Commercials. Period. Why do I keep paying monthly satellite bills to have to watch 30-40% commercials?? I refuse to watch anything unless it is recorded on my PVR anymore, so that's it. I'm done. I'm fine with Netflix and whatever else I can catch online. If broadcasters wouldn't have to keep padding their 10-15% profit margins, maybe we would still have a decent TV experience, oh well, one more customer fed up.
Why I'm signing off TV
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I agree 100%. I refuse to watch movie channels that interrupt them with commercials. I can't stand to watch TSN either. They ruin the programming with excessive interruptions and by cutting off portions of games. Commercials on specialty channels that get fees from customers are redundant. What do they make from these anyway? I doubt it is much per subscriber. I'd rather pay the extra 1 or 2 cents per month and do away with the ads.
Commercials on OTA channels I understand. I wonder if OTA channels would start making money if ads on specialty channels were eliminated. BTW, North America is the most commercial saturated market in the world. OTA stations here have up to 20 minutes per hour while other developed regions, such as Europe typicall have 10 minutes or less. IIRC, stations here aired less than 10 minutes of commercials in the 1960s and made lots of money.
Commercials on OTA channels I understand. I wonder if OTA channels would start making money if ads on specialty channels were eliminated. BTW, North America is the most commercial saturated market in the world. OTA stations here have up to 20 minutes per hour while other developed regions, such as Europe typicall have 10 minutes or less. IIRC, stations here aired less than 10 minutes of commercials in the 1960s and made lots of money.
It's ridiculous how much we are bombarded with advertising, I really cannot remember the last time I seen a commercial and said "now I'm going to go out and buy that" nope. If I want something, I go online and do my research and generally order online too since things are so much cheaper than big box stores. If there is a new product then fine, advertise away, but we all know Olay sells makeup, Tampax sells tampons, burger king sells burgers, NO ONE WANTS TO SEE YOUR COMMERCIALS. And during the world juniors hockey game I swear if I had to see one more Blackberry commercial I was going to throw my own Blackberry through the TV, every single commercial break had 2-3 blackberry commercials in it.
Nice username Gecko 
While I agree in practice (we rarely watch any live TV anymore), I'm not 100% agreed. The profit margin for conventional broadcasters is no where near what you are suggesting [ref]; specialty broadcasters are a different story, however.
While I agree in practice (we rarely watch any live TV anymore), I'm not 100% agreed. The profit margin for conventional broadcasters is no where near what you are suggesting [ref]; specialty broadcasters are a different story, however.
Is this speculation or based on facts? While I agree it can't be too much, I have a hard time believing it would be so low.
Not likely. Advertising dollar dilution certainly has to be considered, however ad rates are based on the number of viewers reached. If the specialty channels retained their programming without using advertising, they might actually draw more viewers away from the conventional broadcasters.
With the big advertisers, it's more about brand recognition and brand association than anything else. Try some word association. Hamburger... I'll bet a major chain that does saturation advertising came to mind, maybe several. Pizza... Get it? It's a form of brainwashing. You have been brainwashed and you will obey.
Your satellite bill pays for the delivery of conventional broadcasters, and the advertising pays for the content. For specialty channels, a portion of the delivery also goes towards the content.
For professional sporting events, you are not likely to ever get away from advertising breaks. It is big Big money for the broadcaster.
Well if they need to air that many commercials, then its a broken business model and if it keeps going in that direction, people are not going to stand watching 40-50% commercials or more. Hey maybe America can take care of its obesity problem then! hah.
Those who are bothered by excessive commercials will be motivated enough to use one of the technical solutions for them. For example, I find excessive commercials annoying and since ~2003 I've been using a HTPC to record my TV content and my HTPC marks commercials for skipping. I think commercials will be a reality for broadcast TV.
When the world moves from broadcast TV to video streaming services (which is happening today for tech enthusiasts) there is definitely an opportunity to offer streaming video subscribers the opportunity to have an advertising-free experience (for a little more money). I'm not sure if it would be tied to a micro-payment system for each TV episode you watch ad-free, or via a "Hulu Plus Plus" membership, but I'm sure this will eventually happen.
The only unfortunate bit is that the people who have enough disposable income to remove the advertising from their video streams is probably the same group of people that many advertisers are most interested in.
