Re: Network end users to pull down 2 gigabytes a day, continuously?

["Stephen Sprunk" <stephen () sprunk org>]

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Thus spake Gian Constantine:
> The cable companies have been chomping at the bit for unbundled
> channels for years, so have consumers. The content providers will
> never let it happen. Their claim is the popular channels support the
> diversity of not-so-popular channels. Apparently, production costs
> are high all around (not surprising) and most channels do not support
> themselves entirely.

Regulators too.  The city here tried forcing the MSOs to unbundle, and 
the result was that a single channel cost the same as the bundle it 
normally came in -- the content providers weren't willing to license 
them individually.  The city gave in and dropped it.

Just like the providers want to force people to pay for unpopular 
channels to subsidize the popular ones, they likewise want people to pay 
for unpopular programs to subsidize the popular ones.  Consumers, OTOH, 
want to buy _programs_, not _channels_.  Hollywood isn't dumb enough to 
fall for that, since they know 90% (okay, that's being conservative) of 
what they produce is crap and the only way to get people to pay for it 
is to jack up the price of the 10% that isn't crap and give the other 
90% away.

Of course, the logical solution is to quit producing crap so that such 
games aren't necessary, but since when has any MPAA or RIAA member 
decided to go that route?

S

Stephen Sprunk         "God does not play dice."  --Albert Einstein
CCIE #3723         "God is an inveterate gambler, and He throws the
K5SSS        dice at every possible opportunity." --Stephen Hawking