Plague on TV

[dreamaker]

I think we are being plagued with ads and commercials to death.  I think I mentioned before, in the early days people were going to cable to get away from ads and commercials, which the cable channels didn’t have any.   As time when on, they slowly added a commercial, few and far between, and as time when on more commercials.  Now a days it’s the same as antenna TV, 5 or 6 commercials in a row, I have timed some at 6 minutes long. Now we have the internet, again in the beginning they were no ads and again as time went on there are more and more ads, and now many are streaming, not just photo ads. Now I am seeing ads stack one on top of another, three high blocking each other.  You wonder why you computer is running slow.  Now back to TV, I was watching a program, and during the program an ad would show up on the lower left for a few seconds.   The thing that really got me was yesterday as I was getting ready to watch a movie.  You know in the beginning of a movie, or a program it will say that this movie had been modified due to time constraints, OK!!!  Recall that!  Well the one I watched said “That this movie had been modified due to time constraints to fit more commercials” I was floored; I thought “What balls”. So let’s do a little brainstorming, so on the internet I pay a monthly fee to pay for ads that slow my computer down, so is are the ISP’s double dipping, getting revenue from customers and revenue from the people that are placing the ads for. OK, now TV and Cable, you and I are paying a monthly fee to watch ads and commercials, again are they double dipping, revenue from the customer and revenue from the people they are doing the ads and commercials for. I don’t mean to repeat myself but I am trying to make a point.  Or correct me if I am wrong.  Cable and internet service goes up and we seem to get less for our money, or is it me!

What do you think!!

[hubcapsc]

What do you think

I think I mostly watch ad-free teevee on netflix, amazon and you-tube,
all are connected to my teevee through a slow dsl link and it works
great.

I watch a little commercial teevee... mute the drug ads before they
get to the side effects.

-Mike "may cause uncontrollable greasy discharge..."

[..]

I have used an interior antenna for most local channels for years.

That plus Netflix and Amazon which I share with a friend. They pay the Prime and I pay for Netflix.

Just got a week trial for HULU. Don't think I'll be a subscriber.

Unless you're a sport junkie I can't understand paying for cable/satellite.

[Alpha Dog]

I think we are being plagued with ads and commercials to death.  I think I mentioned before, in the early days people were going to cable to get away from ads and commercials, which the cable channels didn’t have any.   As time when on, they slowly added a commercial, few and far between, and as time when on more commercials.  Now a days it’s the same as antenna TV, 5 or 6 commercials in a row, I have timed some at 6 minutes long. Now we have the internet, again in the beginning they were no ads and again as time went on there are more and more ads, and now many are streaming, not just photo ads. Now I am seeing ads stack one on top of another, three high blocking each other.  You wonder why you computer is running slow.  Now back to TV, I was watching a program, and during the program an ad would show up on the lower left for a few seconds.   The thing that really got me was yesterday as I was getting ready to watch a movie.  You know in the beginning of a movie, or a program it will say that this movie had been modified due to time constraints, OK!!!  Recall that!  Well the one I watched said “That this movie had been modified due to time constraints to fit more commercials” I was floored; I thought “What balls”. So let’s do a little brainstorming, so on the internet I pay a monthly fee to pay for ads that slow my computer down, so is are the ISP’s double dipping, getting revenue from customers and revenue from the people that are placing the ads for. OK, now TV and Cable, you and I are paying a monthly fee to watch ads and commercials, again are they double dipping, revenue from the customer and revenue from the people they are doing the ads and commercials for. I don’t mean to repeat myself but I am trying to make a point.  Or correct me if I am wrong.  Cable and internet service goes up and we seem to get less for our money, or is it me!

What do you think!!

Gosh Dreamaker this has become a huge pet peeve for me especially in the last year or 2.  We are so being blasted by advertising to the point I just turn the tv off when wife is not around, but she is a tv addict.  I am a talk radio addict and the same is going on there.  In some hours you get just about even of 30 minutes talk and the rest adds or local station agenda.  I always click over to classic rock station during these times.  I have it timed pretty good.  I think there are so many Tv stations that draw such small audiences I wonder how they survive.  Maybe this is the reason for the 5 minute add time out every 10 minutes.  

As for the internet this was tearing me up also.  Then a month ago I installed ABP add blockers.  It has worked great.  There is usually only one square in upper right part of screen with small add for whatever I looked at last - usually Home Depot or Motorcycle gear.  I would highly recommend installing it.

[dreamaker]

I can understand some ads, reasonable one maybe two over a good stretch of time, I understand they have to pay the bills. But every 10 minutes, five or six. I like to pay attention to details over time, and when I see a company crying poverty and in the next breath they are sponsoring golf outings, car races fishing and various tournaments, it really upsets me.

