/srv/irclogs.ubuntu.com/2011/12/09/#ubuntu-tv.txt

mhall119http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2011/12/why-pay-for-channels-you-dont-watch-ctd-2.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+andrewsullivan%2FrApM+%28The+Daily+Dish%29 an interesting read00:37
mhall119especially the last two paragraphs00:37
MrChrisDruifIs that so mhall119 ?00:39
MrChrisDruifIt's about the death of cable?00:40
mhall119MrChrisDruif: most of it is about why we can't pick just the channels we want01:39
mhall119the last part is about why that might be changing in the near future01:39
MrChrisDruifYeah, it's because cable companies have forced us in a certain direction01:40
MrChrisDruif /model01:40
mhall119I can see a future where "channels" are nothing more than RSS feeds that anybody can make.  You subscribe to the ones that pick the best lineups for you01:41
mhall119so if MrCrhisDruif has the best selection of SciFi shows, I'll subscribe to his channel01:41
mhall119he doesn't have to produce content, or even distribute content, just distribute a list of content01:41
mhall119the trick is going to be finding an economic model for that01:42
MrChrisDruifI think it'll be similar to Youtube subscriptions to channels01:42
mhall119can you add other people's videos to your list that other people subscribe to?01:43
MrChrisDruifWell, it's like youtube actually. A lot of uploaders get paid by Youtube and are "partners" of youtube01:43
mhall119right, but that's a walled garden01:43
MrChrisDruifWell, "we" could have a slightly different model. I use AdBlock, but otherwise you get really annoyed by all the ad's on Youtube01:44
mhall119what if TV shows produced episodes with embedded commercials, and split apart at commercial breaks in a way that lets you add your own commercials to the feed, without removing theirs, but also without having to give them a cut of your ad revenue01:44
mhall119that's almost what major networks do now01:45
MrChrisDruifIf we get a model in which a channel get paid per users, just a small amount every month or year, then those ad's could be removed right?01:45
mhall119sure, but if the content is already free and includes ads, that wouldn't be an option01:45
mhall119if "Lost" is available with ads in it already, I'm not going to pay you to watch it just because you didn't add any more01:46
MrChrisDruifI don't understand what you mean?01:46
mhall119basically, I'd be watching your ads (ads for your customers) in addition to the show's ads (ads from their customers)01:46
MrChrisDruifI think the two of us have different ideas =')01:47
mhall119I put up with the show's ads because i like the show, I put up with your ads because I like the collection of shows you've assembled for me01:47
MrChrisDruifYou think about static commercials, whereas I'm thinking more in the way of youtube..01:47
mhall119I hate those even more than regular commercials01:47
mhall119but yeah, that would work too01:48
MrChrisDruifAnd if you paid a small amount, then they get removed.01:48
mhall119but the decentralized economic models means that both you and the show have to get revenue independently of eachother01:48
MrChrisDruifAnd those dynamics adds can contain what ever is required. Either of the uploader or from a sponsor....01:49
mhall119so I can pay you to avoid your ads, but that doesn't mean I'd be able to avoid the show's ads01:49
MrChrisDruifWhat if the show if a privately organized show, e.g. Equals Three or Annoying Orange, two very popular shows on Youtube01:50
mhall119what do you mean privately organized?01:50
MrChrisDruifThey aren't tied to broadcasting studios, so those shows don't have ad's tied to that show01:51
mhall119ok, so those shows go to a commercial company and say "Hey, X number of people are going to be watching this video, I'll give you a 30 second ad space on it for $Y"01:52
mhall119then MrChrisDruif01:52
mhall119then MrChrisDruif's channel picks it up, because it's an awesome show and awesome shows build his subscribers, then he goes to another commercial company and says "Hey, W number of people are going to watch my channel, I'll give you a 30 second ad space on it for $Z"01:53
