The Macrosite for News, Analysis and Opinion about the Future of the Internet
Kim Davis

Breaking Bad Habits

Written by Kim Davis
8/31/2012 6 comments
no ratings
DISCUSS     Email This

I recently gave up my HBO habit.

I was tired of paying the premium through my AT&T U-Verse subscription, and I'd been putting off for far too long giving some money to The New York Times digital edition, content from which I consume daily.

So far, it's been a mostly fair trade.

Though I'm going to miss shows like Game of Thrones and The Newsroom and True Blood, as well as Bill Maher (especially during the political season), I figured being able to get all of the Times' content on any of my digital devices (and I have many!) at any time was easy math: The digital paywall became more forbidding than the bundle became enticing.

No sooner do I make this move, than I read in Variety this morning that HBO is going to give the Nordic countries the opportunity to cut the cord by allowing folks to subscribe to HBO without having to have an HBO pay-TV subscription.

The Variety story dug deeper into the Nordic permafrost, indicating this was a competitive matching move, an announcement short on the heels of Netflix announcing its move into Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark.

I laugh at this -- I don't live in a Nordic country, what good does this do me?!

I did visit Stockholm once -- could that qualify me for a subscription??

It's no wonder more and more people are cutting the cord on cable TV.

Cable has a business model for offering content that is completely antiquated, and entirely out of line with the direction of more a la carte offerings in a digital world.

I only cut a small piece of the cord... this time around... but unless I'm giving more choices and flexibility in content soon, as opposed to their traditional bundling... well, HBO isn't the only habit I can break.

DISCUSS     Email This
Current display:       newest comments first       display in chronological order
mhhfive
IQ Crew
Wednesday September 5, 2012 5:08:27 PM
no ratings

Is there any TV show that is worth watching "real time"..? Most shows can be time-shifted by quite a bit.... so it seems like the real question is how to make shows that *need* to be watched as they are broadcast for the first time.

Bolingbroke
IQ Crew
Wednesday September 5, 2012 1:40:03 PM
no ratings

Has Kim gotten a facelift? I hardly recognize him. Has he taken over someone else's body?

stotheco
IQ Crew
Wednesday September 5, 2012 9:33:01 AM
no ratings

Same here. I kept searching for any references to Breaking Bad or Walt but found none. But it was still a good read. I haven't cut my cable subscription but I've noticed I don't watch as much TV as I used to. I might have to re-think renewing it when that time comes along.

mhhfive
IQ Crew
Tuesday September 4, 2012 3:17:56 PM
no ratings

From the title of this post, I thought there'd at least be some mention of AMC's Breaking Bad series... darn.

jwallace
IQ Crew
Friday August 31, 2012 11:46:44 PM
no ratings

Joe,

"Watching online just isn't the same -- fewer commercials, "


oh, watching online is glory when you don't have sound and video on a machine. the only machine available. and no other devices with those features within reach. 

Joe Stanganelli
Thinkernetter
Friday August 31, 2012 10:56:42 PM
no ratings

I got rid of cable as a cost-saving measure some time ago, but I actually miss it and may get it back next year.  Watching online just isn't the same -- fewer commercials, sure, but the same ones a zillion times in a row, sometimes crashing the browser.  And no remote control.  And a lot of my favorite shows are on TV only.

*sigh*  It's just not the same.