[Hook#3287]

I record everything and FF thru all ads.

Although, sometimes I get distracted by the VRCC and forget to FF.

[dreamaker]

The thing that gets me is on TV and the Internet, you are basically paying them to watch ads and commercials, you are paying to be annoyed by them.

[scooperhsd]

TV - on general, most channels run 40-42 minutes programming with the rest being commercials (sometimes less than 40 minutes programming - do the math on what THAT means) . The programmers justification for this is that we the viewers are the "product" for their " customers" - the group buying the commercial time. This ratio even applies to cable channels(where you would think it should be less, since they are getting money from you - but no - the advertiser is double dipping). Unless I'm watching "live TV" - yes I will DVR and skip commercials.

Internet - I hate commercials there even more than on TV - slows down my browsing, saddles me with more usage then I want (even if I'm not paying "by the byte") , and who knows what other crap is coming along for the ride (viruses and the like). I'm not saying website operators are necessarily bad guys, but if you want help - ask for subscription fees.

[baldo]

The thing that gets me is on TV and the Internet, you are basically paying them to watch ads and commercials, you are paying to be annoyed by them.

Like going to the movies. I went a few weeks ago. We had to sit through no less than 12 commercials before the previews started.....

[cookiedough]

Although I hate the expensive price of satellite,  I love the DVR feature.  I can watch a 3 hour football game pushing the 30 second fast forward button for every play and get done with the entire game in a little over 1 hour.  Plus, skipping all the commercials as well.

1 terabyte of DVR storage does not go as far as one would think?

I have no other choice since no other TV provider is in my area, plus internet is not super fast either say 3-6 megs is all.

[solo1]

I keep it simple. Just a small antenna to pick up the four local stations, and Netflix.   I use my high speed internet for Netflix.

I don't watch sports so I don't need expensive, commercial crap cable.  On my favorite show "Bluebloods", I don't even watch it on the local channel, too many commercials.  I wait for the reruns on Netflix, 43 minutes of pure entertainment!

[Robert]

I didn't think anyone would remember that far back that the reason for cable was not to have the ads. LOL Ads suck, sometimes I will write or call a mfg and tell them that because of their ads I will not buy their product. Other than that switch channels, record when I can or watch subscription movies.

When I first saw the heading I thought it was for those crappy zombie apocalypse type of shows that are invading the networks.   

[hubcapsc]

Although I hate the expensive price of satellite,  I love the DVR feature.  I can watch a 3 hour football game pushing the 30 second fast forward button for every play and get done with the entire game in a little over 1 hour.  Plus, skipping all the commercials as well.

1 terabyte of DVR storage does not go as far as one would think?

I have no other choice since no other TV provider is in my area, plus internet is not super fast either say 3-6 megs is all.

My slow dsl is 1.something on a good day. I can stream netflix and amazon and u-tube
no prob...

-Mike

[dreamaker]

The guys that use DVR, keep in mind you are paying to rent and use those DVR, so they triple dip. I am not trying to make you feel bad, I just want you to show, how a simple thing we do, at kick back time, to enjoy something we have done since childhood. And the media industry are just sticking it to us all. I have no issue with fair pricing, but in my opinion they they do there be to get every penny they can, it's all about greed. Now of days, the quality of content sucks, it's all about special effects rather than acting and a good script or story line.  If you have noticed in the last few years, how many movies, TV shows, and even music are remakes of past successful movies, TV and music.  It's like people have lost their ability to be creative and they hang on successful media to generate their fame using others past hard work. I just watched one of I thought great movies, it took me back to good time and a movie most guys can relate to from the kid days. It was "Stand by Me" great classic. Sorry for being motor mouth, just want you to realize what the deal is, as long as you are happy that all that counts.

[hukmut]

OK guys. We are all on the same page when it comes to commercials that we pay for.

Now, check this out:  there is a device that, for around $40, will get you, commercial-free content.

But wait, if you have a computer ( ) you can download this app for free and watch your content.

It is called KODI.

Used to be called XBMC.

It does take a little bit of fiddling to get it customised to what you want to watch but I have seen almost

 all of the first run moves made this year, for free. Nothing to buy, subscribe for a fee, Nada.

And best of all, no commercials.

Yes, it is legal. Yes you have to have internet.

If it is being broadcast, from this  planet, you can see it.

I got my kodi box on eBay, in about a week. Was watching in just a few minutes.

Wireless or cat 5 wired to my router. Comes with a remote.

Modern technology.

