Traditional TV Enters Its Final Death Spiral

[lewisnotmiller]

It all depends upon what you mean by "traditional".
Sitcoms, dramas, mini-series....they all continue.
Variety & quality have even greatly improved.
Whether on broadcast TV, cable, internet or other,
I still watch me stories.

This is a worthy point. I agree that series are now much better in terms of production values and depth (obviously generalising).

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Is reality TV really an improvrment?

No, it's complete rubbish at best, and socially destructive at worst.

Much like big screen movies have plenty of predictable cheese still.

But there's a lot more choice, and plenty of quality options around.

 

[Revoltingest]

This is a worthy point. I agree that series are now much better in terms of production values and depth (obviously generalising).

Part of the comparison is unfair....writing style has changed
for some categories, making dramas more gritty real life.
It's better at least in part because it's what we prefer.
Realism isn't a good measure of quality....consider that
great musicals like Candide aren't at all realistic.
Tastes change.

 

[Revoltingest]

No, it's complete rubbish at best, and socially destructive at worst.

Much like big screen movies have plenty of predictable cheese still.

But there's a lot more choice, and plenty of quality options around.

Oh, more examples of great modern TV....
Chernobyl
Anything with Ricky Gervais

And I'm looking forward to some great things starting up again soon....
Walking Dead
Better Call Saul
Fargo

 

[beenherebeforeagain]

Flashbacks, perhaps?

More like re-runs

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

If you want to watch all the hottest shows that are on streaming services, you'll end up paying about as much as you would for cable so it's all just a scam in my eyes.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Part of the comparison is unfair....writing style has changed
for some categories, making dramas more gritty real life.
It's better at least in part because it's what we prefer.
Realism isn't a good measure of quality....consider that
great musicals like Candide aren't at all realistic.
Tastes change.

Yes, agreed.
Just suits my personal aesthetic better.

I read a lot of fantasy in my youth...still do a little...and I found (much like with music) that there was pretty gritty options out there.

But television was more like mainstream pop radio...sharp edges smoothed off, and everything cut into neat squares for time allocation purposes.

These larger streaming services have exploded choice, so theres simply more scope. That can be used for both good and bad (subjectively).

 

[Revoltingest]

Yes, agreed.
Just suits my personal aesthetic better.

I read a lot of fantasy in my youth...still do a little...and I found (much like with music) that there was pretty gritty options out there.

But television was more like mainstream pop radio...sharp edges smoothed off, and everything cut into neat squares for time allocation purposes.

These larger streaming services have exploded choice, so theres simply more scope. That can be used for both good and bad (subjectively).

All I ask for is some greatness.
I don't have to watch the crap.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

Anything with Ricky Gervais

I didn't care for his Netflix show where his wife dies and by the end of the first season he's not as angry and bitter towards others, and the jokes just aren't as funny.

 

[Evangelicalhumanist]

Don't watch TV. At all. Don't care.

 

[Revoltingest]

I didn't care for his Netflix show where his wife dies and by the end of the first season he's not as angry and bitter towards others, and the jokes just aren't as funny.

I really liked it, but I can easily understand how most
people wouldn't care for a sardonic tragi-comedy
about a guy on the non-comedic verge of suicide.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

I really liked it, but I can easily understand how most
people wouldn't care for a sardonic tragi-comedy
about a guy on the non-comedic verge of suicide.

I like watching Gervais because of the angry and completely disgusted at everyone comedy. I liked the show at first, but after awhile the comedy just wasn't so dark.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

If you want to watch all the hottest shows that are on streaming services, you'll end up paying about as much as you would for cable so it's all just a scam in my eyes.

Well...you have to decide what that access is worth to you.
I have a mix of cable and streaming, but eventually I'll move to straight streaming. Sports streams are a relatively new thing here (in terms of packages streaming a mix of sports). Previously they were direct to the sport (eg. AFL, NBA, NFL) which doesn't work if you watch a range. Or they were connected to cable subscriptions, so simply allowed additional ways to access cable content.

Pricing right now is about the same, approximately, but in time the competition should help enough to make me move.

 

[Stanyon]

And all you had to do was watch the commercial advertising. You didn't have to pay for that.

Now, we pay ~$200/month. We still have to watch ads. The service is a bit spotty, out here in the country. The cable company(exfinity/Comcast, or something like that) wants to know what you did wrong before they begin to care about your outage. They're going to just send you another bill, regardless.

That's capitalism for you. Modern, crony, capitalism.
Tom

We can always cancel at anytime, if it was just me I wouldn't even have one and probably end up doing far more productive and enriching things.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

I really liked it, but I can easily understand how most
people wouldn't care for a sardonic tragi-comedy
about a guy on the non-comedic verge of suicide.

I liked it too. Not something I'd binge on, but still.
My wife works in mental health, and she liked it. It can go either way with her.

 

[lewisnotmiller]

Don't watch TV. At all. Don't care.

So, you're relying on RF for your reality tv quota?
I can talk vacuously about hair for a while, if that helps?

 

[Saint Frankenstein]

I didn't care for his Netflix show where his wife dies and by the end of the first season he's not as angry and bitter towards others, and the jokes just aren't as funny.

Weird, because that's the one thing I liked from him recently. His standup is the same type of desperately bigoted nonsense as Dave Chappelle's latest turds.

 

[Kangaroo Feathers]

This has also impacted me personally. Right now, "cord cutting" services are not as easy to use as our multi-room Comcast setup, but if it was, we'd be gone in a flash from ordinary Tv.

Traditional TV Enters Its Final Death Spiral

For the better part of the decade, even Wall Street stock jocks have acknowledged that the current pay TV ecosystem simply isn't sustainable. Broadcasters continue to demand higher and higher rates for the same programming, driving up costs for consumers. Those consumers are then fleeing to the exits in record numbers; either migrating to new streaming video alternatives or over the air antennas. Many executives' response to the problem? Mindlessly double down on most of the behaviors that brought them here, namely, mindless consolidation and price hikes.

Most cable and broadcast executives seem to believe they can just nurse this dying cash cow until retirement, at which point it's somebody else's problem. But the problem itself remains, and analysts like Doug Dawson quite correctly note that 2020 may be the year the entire fracas finally starts to unravel and the real "death spiral" truly begins:

I cut the chord about two years ago, and haven't missed it. However, the proliferation of streaming services means we're likely to be in the same situation pretty soon, i.e. paying a bunch of money to access the various content you do want, while 90% of what comes with it is stuff you'll never watch and have no interest in.

I put my foot down at 2 streaming services, that's it.

 

[Shadow Wolf]

His standup is the same type of desperately bigoted nonsense

I just don't see it.

 

[Howard Is]

Can you imagine instead of watching it you can walk around inside a movie?

That’s my everyday reality.