The ThinkerNet does not reflect the views of TechWeb. The ThinkerNet is an informal means of communication to members and visitors of the Internet Evolution site. Individual authors are chosen by Internet Evolution to blog. Neither Internet Evolution nor TechWeb assume responsibility for comments, claims, or opinions made by authors and ThinkerNet bloggers. They are no substitute for your own research and should not be relied upon for trading or any other purpose.
previous posts from Todd Watson
Todd Watson
Todd Watson   5/22/2013   Post a comment
You only need take one quick glance around the IBM Smarter Commerce Global Summit at the Gaylord Opryland facility here in Nashville to recognize how busy the Smarter Commerce customer reference team has been these past few months in anticipation of the event.
Todd Watson
Todd Watson   5/22/2013   Post a comment
In this morning's general session here at the IBM Smarter Commerce Global Summit in Nashville, our emcee Jay Baer said what I've been thinking for the past several days: We're in a giant terrarium.
Alison Diana
Alison Diana   5/21/2013   1 comment
Ushering in a new era of cognitive computing systems, IBM announced today the IBM Watson Engagement Advisor, a technology breakthrough that allows brands to crunch big data in record time to transform the way they engage clients in key functions such as customer service, marketing, and sales.
Alison Diana
It's time for the annual IBM State of the State of Marketing, that time of the year when IBM reveals the results of its global survey of marketers.
5
of
Paul J. Fleuranges
Digital Signage Keeps NYC Subway Straphangers on Track

5|6|13   |   3:51   |   No comments


New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority is conducting a pilot test of digital kiosks to guide subway users to where they want to go more efficiently and at lower cost.
Second Shooter
Graphing Facebook Graph Search's Success

1|25|13   |   2:13   |   10 comments


Facebook's Graph Search may face some profound challenges and risks, first, because Facebook users haven't been thinking of their posts as product reviews; and second, because Facebook will now have to contend with the social-network equivalent of SEO "gaming" of results.
Second Shooter
Apple TV: It's the Business Model

12|18|12   |   2:16   |   4 comments


Apple may want to do a TV offering, but to meet its goal it would have to address three specific issues that have been exposed by earlier attempts to make Internet TV work.
Second Shooter
UltraViolet Could Bring DRM Harmony

11|30|12   |   2:26   |   No comments


The new UltraViolet online DRM model has people upset, but the question we should ask ourselves is whether we want a flexible model to harmonize content owner and content consumer rights, or a one-takes-all model that probably results in less online content.
Second Shooter
Netflix Learns a Lesson

7|27|12   |   2:08   |   7 comments


Netflix seemed to be a threat to all of TV, but with the current quarterly earnings report, it sure doesn't look as if that's true now. Netflix really proves that even Internet viewing of video isn't immune to profit and other business issues. This is a lesson we need to learn if we want a viable online video model.
Second Shooter
Measuring Online Violence vs. Real Risk

3|23|12   |   3:13   |   8 comments


Some say that exposure to violence in gaming, online video, etc., is creating a violent culture. Tom says it's not that straightforward. Rather than regulate violence, we should understand it better.
Kim Davis
Fast Forward to the Future

4|23|13   |   2:29   |   20 comments


A look back at tech writing in the 90s makes us wonder where enterprise IT will be 20 years from now.
Kim Davis
Bistros Clamp Down on Food Photography

2|7|13   |   2:08   |   2 comments


Restaurants ban diners from taking photos, but checking messages, texting and tweeting are the elephant in the guacamole.
Second Shooter
Content Wars Will Define 2013

1|14|13   |   2:07   |   6 comments


2013 will see resolution of the conflict between content delivery systems such as Netflix and content providers, including broadcast TV networks.
Second Shooter
I'm Socially Fragmented!

1|9|13   |   2:16   |   7 comments


You are, too, and it's going to get worse because social media firms are pulling out of sharing deals to try to own their customers instead.
IETV: the thinkerNet on film
5
of
Kim Davis
Big-Data Can’t Always Sell Wine

5|21|13   |   2:23   |   3 comments


Whole Foods Global Wine Purchaser Doug Bell told me about some of the constraints on using analytics in the US wine market.
Paul J. Fleuranges
Digital Signage Keeps NYC Subway Straphangers on Track

5|6|13   |   3:51   |   No comments


New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority is conducting a pilot test of digital kiosks to guide subway users to where they want to go more efficiently and at lower cost.
Kim Davis
Fast Forward to the Future

4|23|13   |   2:29   |   20 comments


A look back at tech writing in the 90s makes us wonder where enterprise IT will be 20 years from now.
Mitch Wagner
Google Launches Its Most Depressing Service Yet

