[opendtv] Time: ABC Declares War on Cord Cutters with Live-TV App — Delayed Streaming to Follow

  • From: "Manfredi, Albert E" <albert.e.manfredi@xxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: "opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx" <opendtv@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sun, 26 May 2013 23:35:00 +0000

Craig Birkmaier wrote:

> Well at least you admit that what most analysts (including myself) are
> saying is true - the status quo will stay in place for the foreseeable
> future. It is OBVIOUS that these oligopolies are working to gather to
> delay what "should be happening." The reality is that this is
> increasingly true for MANY of the things we think we need to enjoy life.

A delaying action, is what I always claimed it to be. This article makes that 
point too. Take a look at the graphic, for example. Once kids are out of the 
house these days, take a look at the trends. And the quote here:

"Although cord cutting isn’t new, it’s picking up steam, especially among 
younger demographics. A recent survey by Nielsen found 5 million zero-TV 
households, compared with 2 million in 2007, with nearly two-thirds of the 
group under 45 years old. By rewarding cable subscribers, and punishing cord 
cutters, ABC is hoping to prevent — or at least slow down — the collapse of the 
traditional pay-TV business model."

Thing is, cable-cutting and Internet TV don't need to collapse anything. They 
call for readjustment of the REAL added value each component part can provide. 
A model where the participants are being paid for no added value cannot sustain 
itself long term.

Bert

http://techland.time.com/2013/05/13/abc-to-stream-live-tv-in-fight-against-cord-cutters/

--------------------------------------- 
ABC Declares War on Cord Cutters with Live-TV App — Delayed Streaming to Follow
By Jared NewmanMay 13, 20130 

ABC is really hoping you’ll hang on to your cable subscription, and is taking a 
couple of new steps to make sure of it.

This week, the network will add live streaming video to its iPhone and iPad 
apps, the New York Times reports. However, the feature will only work if you 
have a cable or satellite-TV subscription.

That’s not all. The report also claims that in the future, ABC will “withhold 
its most recent TV episodes from the free versions of Hulu and ABC.com, further 
limiting access to paying subscribers of cable and satellite providers only.”

ABC’s existing iOS app offers on-demand TV shows only. The addition of live TV 
will let cable and satellite subscribers watch local news or talk shows in real 
time, and from anywhere within their local broadcast area. The Times’ story 
mostly focuses on this new feature, describing the work that went into it and 
how ads will work.

But the idea of delayed streams for ABC shows is more mysterious. The Times’ 
story doesn’t say when ABC will begin holding back its streams, or how long 
nonpaying viewers will have to wait to see new episodes. An ABC representative 
would not provide any additional details to us.

At the moment, Fox is the only major broadcast network that delays new 
streaming episodes on Hulu and its own website. To get next-day streaming, you 
must subscribe to Hulu Plus or have a cable or satellite subscription. (Not 
surprisingly, the delay caused a big spike in piracy for Fox shows a couple of 
years ago.)

ABC has been interested in the idea for a while. In 2011, Bob Iger, chairman 
and CEO of Disney (which owns ABC), said the company would “push the window 
back or make access to the programming more difficult or later, except if 
customers are authenticated as a subscriber.”

If ABC follows through, it’ll amount to a big pushback against cord cutting, 
the concept of throwing out your cable or satellite subscription in favor of 
cheaper streaming options.

Although cord cutting isn’t new, it’s picking up steam, especially among 
younger demographics. A recent survey by Nielsen found 5 million zero-TV 
households, compared with 2 million in 2007, with nearly two-thirds of the 
group under 45 years old. By rewarding cable subscribers, and punishing cord 
cutters, ABC is hoping to prevent — or at least slow down — the collapse of the 
traditional pay-TV business model.

Lately, broadcasters have become nervous about Aereo, a service that lets you 
stream broadcast TV to phones, tablets, laptops and set-top boxes. Aereo’s 
service, which uses microantennas stored at the company’s own facilities, 
exists without the blessing of companies like ABC. Broadcasters have tried 
suing Aereo, but haven’t been able to shut it down, so now they’re trying to 
compete in various ways. While ABC tries its own streaming apps, CBS recently 
invested in Syncbak, a company that handles mobile streaming for local 
broadcasts.

Broadcasters have also threatened a nuclear option of sorts. Fox, CBS and 
Univision have all said they’ll consider pulling their shows from over-the-air 
broadcasts if Aereo succeeds in court.

Although it’s good to see companies like ABC competing on features rather than 
merely making threats and filing lawsuits, artificial barriers to protect cable 
and satellite TV aren’t going to squash cord cutting. Nielsen’s recent survey 
on the phenomenon found that only 18% would consider subscribing to TV 
services, and the most popular reasons not to subscribe were cost and lack of 
interest.

In other words, cord cutting isn’t about replacing everything you’d get with a 
cable subscription, but about finding enough other things to do. And when 
you’re on a phone or a tablet, there’s plenty to do besides watching talk shows 
or local news from ABC. Live streaming may compel some users to hang on to 
their cable subscriptions, but it seems unlikely to lure younger cord cutters 
into expensive TV packages. At best, this is a short-term solution to a very 
long-term problem.

Read more: 
http://techland.time.com/2013/05/13/abc-to-stream-live-tv-in-fight-against-cord-cutters/#ixzz2URYmxfuf
 
 
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  • » [opendtv] Time: ABC Declares War on Cord Cutters with Live-TV App — Delayed Streaming to Follow - Manfredi, Albert E