In cable, it’s survival of the fittest as channels drop from the bundle

Washington Post ^ | April 7, 2015 | Cecilia Kang

[C19fan]

At the Weather Channel, the heavy snow and bitter cold that swept the Northeast this winter was cause for celebration as its wall-to-wall coverage helped lift ratings to their highest level in years.

But none of that mattered in the spring, when Verizon Fios dropped the channel from its offerings to more than 5 million subscribers. In a letter to customers, Verizon said that people want to get their reports from the Internet and apps on their phones these days, not TV.

[C19fan]

I am a Fios customer and sad to see Weather Channel gone. There was some really attractive meteorologists on WC.

[txrefugee]

We never watch TWC. They jumped the shark with their evangelizing for the Climate Change religion. Besides, weather reporting is so excellent for local weather events, you don’t need it.

[KarlInOhio]

Weather Channel and a couple of others were dropped from my analog cable, but the cable company were lending out "free" digital converters to get those channels which I immediately ran out to get. I never hooked it up and really didn't miss the channel. Why wait until the "eights" to get the current weather when my smart phone will give me all the same info immediately.

[KarlInOhio]

Besides, weather reporting is so excellent for local weather events, you don’t need it.

My problem is that I watch so much recorded rather than live so I can watch the progression of alerts for last Thursday's thunderstorm on the DVR.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Indeed. Like Samantha Mohr.

[BuckeyeTexan]

We’ll know what customers really want this year or next. HBO is now offering subscription service directly without going through a cable provider. Other major channels will follow. Verizon, et al. will not be able to dictate channel offerings & bundles very much longer.

[dfwgator]

Of course they’d never drop Logo.

[1Old Pro]

Verizon, et al. will not be able to dictate channel offerings & bundles very much longer.

Good, verizon, cable, satellite should all offer ala carte offerings, the prices would reflect demand.

[Vendome]

Yeah, cuz waiten for a friggin scroll bar is way more fun than watching paint dry...

[RayChuang88]

Actually, I think HBO may be on the verge of single US$15/month premium cable subscription that includes all HBO and Cinemax channels at the same time.

[GeronL]

I hope HBO gets nuked, personally

[867V309]

Good, verizon, cable, satellite should all offer ala carte offerings, the prices would reflect demand.

Too late for cable and satellite, I think. Many younger people have no interest in them at any price. You'll get ala carte all right, but it will be streaming from the internet.

[BuckeyeTexan]

I’m not sure what you mean by “on the verge.” Verizon already bundles HBO/ Cinemax for about that price per month.

I was referring to “HBO Now,” which is a streaming service available without a cable subscription for $14.99 per month. It doesn’t include Cinemax at this point.

[VanDeKoik]

What is this Ca-Ble television they speak of? Sounds all antique-y.

[RightGeek]

One of John McCain’s few sensible ideas - http://variety.com/2013/biz/news/john-mccains-cable-bill-1200566913/

[outofsalt]

"We’ll know what customers really want this year or next."

You'll want all your shows to have homo sex and you'll like it or no cake for you!

[FreedomPoster]

I declare her Not Guilty!

[Blood of Tyrants]

And they will never drop the paid commercial or home shopping channels. AFAIC they could drop VF1 and MTV, too. I wish there was a cable or satellite carrier that would let me select and pay for only the channels I watch.

[driftless2]

Supposedly, when cable tv first started booming the big thinkers said people now were going to get a choice about what they could watch. Tv viewers could now watch shows about what pleased them and not be tyrannized by the common denominator like network tv.

Except that's exactly what happened to all those wonderful cable channels. They all descended to the common denominator. And the common denominator has awful taste in programming. But that would be alright if channels like the History Channel actually televised shows about historic events. Instead THC quickley turned into many shows that were only slightly related to historic events or not all. Ancient Aliens anyone?

Other cable channels followed suit and simply put on what sub 100 IQed people wanted to watch. The Learning Channel? Give me a break. Show after show about grotesquely obese people and mediums? The Travel Channel? Show after show about idiots gorging themselves on food.

It's almost hopeless. Cable tv is as vast a wasteland as network tv was in 1961 in Newton Minnow's immortal words. Maybe worse now.

[BuckeyeTexan]

Probably so. 😕