Read the TV guide, you don't need a TV
Posted on 12/24/2008 8:22:49 PM PST by Kevin J waldroup
Editor's note: This is part of a series of stories about the recession's effect on the tech industry.
A year before the U.S. economic crisis came to a head, Debra James of Oakland said she saw the writing on the wall and decided to trim the household budget. Topping the list were things like satellite television.
I could tell the economy was getting sluggish in the summer of 2007," she said. "So I decided we needed to make some cuts, so that if things got worse, it wouldn't be so painful."
Indeed, things did get worse. The U.S. economy has technically been in a recession since December 2007, according to a recent report from the National Bureau of Economic Research, a nonpartisan group that officially tracks recessions.
Workers in the U.S. have steadily been losing their jobs all year as companies slash headcount to cut costs. The worst month so far has been November, when U.S. companies shed a whopping 533,000 jobs, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. This was the worst single month of job losses in the U.S. since 1974, when the economy was coming out of another severe recession, a recent New York Times article reported.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.cnet.com ...
December 19, 2008 4:00 AM PST
http://news.cnet.com/8301-1035_3-10125962-94.html
SNL Kagan data also indicates that cable penetration of homes passed peaked at 65.5% in 1998. As of yearend 2006, cable subscriptions stood at 65.4 million, or 58.4% of 111.9 million homes passed, according to the data. Due to two recent quarters of declining cable subscriptions, this figure is likely to drop further by the end of 2007, SNL Kagan said.”
http://www.marketingcharts.com/television/snl-kagan-cable-subscription-data-contradicts-fcc-chairman-kevin-martin-2634/
HDTV (High Definition Television)
is here today, and it’s FREE!
See the Public Service Announcement
Don’t be misled…
you don’t have to use a pay service to have “High Definition Television” (HDTV)
http://www.myfreehdtv.org/body.html
According to two recent studies, HDTVs are now in about one-third of all homes, making it increasingly important for pay TV operators to deploy a strong high-definition offering if they wish to retain current customers. And the Consumer Electronics Association predicts that some 27.7 million new HD sets will be sold in 2009.
http://www.multichannel.com/article/CA6620569.html
My combined cable bill had climbed to $160 (telephone, high-speed internet, and cable package). I called 3 months ago and cancelled the phone and cable. We already have cell phone.
Ended up keeping the lowest rung of cable as it was only $4.00 more that internet alone. New bill $61.00
I have a huge library of DVD and VHS and I don’t really watch TV anymore over-the-air, so it made no sense to keep it. Lots of people are doing the same now.
My saving - $99.00 a month for something I don’t miss.
Have you ever thought about satellite over IP FRiend? I happen to know some of some free software that you can download. You don’t get a plethora of channels but it does the job.
Correct. It would even be correct without the word "satellite".
Got me a Sony XBR6 46” 4 weeks ago and had to pay an extra $30 a month for the HD channels on cable that I wanted. I know I can get networks for free over the airwaves but I never watch network channels, with the exception of sports. I have just about limited my TV viewing to only the HD channels.
could you send me the link? Thanks in advance!
Well, with me getting 16 Mbits down and 3 Mbits up..., I’m not giving up my cable... LOL..
Couldnt’ live without The History Channel, Science Channel, Military Channel and the Discovery Channel.
Not everything on tv is garbage.
They miss it more than you do!
I urge EVERYONE to do the same. Stop paying for the ROPE!
Seriously, I don’t watch TV, so it is not needed. My wife and her sister watch rarely so we just don’t miss it.
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