[cookiedough]

Although I hate the expensive price of satellite,  I love the DVR feature.  I can watch a 3 hour football game pushing the 30 second fast forward button for every play and get done with the entire game in a little over 1 hour.  Plus, skipping all the commercials as well.

1 terabyte of DVR storage does not go as far as one would think?

I have no other choice since no other TV provider is in my area, plus internet is not super fast either say 3-6 megs is all.

My slow dsl is 1.something on a good day. I can stream netflix and amazon and u-tube
no prob...

-Mike

Yah, but do you have 3 people on the internet at the same time?  Netflix can be an issue with 1-2 megs or so that I know if run on high def. vs. 360 or 480p low definition.

[cookiedough]

The guys that use DVR, keep in mind you are paying to rent and use those DVR, so they triple dip. I am not trying to make you feel bad, I just want you to show, how a simple thing we do, at kick back time, to enjoy something we have done since childhood. And the media industry are just sticking it to us all. I have no issue with fair pricing, but in my opinion they they do there be to get every penny they can, it's all about greed. Now of days, the quality of content sucks, it's all about special effects rather than acting and a good script or story line.  If you have noticed in the last few years, how many movies, TV shows, and even music are remakes of past successful movies, TV and music.  It's like people have lost their ability to be creative and they hang on successful media to generate their fame using others past hard work. I just watched one of I thought great movies, it took me back to good time and a movie most guys can relate to from the kid days. It was "Stand by Me" great classic. Sorry for being motor mouth, just want you to realize what the deal is, as long as you are happy that all that counts.

oh yah,  I know directtv and dish network pricing is built in so high in price we are paying for it no doubt.  they charge like 7-8 bucks per joey per month extra (2nd little box for each additional TV) to run off the main receiver and to me that is a rip off just another way for them to make money.

I always call in asking for credits and right now getting 30 bucks off per month off my bill otherwise price would be over 100 bucks per month just to watch the 15 or so worthwhile channels out of 200+.
I will continue to do so and if they say no,  will cancel and keep switching back and forth from dish to directtv and vice versa.  Paying 85 per month is too darn much now and like said,  almost 1/3rd of the program is commercials.   

No one can not tell me that directv and dish are not making billions in revenue since they are usually more than willing, if asked nicely, for a 20-30 dollar per month credit on the bill. 

[dreamaker]

Something I find interesting, media pushes and promote 4K video, Now think about it, if you ware glasses or don't have perfect sight, you can't not enjoy all the benefits of 4K.  If You wear a hearing aid or have limited hearing surround sound is kind of a waste.

Like I said before many of these companies scream they can't make it, they are going broke, they need to raise cost and later you will see the sponsor tournaments, races, fishing, hunting or public functions.  That just drives me up the wall!!  

[hubcapsc]

Although I hate the expensive price of satellite,  I love the DVR feature.  I can watch a 3 hour football game pushing the 30 second fast forward button for every play and get done with the entire game in a little over 1 hour.  Plus, skipping all the commercials as well.

1 terabyte of DVR storage does not go as far as one would think?

I have no other choice since no other TV provider is in my area, plus internet is not super fast either say 3-6 megs is all.

My slow dsl is 1.something on a good day. I can stream netflix and amazon and u-tube
no prob...

-Mike

Yah, but do you have 3 people on the internet at the same time?  Netflix can be an issue with 1-2 megs or so that I know if run on high def. vs. 360 or 480p low definition.

You're right about that... Carolyn and I watch teevee together and there's
nobody else in the house. It wouldn't do for windows update to be going
on at the same time as netflix, it would start buffering... and we don't
do high-def either, I'm pretty sure it wouldn't do right. Someone with a
big new highdef teevee would hate 1.x gig dsl. I have a medium-sized
teevee that we "black friday"ed for $300 five or six years ago, and even
on it I can see the difference between regular-def netflix and high-def
broadcast teevee.

-Mike "good thing I don't care   "

[cookiedough]

I am same way though not caring about 4K or hig def too much.  Most of us come come VCR tape days being 'good' enough clarity. 

Ask my kids what a VCR tape is and they are puzzled.  I popped a tape in and they were like horrible picture quality how can you watch it. 

My older IT techy neighbor is same way in his late 50's having the latest and greatest gadgets MUST have.  NO wonder he complains he has no money and I know both of them make near double of what we get paid.  Different strokes for different folks I guess.  If we made double,  we would be on much easier terms.    he showed me his MUST have 4K TV when first came out spent over 1500 on it I know and to me, I did not notice much at all difference vs. my 200 dollar 1080p TV.  Spending 7x's more for a maybe slightly better picture quality is not worth it to me. 

Do TV stations even broadcast in 4K ultra HD at this time, not sure??

