People not cutting the TV cord

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We probably won't cut the TV cord until we get a cheaper internet option. Our only source uses the cell network, so its not cheap to use a lot of data.
I have to say, that a PVR makes TV pretty efficient at letting you watch what you want, when you want too, with no commercials. I rarely watch live TV anymore and if I do, often I'll pause it for 20 minutes and then watch it skipping through the commercials. We just have a basic package for $35/month so its not too bad and is a much better entertainment deal than our expensive internet.
 
Originally Posted By: Pop_Rivit
While we were on our way to Texas last week we stopped over in Emporia Kansas for the night. As we were in the motel room I turned on the television and flipped through the channels.

The experience reaffirmed my decision not to watch television. As I scrolled through the channels the shows and commercials that I saw were just downright stupid. There may have been some content worth seeing, but wading through all the garbage to find it simply wasn't worth my time. After about 10 minutes I turned the television off, picked up my book, and relaxed.

I guess I can't be one of those "cord cutters" since I've never had a cord to cut. But seeing the amount of money some folks are willing to spend in order to be "entertained", I certainly am glad that I never became one of the mindless television watchers.

+1
 
One thing I hate is people that cannot do math. The census website says there are 132,802,859 housing units in the US, which means that .00229664 homes quit TV in the past quarter.
Originally Posted By: supton
Found this in the inbox today. I know the anti-TV folks like a good bash thread, this at least has some numbers in it.

http://www.ecnmag.com/news/2014/08/cultu...p;type=headline

Quote:
Fears of so-called "cord-cutting," where people drop their TV subscriptions and rely on online video services, was "surprisingly benign" in the second quarter, with just 305,000 households - less than one-tenth of a percent - quitting pay TV, according to financial advisory firm MoffettNathanson LLC.


Quote:
A Gallup poll in 1990 found 49 percent of people said they spent too much time watching television. Only 19 percent said they watched too little. Nine years ago when CBS began its annual survey, more people said they were cutting back on TV time.

This year, Nielsen estimates the average American watches four hours, 50 minutes of TV a day.


Quote:
Television continues on firm footing financially, despite the rise of digital video outlets like Netflix and YouTube. The research firm eMarketer Inc. predicted TV ad spending will hit $78.6 billion in 2018, up from $66.4 billion last year.
 
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Originally Posted By: Hokiefyd
Originally Posted By: ClutchDisc
I have much better things to do with my time than...


I can't count how many times I've heard that said in reference to internet discussion forums...
wink.gif


I wasn't referencing Internet discussion forums.. I was referencing watching TV.
 
When you look at the number of folks who keep paying ridiculous price increases, despite complaining, no wonder the entertainment/tv companies are still on good ground. Heck, Comcast built a 69 story skyscraper in Philadelphia and are apparently going to build another. So they must be doing well.
 
Originally Posted By: ClutchDisc
I wasn't referencing Internet discussion forums.. I was referencing watching TV.


You clearly were.

My point is that we often make ourselves feel good on this forum about the choices we make in comparison to others, when others look upon us and do the same thing. It's just an observation; no more, no less (hence the "wink" smiley at the end of my post).
 
I choose to include some mindful, quality television in my weekly routine in addition to spending my time on "much more important" activities.

People read in moderation, exercise in moderation, and eat healthy in moderation. Why not quality television in moderation?

Why the "all or nothing" regarding this one aspect of life? TV expense can be managed like everything else. I know some religions dictate what people can do. I.e., dancing invokes immoral thoughts = total abstinence from dancing, while many can do it responsibly. I know some people lack will power and easily succumb to addiction, thus mandating total abstinence. Avoiding TV to compensate for a weakness is probably a good move.

I enjoy educational tv (history, nature, diy, travel, cooking,etc.). I also enjoy some entertainment tv (movies, some game shows, occasional sports).

I don't know why responsible television presents such a challenge for some people.
 
