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CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

nytimes.com

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Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#31

Post by akira2501 »

californian wrote: post #17
tedivm wrote: post #8

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you have cable? My guess is they're targeting existing cable customers who are considering cutting the cord- those people are already paying for a service that gives them advertisements, so for them this isn't much different (in fact it's 25% less ads and potentially a much smaller cable bill).

Except this is streaming broadcast shows, not cable (unless I missed something). This wouldn't really help cutting the cord... you could already get rid of cable and just use an antenna for CBS.

The access to a large back catalog of CBS shows is, for me, a worthwhile feature.

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#32

Post by mason55 »

ChuckMcM wrote: post #13

I'm going to assume they started on this effort at the same time they started making loud noises about Aero and their "mini" antennae. I agree that it seems strange to have both pay + ads, which is clearly a grab at both the money people paid to the cable/satellite company and the revenue they get from advertisers. I would subscribe to a service where it was free and the ads paid for it (like broadcast TV), or it cos…

> I agree that it seems strange to have both pay + ads

> I would not be a fan if this pay and pay model became the norm.

Maybe you've heard of cable television for which you both pay and see ads? I think it might catch on at some point...

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#33

Post by AjithAntony »

ryanhuff wrote: post #20
californian wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Except this is streaming broadcast shows, not cable (unless I missed something). This wouldn't really help cutting the cord... you could already get rid of cable and just use an antenna for CBS.

Antennas won't work for many people.

In fact, "cable TV" was invented to solve this problem. CATV=Community Antenna TV

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#34

Post by n42 »

ansible wrote: post #6

For the live stream, the ads will be the same as those on the traditional television broadcast. For the on-demand programming, the typical 12 to 16 minutes of ads an hour will be reduced 25 percent. I guess I'm not their intended customer. I'm not going to pay for a service to give me ads. If I'm watching a live show, I want the ability to pause it, walk away for a few minutes, and then skip commercials. For on-deman…

Recently, I thought I'd give Hulu Plus a shot. I didn't realize I would still have advertisements after paying a monthly fee. I cancelled my subscription immediately. I don't need to watch those shows that badly.

I have been actively working on removing advertisements from my life and have found it has made my mind feel less cluttered.

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#35

Post by jobu »

ansible wrote: post #6

For the live stream, the ads will be the same as those on the traditional television broadcast. For the on-demand programming, the typical 12 to 16 minutes of ads an hour will be reduced 25 percent. I guess I'm not their intended customer. I'm not going to pay for a service to give me ads. If I'm watching a live show, I want the ability to pause it, walk away for a few minutes, and then skip commercials. For on-deman…

Also, no football:

"In a notable carve-out, National Football League games will not be available on the service."

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#36

Post by trose »

jobu wrote: post #35
ansible wrote: post #6

For the live stream, the ads will be the same as those on the traditional television broadcast. For the on-demand programming, the typical 12 to 16 minutes of ads an hour will be reduced 25 percent. I guess I'm not their intended customer. I'm not going to pay for a service to give me ads. If I'm watching a live show, I want the ability to pause it, walk away for a few minutes, and then skip commercials. For on-deman…

Also, no football: "In a notable carve-out, National Football League games will not be available on the service."

Welp that's about the only thing worth watching on CBS...

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#37

Post by kodablah »

ansible wrote: post #6

For the live stream, the ads will be the same as those on the traditional television broadcast. For the on-demand programming, the typical 12 to 16 minutes of ads an hour will be reduced 25 percent. I guess I'm not their intended customer. I'm not going to pay for a service to give me ads. If I'm watching a live show, I want the ability to pause it, walk away for a few minutes, and then skip commercials. For on-deman…

This is basically retransmission fees applied directly to you instead of your cable provider. Your argument is more against retransmission fees + advertisements. For a company to be able to sell such a product/idea internally and to shareholders, they probably have to keep double-dipping. But, yes, it is annoying.

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#38

Post by bengali3 »

n42 wrote: post #34
ansible wrote: post #6

For the live stream, the ads will be the same as those on the traditional television broadcast. For the on-demand programming, the typical 12 to 16 minutes of ads an hour will be reduced 25 percent. I guess I'm not their intended customer. I'm not going to pay for a service to give me ads. If I'm watching a live show, I want the ability to pause it, walk away for a few minutes, and then skip commercials. For on-deman…

Recently, I thought I'd give Hulu Plus a shot. I didn't realize I would still have advertisements after paying a monthly fee. I cancelled my subscription immediately. I don't need to watch those shows that badly. I have been actively working on removing advertisements from my life and have found it has made my mind feel less cluttered.

Same here, I was a Hulu customer for a whole 3 hours before I committed to Netflix 2+ years ago. Ads on top of the fact that they didnt have the episodes available until days after they aired.

I'm now basic cable(+dvr) & internet ($80/mo) + Netflix $8 + AmazonPrime

possibly adding HBO soon

Re: CBS Offers Web Service as TV Unbundles Itself

#39

Post by blatherard »

mason55 wrote: post #32
ChuckMcM wrote: post #13

I'm going to assume they started on this effort at the same time they started making loud noises about Aero and their "mini" antennae. I agree that it seems strange to have both pay + ads, which is clearly a grab at both the money people paid to the cable/satellite company and the revenue they get from advertisers. I would subscribe to a service where it was free and the ads paid for it (like broadcast TV), or it cos…

> I agree that it seems strange to have both pay + ads > I would not be a fan if this pay and pay model became the norm. Maybe you've heard of cable television for which you both pay and see ads? I think it might catch on at some point...

Having lived through the transition from broadcast-only tv to widespread cable tv, that's not at all how it was sold. Cable was sold on the merits of primarily: better reception (no more antenna!) and many more available channels. The dollars that you spent on "cable" were for those features, primarily. The channels themselves were "free" and carried the advertising they always had. It was kind of like buying internet access, in that most people don't expect that all content accessed via the internet will be ad-free.

The unbundled CBS isn't really akin to paying for cable. You're already paying for your internet access yourself. If anything, CBS online will be like a "premium channel" in cable tv terms. Which, historically, have been generally ad-free. I assume the reason for that is the market figured out that people don't like to both pay for some particular channel and see ads.

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