Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I just cannot get my head round the implication from OldBoy that programmes produced in the past are 'any old junk'. Many of us did not have the time to view series first time round so I find channels like Drama have much enjoyable content which is so much easier to find and record than ploughing through hundreds of possibilities on Netflix only to find your choice was made with amateurish actors in some far off country and shown with subtitles

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Look at the popular section on Netflix.

Friends , Its always sunny in Philadelphia , Homeland , Suits , In the dark , Brooklyn Nine Nine , Luther , Peaky Blinders , Power , Line of Duty , How to get away with murder , Impractical Jokers the list goes on all content that's already aired on linear TV some many years ago.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

As usual OB has his rose tinted glasses on believing there is only one future while being dismissive of anybody who shares a rather different view of the future then him.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

TV streaming service TVPlayer are set to lose further channels in March

QVC and CNN were removed in earlier in February whilst ITV2, ITV3, ITV4, ITVBe and CITV were removed from the free TVPlayer and joined the Premium service

On March 22nd Boomerang, Cartoon Network and Cartoonito will be removed

https://www.a516digital.com/2019/02/...osts-rise.html

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I'm sure he'll be along shortly with his next pearl of wisdom.:D

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

l await his next pearls of wisdom with relish.:D;)

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Well, jfman, if you are suggesting that people who plonk themselves in front of the box and just gaze at whatever the channel they are on throws at them receive stimulating viewing, I fail to see where you are coming from. For anyone to be so passive about what they watch suggests to me a state which is almost comatose.

Yes, people do watch a mix of live, on demand and streaming, and that is fair enough, but as we all become used to having the choice and only watch what is of interest, live viewing will become less and less until it becomes unviable or not worth the effort.

I think your reference to the barriers new entrants face is aimed at sport, and you are drawing on the experience of Eleven Sports. It is true that new entrants will find it an uphill struggle, but the same applies to existing conventional TV channels, doesn't it? Sky already streams on Now TV, and no doubt they will do so more and more with time as broadband rolls out and people get more used to streaming live TV.

As I have said many times, the demise of the linear channels is not what I 'want' - I don't give a toss personally as I don't watch them - I just think that this is the way it's going. The BBC agrees.

---------- Post added at 19:42 ---------- Previous post was at 19:39 ----------

My point was simply that watching the same old repeats over and over seems mindless to me when there is so much new stuff people could be watching instead.

If you've not seen the programme before, of course, it's not a 'repeat' to you.

When I look at my Netflix watch list, I really cannot identify with your comment about their content. How can you seriously believe that the content on Netflix is inferior to what you can find in respect of dramas on the TV channels? How bizarre!

---------- Post added at 19:46 ---------- Previous post was at 19:42 ----------

As I keep saying to you, Den, the media industry agrees that this is the way we are heading. It is you wearing the rose tinted glasses, not I.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

The BBC don’t actually agree with you. One of the proposals for their Charter review includes speculation of what the future may look like, not that it will. Do the Government have a tender out for this DTT bandwidth to be reallocated yet?

No. They do not. Until then the BBC have no genuine meaningful commitment to an all streaming future.

You used the term “hardly stimulating” so I don’t need to defend a description you use.

Do people sit down and consume whatever the TV throws at them? Arguably to some degree, yes. Even you contend that streaming services need prominence in EPGs and integrated with existing search functions. Slots at the top EPGs are considered more valuable than those that are not.

Sky don’t offer Now TV to compete with its premium product. While I accept it proves my point that Sky are best placed to offer both products depending on the wants/needs of their consumers. The uphill struggle doesn’t apply to Sky: they own the content anyway. As long as it’s sales are in addition to the main product it’s easy money for Sky. Now TV doesn’t have any of the challenges of a new entrant because it has far lower costs than a new entrant trying to offer the same content by streaming only.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

BBC and ITV to launch new* subscription streaming service called BritBox.

https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-it...-idUKKCN1QG0R6 *it already exists in the USA and Canada

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

Call it 'speculation' on the part of the BBC if you want to, jfman, but it is what the BBC believe and it is with that in mind that they will be preparing their negotiations in ten years' time. That BBC view chimes with what the media industry believes. Why you continue to spit in the wind with your 'nothing will change' arguments, I cannot fathom.

You are correct in saying that DTT bandwidth has not been reallocated yet, but as that won't happen for some years yet, I don't think that is a relevant point. Incidentally, you may have overlooked the fact that this process has already commenced elsewhere in Europe.

Yes, I stand by my 'hardly stimulating' comment. That's not being rude to anyone, it's just a statement of fact. However, it is just as easy to click on a streaming service and click on the first programme you see on there as it is to select a channel and fall back in the armchair in a hypnotic state.

Your argument around Sky seems confused, as if the view you express invaliidates my argument. The existing satellite system will soon be complemented by an IPTV system, and although the two systems will exist side by side for probably a decade, it is very likely that their system will be IPTV only after that, when existing satellites are due for replacement. The IPTV system Sky design to replace satellite tv will be a better version of Now TV, and it will be based on the 'on demand' features rather than live tv. In the early days, of course, it will have both, with an ability to record the scheduled programmes. The design of it, I believe, will lead to a better acceptance of viewing by VOD.

Sky could retain Premiership sports rights now that they are a part of the larger Comcast stable, but that isn't guaranteed. It may be that BT is the first casualty of the increasing interest shown by the global streaming companies. If you really believe that Amazon and other companies don't have the financial clout to outbid either BT or Sky, you are deluding yourself.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

So are we likely to see the iPlayer become a shadow of its former self ? At the moment my licence fee allows me to watch a considerable amount of Boxset content on iPlayer.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

I don't know the answer to that, muppetman. If there is to be a charge for the UK version of Britbox, then I think the i-Player will continue as it does now. However if there is no charge to UK viewers, Britbox UK will almost certainly replace the i-Player.

The reason I think this is that the Government will most likely insist that licence fee payers continue to have access to a free streaming service from the BBC.

I wouldn't absolutely rule out a hybrid, where part of Britbox is free but you can subscribe to a premium version of it. I think it is unlikely, though, for the simple reason that this may be less politically acceptable.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

The article says it will be chargeable , if iPlayer just becomes catch-up and you have to pay for Brit box for boxsets then that's clearly a step back for license fee payers.

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

There is no reason why the i-Player cannot continue as now, but actually it is essentially a catch-up service. The BBC is severely restricted as to what it can add to the i-Player due to the Government's 'unfair competition' concerns.

---------- Post added at 10:49 ---------- Previous post was at 10:40 ----------

There is more information about Britbox UK here, and this makes it clear that the BBC i-Player and ITV Hub will continue to be available independently of Britbox UK.

https://www.theguardian.com/media/20...-rival-britbox

Re: Linear is old tech - on demand is the future
 

No doubt about it MM.