the so-called "cord-cutting" phenomenon

It would seem that Netflix is taking over.
Cable companies given walking papers at intensifying pace

www.cnbc.com...

According to a new survey, Iger's fears may be justified. The data show that the so-called "cord-cutting" phenomenon—where consumers jettison traditional cable and satellite packages in favor of streaming services—is about to get a lot worse. A new report by Magid Advisors surveyed 2,400 consumers and found that cord cutting is not only on the rise, but it's happening much quicker than industry watchers anticipated.

According to Magid, 3.7 percent of pay TV subscribers age 18 to 64 said they were "extremely likely" to cancel their pay TV service in the next 12 months. That number is up from 2.9 percent in 2014, and represents a 95 percent increase over results from 2011.

"Sports helps, but sports alone is not enough."

Will sports save network TV ????

a reply to: wasaka

I've been "cord free" for about 8 years. Don't miss it a bit. News casts I watch online, use Netflix n Hulu paid services (with Roku device) for less than $20 per month ($16 total I believe). You can watch pretty much everything that's on cable with these 2 paid services. Why pay $120 per month or more? It's rediculous!

a reply to: tinker9917

Anything "news" I can get with an HD antenna I built for a few dollars. Otherwise, streaming has been the norm for quite a long while.

There will be diminishing returns for newcomers, though. I have a subscription for Netflix because it has a wide variety of content, but when every studio has an exclusive service, I can't imagine the support making it viable.

One day, they will call it pay per click…

originally posted by: CrikeyMagnet
a reply to: tinker9917

Anything "news" I can get with an HD antenna I built for a few dollars. Otherwise, streaming has been the norm for quite a long while.

There will be diminishing returns for newcomers, though. I have a subscription for Netflix because it has a wide variety of content, but when every studio has an exclusive service, I can't imagine the support making it viable.

Where I live, in a small town, we cannot get the free digital channels due to too many trees/things blocking signal. May I ask how you built your antenna? I've tried the small ones you purchase from Walmart etc, and they just don't work here.

a reply to: wasaka

...the so-called "cord-cutting" phenomenon

Good work; placing this thread in the Folktales and Urban Legends forum.

A tether is still a cord.

But I appreciate the sentiment.

a reply to: tinker9917

Seven years for me.

I couldn't be happier.

a reply to: wasaka

also cord free don't exactly know how long. stopped having channels when they changed everything and you either had to get a converter box or go with cable. i don't use any of the streaming services either. if i want to watch it bad enough i will either look for it on dvd at a resale shop for cheap or request that my library get it. and they always do.

When my housemates moved out the cable bill was suddenly all mine to deal with. I had been splitting a rather large bill of over $300 per month for a bundled cable, phone, high speed internet package. Myself and my remaining housemates realized that none of us needed more than the high speed internet connection since we were already sharing a Netflix account and Hulu and Amazon Prime for streaming the content we consume. The streaming services now make some pretty decent content themselves.

The old business model the cable company uses to constantly up-sell their customers just does not work with our current budget so slimming that bill to $60 per month was a big help. We tend to not eat at restaurants any longer either except for birthdays or business or church functions. This to say that much of the pull to cut the cord is economic reality. The economy has many of us struggling to stretch our dollars. We shop the specials and can and freeze foods as they are at their lowest price of the year. We also invested in a really nice home theater so we wait to watch many movies when they are released to blue-ray.

a reply to: tinker9917

I missed your comment here, but I'll put together some details. Pictures and whatnot. My antenna is in the living room, so it's not a fully clear line of sight... and I'm pretty far from the city it's aimed at. The antenna is pretty big (the working area of it is about 2' by 3'), but I made the piece of wood a bit longer to give it some height. It also looks reasonably presentable... almost like an art piece.

One note, your Television either requires an HD receiver, or you need a set-top type. If you've already tried the small antennae, you'll probably already be aware of those.

Edited to add: www.diytvantennas.com...

Even better! Mine was basically based on this design. I found no need for the extra aluminum reflector in these instructions, and rather than plywood, I used a 2x4 about 5' in length. Scrap wood. It really just has to be pointed in the general direction, and you can fine tune using the signal strength readings from your set.

Also check this site: tvfool.com... where you can look up what channels should be available over-the-air in your area, and tips on how to aim your antenna.