I guess there is always product placement. Like what Modern Family did around the iPad launch.
When the world moves from broadcast TV to video streaming services (which is happening today for tech enthusiasts) there is definitely an opportunity to offer streaming video subscribers the opportunity to have an advertising-free experience (for a little more money). I'm not sure if it would be tied to a micro-payment system for each TV episode you watch ad-free, or via a "Hulu Plus Plus" membership, but I'm sure this will eventually happen.
The only unfortunate bit is that the people who have enough disposable income to remove the advertising from their video streams is probably the same group of people that many advertisers are most interested in.
I guess there is always product placement. Like what Modern Family did around the iPad launch.
Apple paid them nothing for that, BTW: http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/ent...family-gives-some-free-love-for-the-ipad.html
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My family came to the same conclusion. But we aren't "signing off".
Just about everything we watch is either recorded (and skipping over commercials when we watch) or in the process of recording (even live sports, again catching up near the end of the game by skipping over commercials, delays, intermissions, etc.) on our TiVo (and the DTVpal DVR on the 2nd tv).
Our time is just too valuable.
Just about everything we watch is either recorded (and skipping over commercials when we watch) or in the process of recording (even live sports, again catching up near the end of the game by skipping over commercials, delays, intermissions, etc.) on our TiVo (and the DTVpal DVR on the 2nd tv).
Our time is just too valuable.
Correct. I have a boxed set of the original Hawaii Five-O from the late '60s and each episode is 50 minutes long.
It's all revenue. BDU's pay certain channels for carriage. And the specialty channels use that money and advertising for revenue. Conventional broadcasters only get revenue from advertising, and LPIF monies for small markets.
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I think you can multiply that by 1000. According to the CRTC, total annual advertising revenue is about $1 billion for specialty channels.
So why is it only in North America that there are so many commercials on TV? It is the first thing almost every person from outside North America mentions when they see TV here. In Europe are even private channels being subsidized or do they just get a bigger bang for their buck when they put on fewer commercials? I really don't understand it.
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Oddly I was just thinking about this situation. I'm in the middle of dropping my ISP and maybe I'll just go TV--free for awhile. There is literally nothing on Or maybe I'm too picky. But at any rate all those commercials are way out of control.
Europe has a different mindset about things. I would call it more--mature perhaps is the word I would use. Here we just kind of let things fly.
Or maybe I'm too picky. But at any rate all those commercials are way out of control. Europe has a different mindset about things. I would call it more--mature perhaps is the word I would use. Here we just kind of let things fly.
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1,388 Posts
I don't know your location, but if you are in Southern Ont, BC or Quebec:
1. Buy a good quality antenna.
2. Buy a Channel Master 7000 pal DVR or PC based PVR.
3. Enjoy the best PQ available for FREE and skip the ads.
No, I think it is just a case of going along with what one is used to. I'm from the UK and I can tell you people there put up with things that Canadians wouldn't accept.
I use to post at Speed Channel's forum 7 or 8 years ago. A number of posters were American ex-servicemen who'd got into Formula 1 when they were based in Europe. Even though they were Americans they always complained about the commercials on Speed and US television in general because they knew from living in Europe that there was another way.
re signing off
Quote:
I don't know your location, but if you are in Southern Ont, BC or Quebec:
1. Buy a good quality antenna.
2. Buy a Channel Master 7000 pal DVR or PC based PVR.
3. Enjoy the best PQ available for FREE and skip the ads.
I live in Georgian Bay. I'm at lake level, so I don't know how many OTA stations I would get. And if I understand correctly, the FTA satellites don't carry the major network stations... WAF attack!!!
Where do we get movies if netflix doesn't have a great selection?
Quote:
I don't know your location, but if you are in Southern Ont, BC or Quebec:
1. Buy a good quality antenna.
2. Buy a Channel Master 7000 pal DVR or PC based PVR.
3. Enjoy the best PQ available for FREE and skip the ads.
I live in Georgian Bay. I'm at lake level, so I don't know how many OTA stations I would get. And if I understand correctly, the FTA satellites don't carry the major network stations... WAF attack!!!
Where do we get movies if netflix doesn't have a great selection?
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