How many without decoder would try to "peak" to the pay tv channel by trying to adjust the best worst possible way to get some kind of picture? I remember trying to watch a PPV boxing match that way....gave up after 30 minutes. Jagged distorted pictures made my vision distort actual sight.
For me, my first pay TV experience was when I had finally finished military basic training, back in summer 87. I was living on base in Valcartier, Quebec, and having been taught all my life in English, not having cable in my hometown, here I was with Videotron and all these channels!! English ones to boot! I was in heaven. No, I was.
Couldn't wait to be done work to come back in the shacks and turn on Much Music (when it was REAL MUSIC
) or the movie channel. I can't recall the name for sure. I think it was Premiere, Premium or something like it. Hope someone remembers.
When I was in my hometown, I was the local movie projectionist. Most movies were a few months behind because they had to be the French movie of the original film. We had 2 movies per week each night. So I might play a 1985 movie then finish the night with one from 1986. All for a whooping $8 ! People still thought it was too much... oh well.
Back to my pay TV movie channel, I was just amazed at how many movies there were in one month. However, it didn't take long before I found the scheme. Each movie would repeat so many times in a day, a week and then, a month. Then you had the previous month that would add to this.
But I must say. In those movie channel days, they actually played more movies in each month compared to nowadays, IMHO. I mean look at what is shown today compared to what they would, back then. Their content would be mostly movies, concerts and a few documentaries. Today, anything produced that will never "meant to be shown" over the air, is on there. I could list oh so many things that are sometimes questionable as in "Why is this being shown for me to watch when I'm supposed to get half reasonable programs since I'm paying for it?"
So to resume my verbal rambling, pay TV has and will always be special since it is a paid premium channel. If only there was a way to buy a box that needed a card, which would use the free OTA signal , no cables or dishes and get PPV's should there be one. Then I know for sure there would be lot more cable cutters.