mhall119the creators of the show like this, because the more people MrChrisDruif shows their video to, the larger their viewer count (X), which means they can make $Y bigger01:54
mhall119MrChrisDruif has incentives to find quality shows without too many ads in them already, because that increase his subscriber count (W) which lets him make $Z bigger01:56
mhall119if either one puts in too many ads, they lose subscribers to people who put in less, to the incentive is the minimal number of ads to get a good profit01:56
mhall119in the first case, if the show puts in too many, MrChrisDruif finds a different show for his lineup01:56
mhall119in the second, if MrChrisDruif puts in too many, people switch to mhall119's feed which has a similar lineup but fewer commercials01:57
MrChrisDruifOn the one hand this looks correct, however, what if the creators of the show are the only ones able to upload it? That way everyone views it straight from their feed, and people get to know about their feed through likes?01:57
mhall119because part of what people like about the current TV situation is the variety that is given to them01:58
MrChrisDruifIf you want you can save it on your TV/Server, but with some kind of unique id attached to it, so it can't be uploaded again?01:58
mhall119we don't have to go out and find good new shows, we don't have to manage a huge lineup of programs01:58
mhall119most people don't even build up an RSS subscription list of more than a dozen sources01:59
mhall119that's work, and people don't want work when they turn on their TV01:59
mhall119if you do that work for them, they'll be willing to either pay you or watch your ads01:59
MrChrisDruifRemember our social media feature in the list?01:59
mhall119yeah but most of my friends have horrible taste in TV02:00
MrChrisDruifHaha =)02:00
mhall119it's be nothing but ghost hunters, singing competitions and whatever that vampire show is that everybody's watching now02:00
MrChrisDruifYeah, maybe we should be become friend. Then you'll have some awesome suggestions waiting =P02:01
mhall119heh02:01
mhall119there's also just plain "I'm bored, show me something I haven't seen or heard of before"02:01
mhall119like Pandora even02:02
mhall119or Netflix's suggestion system (which sucks, btw)02:02
MrChrisDruifYoutube also has that. It analyzes what you've watched before and suggests things you might like02:02
mhall119yeah02:02
MrChrisDruifYou get my drift?02:02
mhall119algorithms are fine and dandy sometimes, but other times I want someone else's pick02:03
mhall119not more of what I've already seen02:03
mhall119maybe a mix of algorithms and social inputs would work02:03
MrChrisDruifThat's what I'm suggesting =)02:03
mhall119but I still like the idea of someone aggregating shows into a cohesive, thematic feed02:03
mhall119and I'd give up a few minutes here and there to watch ads in order to get that02:04
JackyAlcineThat sounds glorious.02:04
MrChrisDruifMost feeds on Youtube are that, they all have a certain theme02:04
mhall119right, and if YouTube 1) weren't a walled garden and 2) had better quality stuff that wasn't always under threat of a takedown notice, that would work02:05
mhall119they can fix #202:05
mhall119with enough clout02:05
MrChrisDruifI'm not saying we should use Youtube, I was just taking it as an example =)02:05
mhall119and a good example02:06
MrChrisDruifThank you02:06
mhall119maybe Ubuntu TV could become the market place where people sell their feeds02:06
MrChrisDruifFinally he seems to get what I'm going at =|))02:07
mhall119heh02:07
mhall119it's been a long, long day, I'm a bit slow02:07
MrChrisDruif.....it's 3 AM over here02:07
MrChrisDruifAlright, now I'm really going02:09
MrChrisDruifI wanted to set my alarm at 9 AM...02:09
MrChrisDruifSo yeah...off I go =) Good night JackyAlcine & mhall11902:09
JackyAlcineo/02:11
JackyAlcineoy.02:11
JackyAlcinelol02:11
dmj726I'm actually not sure ads are really the only or the right way to go02:11
dmj726It's one business model, yes.  But they can quickly become overwhelmingly annoying if handled poorly02:12
