So far, they’ve been right. Have you seen Netflix’s stock price? Holy cow. It has rocketed 8,300% since 2009, leaving even Amazon in the dust:
But don’t let its past success fool you.
Because Netflix is not the future of TV. Let me say that one more time… Netflix is not the future of TV.
Verizon has apparently hit a snag with regard to its efforts aimed at cord cutters. The cable TV provider recently introduced a way to purchase TV channel packages via à la carte bundles. But today, ESPN filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against which argues that Verizon’s move to break out ESPN’s channels into a separate sports tier that isn’t a part of the core package is not authorized by existing contracts.
ESPN had previously declared its unhappiness with Verizon’s new channel packages earlier this month, shortly after they went live for Verizon’s cable customers. The network a little over a week ago released a statement which claimed that Verizon didn’t have the right to release packages that removed ESPN from the core lineup.
With its new “cord cutter” bundles, Verizon is offering a $59.99 base package which consumers can add extra content on top of, as they choose.
According to Verizon, these TV packages are aimed at offering traditional cable subscribers more options when it comes to constructing the sort of channel lineup they want. It’s meant to stave off those who would otherwise want to drop their cable TV subscriptions entirely, or drop down to basic cable in an effort to save money.
The distant dream of a la carte television has never seemed closer to reality. On Thursday, just a day after HBO said it would launch a new online streaming service that doesn’t require a cable TV subscription, CBS announced the launch of CBS All Access, a service will let users watch unlimited CBS content, including some live television, on multiple devices for just $5.99 a month.
It’s still too early to proclaim the death of the traditional cable TV bundle. And yet, the two announcements signal a drastic shift in the way both cable companies and networks—so often adversaries of internet TV services like Netflix and Aereo—now view the changing television landscape. Tech savvy consumers and cord cutters have been urging these companies to unhinge themselves from the traditional cable package for years. But now that they are, the question is: are consumers really ready for it?
Dispatches From The Front 