HBO's Deal With Apple Is Troubling News for Cord Cutters
J Thoendell stashed this in Film
Source: http://motherboard.vice.com/read/hbos-de...
Multiply his sentiment tenfold if we’re talking about having to switch between different devices to access those competing ecosystems.
We're not there yet. HBO stressed in an email to me that its Apple exclusivity agreement is temporary.
But still, it's taking freedom away from consumers. The Roku 3 offers, by all measures, a better experience than an Apple TV. Now, someone who prefers the Roku or Amazon Fire but really loves Girls is going to have to take a serious look at buying an Apple TV if they want to keep up with their favorite show.
But what happens, hypothetically, if Roku were to buy the rights to an AMC streaming service exclusively? What happens if Amazon Fire TV buys the rights to NFL Sunday Ticket? You see where this is going. Rather than having television freedom, consumers end up either having to buy a bunch of gadgets that all ostensibly do the same thing, or having to stick with traditional cable.
Which part sickens you? The temporary exclusivity or the fragmentation in general of content?
HBO Go still works with Amazon and Roku so this feels like a step in the right direction.
Fragmentation will be reduced over time, but I think it's the only immediate way to break free of the stranglehold that cable and satellite currently have on HBO.
I wonder if there will be ANY cost savings when it's said and done.
Definitely. My cable bill is $160 per month.
I'm very close to cutting that cord and can save at least $100/mo even with HBO AND Netflix.
I'm making that transition right now to Roku, Chromecast, Netfix and HBO Go.
12:33 PM Mar 09 2015