mhall119dmj726: it was an example, but you're gonna have to fund the content somehow02:12
dmj726mhall119: totally agreed on funding content.02:12
mhall119dmj726: hence my example of why the annoyance would be self-limiting by offering more choice02:12
dmj726Ads can be one model, but I'm not sure they're as good a model as some think02:13
tgm4883ads?02:52
tgm4883skimming the backlog, I recall rhpot1991 having an argument about why it's needed to bundle channels02:54
rhpot1991the argument goes that if you had ala cart cable any cable channels would not be able to survive as is04:51
rhpot1991they get their funding because of package deals04:52
rhpot1991fox sells fox with fx and all their other channels, etc04:52
rhpot1991so once you ax that funding we get rid of all of fx's original shows and are left with 24 hours of 2.5 men reruns, no thanks04:53
dmj726rhpot1991: But why wouldn't fx get subscribers if their shows were really wanted05:08
rhpot1991dmj726: in a perfect world sure06:13
rhpot1991but in today's television mindless reality tv rules06:14
rhpot1991with its lack of writers and low "actor" pay06:14
dmj726rhpot1991: so are you suggesting that this status quo is a good thing?06:24
dmj726rhpot1991: not accusing you, just wondering if letting some crap disappear is all that bad06:24
rhpot1991dmj726: absolutely not, all the good shows get canceled without a chance and instead we get another american idol reboot06:26
rhpot1991its a sad sad world we live in where whitney is somehow still on the air but community is on infinite hiatus06:27
dmj726rhpot1991: so you're saying if people had a choice, they'd go for the crap?06:27
rhpot1991isn't that what happens now?06:28
dmj726rhpot1991: yeah, I wish there was more good scifi on the air06:28
rhpot1991people don't want things that make them think06:28
rhpot1991they want mindless tv06:28
rhpot1991so generic laugh track comedies, the same old reality tv show, or a 1 hour crime/drama procedural06:28
rhpot1991rinse and repeat06:28
dmj726right now if you subscribe to cable, you're stuck financing ghost hunters and co regardless06:28
rhpot1991at least with cable I get fx and amc06:29
rhpot1991both with excellent original programming06:29
rhpot1991so any model that threatens them I don't agree with06:29
dmj726I'm just suggesting that said original programming might distinguish them from the crowd and actually get them above average subscribers ala carte06:30
rhpot1991that said show me a model that doesn't kill arrested development at its young age and I'll follow you blindly06:30
dmj726Honestly, I'm trying for a model where the show can't get screwed by the network if it can sustain itself06:31
rhpot1991the only way I see it is if you skip tv06:31
rhpot1991and go right to digital VoD06:31
rhpot1991amazon/netflix/etc06:31
rhpot1991let me pay for my shows I like and I'll be happy and give you a lot more money that way06:31
rhpot1991that doesn't work for new shows though06:32
dmj726I'd be happy with that scenario.06:32
dmj726Well, it depends on being able to capture an audience06:32
rhpot1991think of kickstarter06:32
dmj726I'm not sure that problem has been reliably solved, but I don't think it's impossible06:32
rhpot1991if you let me pledge $ towards a new season of my favorite show06:33
rhpot1991I'd be all over that06:33
rhpot1991but I'm not going to blindly pledge towards shows I don't know06:33
rhpot1991maybe a combination of the both would work06:33
dmj726True, and I suspect people who have made one good show, could find supporters for future projects06:34
rhpot1991anything that lest good shows with bad ratings live on I'd be all for06:34
dmj726rhpot1991: or even just good shows with mediocre ratings06:34
dmj726the ones with a dedicated but niche audience06:35
rhpot1991yep06:35
dmj726If it had been allowed say Firefly likely could have funded several seasons if not subject to network whims06:36
dmj726(basing purely on DVD sales and fan reaction here)06:36
dmj726I'm not sure TV and cable packages as they exist now are likely to exist as they are now indefinitely06:40
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