Originally Posted By: Barkleymut
One thing I hate is people that cannot do math. The census website says there are 132,802,859 housing units in the US, which means that .00229664 homes quit TV in the past quarter.



Agreed. When you factor in that not all homes have cable and this was only a 3 month time period, its a large drop. At $1800 per year per customer, its a loss of $540 million in one quarter.
 
Originally Posted By: Burt
Originally Posted By: Barkleymut
One thing I hate is people that cannot do math. The census website says there are 132,802,859 housing units in the US, which means that .00229664 homes quit TV in the past quarter.



Agreed. When you factor in that not all homes have cable and this was only a 3 month time period, its a large drop. At $1800 per year per customer, its a loss of $540 million in one quarter.


So around $1.2B for the year in lost subscriber revenue. But $79B in TV ads up from $66B last year? I'm not sure they are worried. Not when they just keep increasing subscription costs.

One number they didn't mention was the new subscription rate. 305k quit last quarter, but how many new people signed up? Might be more static than we think.
 
Originally Posted By: supton
Originally Posted By: Burt
Originally Posted By: Barkleymut
One thing I hate is people that cannot do math. The census website says there are 132,802,859 housing units in the US, which means that .00229664 homes quit TV in the past quarter.



Agreed. When you factor in that not all homes have cable and this was only a 3 month time period, its a large drop. At $1800 per year per customer, its a loss of $540 million in one quarter.


So around $1.2B for the year in lost subscriber revenue. But $79B in TV ads up from $66B last year? I'm not sure they are worried. Not when they just keep increasing subscription costs.

One number they didn't mention was the new subscription rate. 305k quit last quarter, but how many new people signed up? Might be more static than we think.


It didn't take Time Warner long before they were sending me advertisements to get my old rate back.
 
I canceled cable TV about 8 years ago but kept the high speed internet from them (for Netflix and HULU).

About a year ago the offered me a internet/tv package with faster internet for less money than what I was paying for just internet, so I said yes. Still have not hooked up to the cable TV portion, but am enjoying 2x the internet speed for less money each month. I called to cancel since the promo ended and they gave me an even better deal for a year.
Still have the cable box they sent me for "free" sitting in the corner of the garage unopened.
 
I enjoy certain shows on tv, Blue Bloods, He!! On wheels, Vikings come to mind. I'm 70+ years old and have no need or wish to work any longer. I enjoy to be entertained at times and like the news available on television, both local & world.

I like keeping myself abreast of what's going on in the world, even tho there is little I can do about it.
 
Originally Posted By: doitmyself
I choose to include some mindful, quality television in my weekly routine in addition to spending my time on "much more important" activities.

People read in moderation, exercise in moderation, and eat healthy in moderation. Why not quality television in moderation?

Why the "all or nothing" regarding this one aspect of life? TV expense can be managed like everything else. I know some religions dictate what people can do. I.e., dancing invokes immoral thoughts = total abstinence from dancing, while many can do it responsibly. I know some people lack will power and easily succumb to addiction, thus mandating total abstinence. Avoiding TV to compensate for a weakness is probably a good move.

I enjoy educational tv (history, nature, diy, travel, cooking,etc.). I also enjoy some entertainment tv (movies, some game shows, occasional sports).

I don't know why responsible television presents such a challenge for some people.



Agreed. Sometimes there are few things worth watching. I'm more of a pbs/history junkie, but every now and then I like a little mindless fun. Just like music, but that is another story....
 
Originally Posted By: doitmyself
I choose to include some mindful, quality television in my weekly routine in addition to spending my time on "much more important" activities.

People read in moderation, exercise in moderation, and eat healthy in moderation. Why not quality television in moderation?

...

I don't know why responsible television presents such a challenge for some people.


responsible television isnt the issue. Its the amount of garbage that costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars a year to waste time on.

And then you hear that apparently shark week is staged, when I watched dish network in a hotel recently, there are ever more and more commercials on PAY channels, and every other one is seemingly for a reverse mortgage.

