[opendtv] Re: Distribution outside of "the bundle"
- From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Fri, 12 Dec 2014 02:18:00 +0000
Craig Birkmaier wrote:
> What an absurd response. The MVPD is obviously offering a feature
> [Dish Hopper] that consumers like. The content owners took them to
> court but have not shut it down. SO CBS shuts it down for their
> content as part of their licensing deal
How do you not get these things, Craig? Was Aereo not a "feature that people
like"? Did not the broadcasters bitch loudly about that? Were OTA TV network
channels on MVPDs not a "feature that people like"? Did the broadcasters not
demand extra money from MVPDs?
What do these examples all have in common? It is that some "third party" is
making a new infinite revenue stream for themselves, without compensating the
owner of content that makes this new infinite revenue stream desirable.
> I'm not a fan of leased STBs Bert, but the content owners have
> nothing to do with this. They have everything to do with forcing
> the MVPDs to carry packages of channels, with the ver escalating
> subscriber fees, and other restrictions
We are dealing with greed all the way up the line, Craig. In principle, any
Hopper-like box SHOULD be available openly, at Best Buy, a one-time expense.
But no, of course not. The DBS service creates a proprietary box, and then
demands an infinite revenue stream for its use. That's why I posted the link
and pricing explanation, Craig.
That being the case, the content owners upstream make their own new demand. You
think you can get an infinite revenue stream out of what should be a generic
box? Guess what? As long as you're using MY content to lure people in, I want a
piece of that action too. Ditto with Aereo. Ditto with broadcaster signals on
proprietary MVPD services. Same old story time and time again. One greedy step
followed by another.
> Fair enough, we can all live without a MVPD service. The fact that more
> than 80 million U.S. homes subscribe to a MVPD service suggests that
> this is an important service, and that the price is tolerable.
More like, suggests they should be paying more. It means that many people are
WILLING to shell out that monthly fee, so you can/should therefore squeeze them
more. Mostly it's because of sports (80 percent of increase caused by sports,
we have seen). But even while that's happening, the content owners see people
bailing out, and are finding new ways to reach them again. And no, utility
prices are hardly increasing at twice the rate of inflation, Craig.
Substantiate those absurd claims.
http://inflationdata.com/articles/inflation-adjusted-prices/electricity-price-inflation-rate/
> This is very much like the Internet you love so much Bert. We both
> have ISP services from oligopolies. But you are enamored of the
> fact that you can access content from multiple providers that
> offer differentiated services.
And that's why ISPs have to remain neutral. Unlike you, I think this is
essential. I have no idea why you are so willing to submit to monopolies,
Craig. It's uncanny.
> You object to paying for the bundle because it forces you to pay for
> stuff you don't want.
No, if anything, that describes your own previous distaste for bundling (which
you have since forgotten). My objection is more general. I see no reason to
become beholden to that single proprietary, monopolistic content source. It's
that simple.
>> A walled garden is a middleman who decides for you what your content
>> sources can be and what they will cost. No such middleman need exist
>> anymore, with the Internet.
>
> Name one OTT site that does not do this.
Let me see, Craig. If I decide to use Netflix, does that mean I can't use Hulu?
Does Netflix demand the use of some special rental box? If I watch cbs.com, do
they force me to subscribe to Amazon? Name me one OTT site that decides for me
what TV sources I can make use of. Name one OTT site that is a monopoly source
in a given neighborhood.
Bert
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