With the cut-the-cord movement on the rise, cable companies could be forced to provide a la carte services to “rebellious” customers at some point. An analyst at MoffettNathanson Research has determined that if E$PN were to offer its product (all E$PN channels) as a stand-alone, it would need to charge consumers $36.30 per month. Netflix’s streaming service is currently $9/month for new subscribers, while Hulu Plus is at $8 and HBONow sits at $15. Would 436 bucks/year keep you from having E$PN in your menu? If so, what would you be willing to pay? [Link]
I'm not sure that even the entire family of E$PN channels would be worth $36 a month...it was bad enough choking down ~$25 a month on the NBA league pass when I picked it up mid-season.
No. We just recently canceled our U-verse cable and kept the internet service. I couldn’t justify the cost any more, we almost never watch anything, and the whole cable experience with 100s of unwanted channels is just stupid.
All the ESPN channels and the Longhorn network? Yeah, I'd pay $36.30 a month, but if I had to tighten budgets it would get a hard look.
No, I pay about $50 after taxes and fees for channels 1-100, which includes ESPN, ESPN2, LHN, and SECN.
No, I would definitely shop around. Dish eliminated the ESPN Classics channel for some reason out of the ESPN package. I still don't know how they did that, right after signing a deal with ESPN. There will continue to be more options as time goes on, but it will cause the major television carriers to either raise prices, offer better incentives, or just bite the bullet. If they raise prices too much, they would be kind of cutting their own throat, you would think. They probably think that people will find it too inconvenient to change, but as a younger clientele comes on board, that just isn't so.
With Netflix, Amazon, live sports venues, classic movies for free from the library, etc. it may well be worth it to evaluate my entertainment options. Hell, even the evening news, something I once held sacrosanct, is now an inefficient mechanism to get updates on serious news of national importance. Plus, I resent that during every network newscast I'm reminded that I'm in a demograpic preoccupied with diabetes, heart disease, erectile dysfunction, regularity and incontinence.
No. But I'm switching from cable to Direct TV which has the LHN and the NLF Ticket. Besides sports and a few other channels, the rest are superfluous like the Chinese New channels, and Good Moring Vietnam channel, Shopping Networks, etc. Don't need them.
No. The thing that concerns me though is that isn't it the tv deals that have been driving up coaching salaries, stadium projects, etc.? What happens if they start paying less to the conferences/colleges? Perhaps, higher ticket prices, parking, and the list goes on.
Early adopters would be punished financially, as they always are. When the entire system is blown up in 10 years and the FCC realizes that streaming media literally IS the media, and that broadcast only works for people stuck in the stone age, everything will shift to a cheaper format. Probably closer to $20/month for all the ESPN channels, and similar for all the Fox Sports ones.
They like to THINK they could get that based on the choke hold they have on cable and satellite companies but when it hit the fan they'd be more like ten bucks a month. They'd make their end on commercials, trim the fat on the majority of their content which is crap anyway. They would go back to the early days when they would rebroadcast the Big Show/Sportscenter all night in a loop. They could update stories on a live ticker. They need to lean up and learn some humility at this time anyway. It's very tedious to watch ESPN lately (for awhile) and I do not miss it at all as a cut the cord type for almost six years now.
They've had hidden sports sites out there for years where you can stream most D1 college games and all pro games for major sports for free. Not the most proper way of doing things, but it's out there, free, and has wide ranging access no cable subscription can offer.
No! Maybe $10 per month if LHN is included but just as I suspected with all this "unbundle crap" in the end the cost is going to be higher. I hate the garbage cable puts out and calls it a package but I fear the network menu approach will eliminate some of the trash but end up with a higher $ outlay.
Not if the market does not bite. It won't last. The medium to less than medium channels will have to charge and arm and a leg or fold up or greatly reduce content or viewing hours. The more popular channels will get about 1/4 of what they think they will get. Being in the B TV business will become a piss poor career choice. Many more RTF types will be frothing milk.
I would absolutely pay for ESPN in a cafeteria-style plan. I pay over $100 a month for cable and also Netlfix and Amazon Prime. And I watch about 13 channels. I am paying for channels that show languages that I don't speak. Or shopping stuff that I won't ever buy.
If you think about Cable/Satellite TV, think Cell Phones.......We are currently in the early 1990's where Cell Phone Companies charged whatever they wanted and service was very poor...........A La Carte is coming and the days of paying for crap that you don't want will go away, the pendulum will shift.....
I get internet and cable through Time Warner. My bill is now $200/month. And I'm not even getting any movie channels, not even any late night dirty ones. The cable cutters are getting sharpened as we speak. I would definitely pay for things I do watch. Even $36/month for ESPN.
I think I pay 35 bucks for a high speed internet connection. Through network websites, netflix and amazon prime I don't miss much. I link to a big screen HD tv. I have saved thousands of dollars over the past almost five years since cutting the cable. I have not missed much of anything. I just don't watch some shows right when they air, no biggie. I will be adding an Aussie Football package to allow me to watch all matches including On Demand for ones I want to watch later as the season goes on. Even that is a bargain and well worth it. I have said this a few times on this site and elsewhere but I really cannot see myself EVER going back to cable. F those guys.
Hey Vulcan, I went in to complain about my Xfinity bill (also $200/ mo with triple play), saying I had to reduce it. Lady looked it over and said I should be getting more for this rate on a package offering. Ended up with everything - all movies, sports tickets, etc. - except the erotica - with $10/mo reduction. Even got the faster broadband, all of which verified to me I had been getting screwed for months. So for now I am satisfied, EXCEPT: still no LHN so am planning to cut the cable once a la carte is available with a good live sports coverage.
