commercials. Maybe we'll pay to watch the whole race on Nascar, not just half like today. Maybe we'll be able to watch the Masters winner play all 72 holes. Maybe they'll offer Gray's Anatomy without commercials and without sexual content. (Wow, that was a short episode, roll the credits!) Maybe cable service will simply evolve into an Internet firehose, getting voice, data, audio, and video via IP at 100 mbps or higher.
So take my advice and don't sweat the small stuff of a la carte pricing. Much bigger changes will occur by 2010. But if the cable companies have to offer it, it's only fair to require the same for the dish providers.