[opendtv] Re: Sling TV Pinpoints Streaming Issue | Multichannel
- From: Craig Birkmaier <craig@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Tue, 1 Sep 2015 18:56:25 -0400
On Sep 1, 2015, at 6:11 PM, Manfredi, Albert E <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
wrote:
Craig Birkmaier wrote:
So Sling says their latest service interruption problem was related
to poor app design - "previous updates did not work as expected..."
Which is exactly what I explained to Craig. The problem is localized to Sling
TV, not an Internet-wide "sky is falling" problem.
Nobody ever said it was Internet wide; I explained this when You asked why it
did not interfere with your streaming experience during the same time period.
The problems are obviously start up glitches at Sling, although, as I stated in
several messages, the recent problems are not related to the problem they
experienced with signup several months ago.
Perhaps if you would relax a bit and not impulsively argue every point, these
discussions would be more meaningful.
The reality is that Sling is learning where the potholes are in the information
superhighway, and where their design assumptions are flawed. But there is a
common thread here. The problems usually crop up when the system is stressed.
That's to be expected. What you fail to accept is the reality that problems
like these will keep popping up as we stress the system, figure out how to make
it work better, and add capacity to allow a larger percentage of the population
to depend on it as the delivery pipe for their TV entertainment.
By way of comparison, look at how many times the MVPDs have upgraded their
infrastructure to maintain a decent QOS and add new services like broadband and
IP telephony. From thirty channel analog systems to today's branching tree
gigahertz digital plants, things have evolved continuously. DOCSIS is moving to
its third generation in less than two decades. ATSC has not changed a "bit."
Even the DBS systems figured out how to migrate to h.264 to increase capacity...
You mean, "experimental" in the sense that over 40% of TV is already being
consumed this way?
No. I'm not going to keep playing statistics games Bert. The actual percentages
are changing constantly and it is clear where we are headed. How long it will
take to get there remains the subject of intense debate and PR battles, so just
sit back and enjoy the ride.
Or you mean "experimental," in the sense that every network out there,
including the road network, is steadily being updated, year after year,
decade after decade?
This is closer to what I mean. As you saw in the article that discussed
Akamai's experience and ideas for improving the delivery of TV content, things
are evolving and companies are learning how to deal with the stress.
This has been the nature of the Internet - innovate, refine, then codify into
IETF standards. We are finally at the point where video is getting the
attention it deserves, largely because the bandwidth to the home is now
sufficient to support video applications for a significant percentage of the
population.
Some people, like you, are willing to take what they can get for free; it helps
that you never found good reason to pay for TV. Some are willing to be the
subjects of the experiments and will pay to be the beta testers, eschewing
traditional TV distribution systems. Some people, like me, will continue to
subscribe to a MVPD service and a subscription to a SVOD service, spending
varying amount of time inside one walled garden or another, that happens to use
the Internet to deliver the bits.
Some don't have computers, or broadband, or a TV.
All legitimate choices.
We already have 10s of millions on the Internet, Craig. You need to inform
yourself first.
No Bert, we do not have tens of millions who rely on the Internet to deliver
what they formerly paid a MVPD to deliver. We do not have 20-30 million people
trying to watch the same live stream. Sling is having issues trying to get a
few hundred thousand to watch the same program live. HBO Now is having issues
with premieres on Sunday nights.
We will get there, and the landscape will likely look different than any of us
expect.
But we are not there yet.
Regards
Craig
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