I like that idea though of buying that eqmt. to skip all commercials, sounds like a winner.

[baldo]

I am same way though not caring about 4K or hig def too much.  Most of us come come VCR tape days being 'good' enough clarity. 

Ask my kids what a VCR tape is and they are puzzled.  I popped a tape in and they were like horrible picture quality how can you watch it. 

My older IT techy neighbor is same way in his late 50's having the latest and greatest gadgets MUST have.  NO wonder he complains he has no money and I know both of them make near double of what we get paid.  Different strokes for different folks I guess.  If we made double,  we would be on much easier terms.    he showed me his MUST have 4K TV when first came out spent over 1500 on it I know and to me, I did not notice much at all difference vs. my 200 dollar 1080p TV.  Spending 7x's more for a maybe slightly better picture quality is not worth it to me. 

Do TV stations even broadcast in 4K ultra HD at this time, not sure??

I like that idea though of buying that eqmt. to skip all commercials, sounds like a winner.

Agreed on spending tons of $$$ on the latest and greatest. However, I am amazed at the picture quaity on the high end TV's at Best Buy. When they first came out with the 4K for $3-4K, they just sat there. Now you can get a TV in the 50" range, 4K for $1500 or so.....I'd be pretty hot if I had spent all that extra cash at the beginning.

[hubcapsc]

I like that idea though of buying that eqmt. to skip all commercials, sounds like a winner.

We have an older Sony box of some kind we got from Amazon for $60. It plays
DVDs, is on our wireless home network, and has apps on it for netflix and
amazon and u-tube and a bunch of others apps we don't use.

You have to pay for most stuff on Amazon as you go unless you have PRIME, in which
case you paid for it already... most of the good stuff isn't on prime, but I've already
watched the batman/superman movie and the Captain America Civil War movie
on Amazon - that is - stuff comes out pretty quickly.

Netflix costs nine or ten dollars a month, no other fees.

u-tube is free  I've seen all 20 years of Gunsmoke over the
last few years.

Anywho... these $35 Chromecast dongles from Google have all the apps
in them, they don't play DVDs of course, but it is cheap to buy what you
need to be able to stream stuff off the Internet.

-Mike

[dreamaker]

I am same way though not caring about 4K or hig def too much.  Most of us come come VCR tape days being 'good' enough clarity. 

Ask my kids what a VCR tape is and they are puzzled.  I popped a tape in and they were like horrible picture quality how can you watch it. 

My older IT techy neighbor is same way in his late 50's having the latest and greatest gadgets MUST have.  NO wonder he complains he has no money and I know both of them make near double of what we get paid.  Different strokes for different folks I guess.  If we made double,  we would be on much easier terms.    he showed me his MUST have 4K TV when first came out spent over 1500 on it I know and to me, I did not notice much at all difference vs. my 200 dollar 1080p TV.  Spending 7x's more for a maybe slightly better picture quality is not worth it to me. 

Do TV stations even broadcast in 4K ultra HD at this time, not sure??

I like that idea though of buying that eqmt. to skip all commercials, sounds like a winner.

See you are looking at it in the wrong way, neighbors like that are to your benefit, when they need to get the hottest, greatest, newest, they will sell their hi-tech toys cheap to buy their new toys. I have friends like that and got some good deals.  When it come to Over The Air antennas the FCC require and enforces, you must transmit in the best quality you have advertised, but cable can do what they want, they are not bound but the FCC in that manner, unless it has changed. The biggest cable scam is HD vs. SD,  if available by the station it has HD, the cable companies degrade the signal to SD, then charges customers additional fee for HD. Many of them in their ads state, that they give you HD free to make you think they are giving you something for nothing, when it is free to begin with.

[old2soon]

I quit "donating" too ANY cable/satellite company 3 or 4 years back. And the national channels I have along with the C W and others I have on antenna -ALL of them from Springfield Mo.-have entirely too cursed many commercials. I'm tired of dancing dogs-law firms after the medical profession or their suppliers-life insurance and Other insurances-erectile disfunction "help"-old football players sellin razors-Well you git the drift. Some pundit-I fergit WHO-years ago called television a vast waste land!  These days I tend to agree!  I get 2 or 3 pieces of mail a week from satellite cable companies "wanting" me back!  Don't even open em anymore-do not pass go don't collect nuttin-straight into file 13.    Lets just say my mute button gets LOTSA use. RIDE SAFE.

[dreamaker]

Don't throw the cable mail away, look inside and if it has an envelope with return postage on it, take as much junk mail you can and put it in the envelope and send it back to them. Eventually they get the idea and quit sending mail to you.

[CajunRider]

Kodi Jarvis...

Enough said.