4|15|13   |   2:59   |   10 comments


Google's new Inactive Account Manager lets you control how Google disposes of your accounts when you die.
Second Shooter
Argument Over Top-Level Domains Is 'Stupid'

4|11|13   |   2:07   |   3 comments


The whole Amazon.reader debate is a double-stupid. It's stupid to think that there's any e-book buyer who doesn't know Amazon's URL, and it was stupider to let ICANN launch the whole free-form TLD initiative to start with.
Kim Davis
Ladies, Your Tablet Awaits

3|21|13   |   2:22   |   37 comments


ePad Femme is the world’s first tablet “made exclusively for women.”
Wisdom of the Big Chair
NFC Moves Into the Mainstream

3|20|13   |   2:16   |   No comments


While NFC's original goal was to enhance mobile commerce applications, it is finding its way into a number of other uses, which is creating both opportunity as well as challenges for IT departments.
Wisdom of the Big Chair
Integrating Security Into Your Cloud Contract

3|19|13   |   3:35   |   No comments


Enterprises would like to move to cloud computing but are hesitant because they are concerned about providers’ ability to secure company data. Here are some tips that help to ensure that if breaches occur, the business is not left holding the bag.
Brian Baron
How Edmunds.com Collects Customer Information

3|18|13   |   1:15   |   No comments


Edmunds separates customers into segments based on the info it collects on its site and from partners, and uses that to push out custom content, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
Brian Baron
How Edmunds.com Uses Analytics to Customize Site

3|14|13   |   0:47   |   No comments


The automotive website uses propensity modeling to target ads and customer registration forms, said Brian Baron, director of business analytics for Edmunds.com, at Predictive Analytics Innovation Summit.
an IBM information resource
sponsored content
big blue blog
an IBM information resource
sponsored content
Expert Integrated Systems: Changing the Experience & Economics of IT
In this e-book, we take an in-depth look at these expert integrated systems -- what they are, how they work, and how they have the potential to help CIOs achieve dramatic savings while restoring IT's role as business innovator.

READ THIS eBOOK
your weekly update of news, analysis, and
opinion from Internet Evolution - FREE!

REGISTER HERE
Wanted! Site Moderators
Internet Evolution is looking for a handful of readers to help moderate the message boards on our site – as well as engaging in high-IQ conversation with the industry mavens on our thinkerNet blogosphere. The job comes with various perks, bags of kudos, and GIANT bragging rights. Interested?

Please email: moderators@internetevolution.com
Internet Evolution – not for thickies
Keep Critical Data With a Knowledge Management System
Taimoor Zubair
Fortune 500 companies lose at least
$31.5 billion a year by failing to share knowledge. A Knowledge Management System (KMS) can help companies significantly reduce these costs.

CLICK FOR MORE
M2M: Rise of the Machines? Not Yet
David Weldon
In the 1970 science fiction thriller
Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M.

CLICK FOR MORE
M2M: Rise of the Machines? Not Yet
David Weldon
In the 1970 science fiction thriller
Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M.

CLICK FOR MORE
M2M: Rise of the Machines? Not Yet
David Weldon
In the 1970 science fiction thriller
Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M.

CLICK FOR MORE
M2M: Rise of the Machines? Not Yet
David Weldon
In the 1970 science fiction thriller
Colossus: The Forbin Project, two giant supercomputers from the United States and Soviet Union secretly join forces to take control of the collective nuclear might of the two countries. In the film, the two machines discover each other's existence, communicate back-and-forth, share their collective data, and cut their human creators out of the process. It is the ultimate example of machine-to-machine communications, or M2M.

CLICK FOR MORE
Yahoo Needs to Break Tumblr in Order to Fix It
Joe Stanganelli
As
Mitch Wagner discussed today, Yahoo is acquiring Tumblr. The big Internet debate at the moment is whether Tumblr will be good or bad for Yahoo. Regardless of their stances on the future of Yahoo itself, many claim that Yahoo will somehow ruin Tumblr.

CLICK FOR MORE