And then you look at the prevalence of obesity, not to mention all the threads on here about how people are so dumb, how they are rude, caught up in other things, dont know enough about things, etc. What proliferates that??? Garbage programming on hundreds of channels sure doesnt help.

There are some good things, some of the stuff teaching history, some of the stuff on DIY channels like Holmes, some of the food stuff, its all interesting and useful on occasion. I cant imagine wasting time on the non-technical, non-useful trash that is popular on a lot of the TV.

Its not "responsible TV" that is the issue.
 
Haven't had a TV in the house for 17 years; a while back i thought there was too much good stuff on, now i think the opposite.

I will say one thing; the nonsense on TV is so pervasive that it shows up on radio discussions, office talk, youtube videos etc, that it isn't really necessary to watch any of it.

I think Mitchell and Webb sort of summed up US reality shows. Brilliant parody of the stupidity of it all.
 
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Originally Posted By: JHZR2
responsible television isnt the issue. Its the amount of garbage that costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars a year to waste time on.


Here's the problem I have with all these types of discussions. It's based on the simple proberb: People who live in glass houses should not throw stones. This translates to: Do not criticize others if you have similar weaknesses yourself.

Let me turn the tables on you. This is a friendly joust, mind you. Not a personal attack or judgement. Purely hypothetical. If I remember correct, you have 4 to 6 vehicles for you and your wife (if I am wrong, then lets imagine you do). One is a BMW? and one is an old truck that is only used rarely for real work.

Here I go......"It's the amount of garbage that costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars a year to waste time on". Extra insurance costs. Extra maintenance and repair costs. Huge amount of time wasted on care, repairs, maintenance. Didn't you once claim to spend hours clearing leaf debris and then detailing door jambs, hinge areas, etc.? No one needs a car that can go 130mph, a jeep or truck that can clear mud bogs. Everyone should have one or two appliance type vehicles that meets their basic needs. Anything else in just decadence and wasted time AND money that could be spent better else where.

Touche.....my wife and I actually only keep one appliance type vehicle for the two of us and this is what I choose (for the past 38 years). But, you don't find me beating my chest and patting my back every other week, espousing my greatness and everyone else's weakness. What's good for us does not apply to everyone else.

Another example: a retired couple that own an overly large home and claim monthly utility bills of $1,200 dollars or more. "It's the amount of garbage that costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars a year to waste time on". A home half this size could still be extremely comfortable. Much less time to maintain. Much less money to maintain. Much less burden on the environment, especially considering the overly large yard that requires a commercial mower to maintain.

Touche again. My wife and I successfully live in a typical post WWII home of 1,200 sq. ft, one bathroom and we raised three fine kids here. Again, I don't criticize others for their choice that is different.

How about the professional sports in the U.S. and all the waste of time and money associated with that? O.k., enough is enough for now. Not going there, all you lazy tv watching couch potatoes. $50 dollars to go sit in a dirty stadium, eat and drink outrageously priced food & drink, to watch spoiled men play a game, getting many millions a year????? Really stupid waste of time and money (don't forget, I'm being hypothetical here - no death threats sports fanatics!).

That's my .02 cents on this topic and many others like it at BITOG. That I can enjoy coffee at home for 10 cents while others spend $4.00 at Starbucks....pffft, their money to spend as they choose.

The social issues regarding all this stuff is another topic. But, judging others for how they spend their time and money, no matter how silly, is not part of my demeanor. To each, their own.
 
Originally Posted By: stephen9666

Uh, many people who "cut the cord" aren't anti-TV, they're against paying big cable bills for tons of stuff they don't watch.

I got rid of cable like 5 years ago and I've never looked back. I pay for a couple online services that add up to way less than cable. I can watch pretty much anything I'd want to online, on-demand.

Yes sir .. we save ~$500 yr not having cable.
 
Our monthly "TV" bill went from a "bundled deal" bill of about $190 to about $70 all-in (for broadband, Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Prime). We're saving $1,440 each year.
 
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