Slashdot Mirror

← Back to Stories (view on slashdot.org)

DirecTV CEO Scoffs At Competition From Apple TV

Posted by timothy on from the apple-interfaces-tend-to-impress dept.

theodp writes "In a move that evokes memories of Steve Ballmer's initial pooh-poohing of the iPhone threat, DirecTV Chairman Michael White downplayed the Apple TV hype, expressing doubts that 'Apple's interface will be so much better than DirecTVs' that people will be willing to pay for an extra box. So, will White's statement — 'It's hard to see (it) obsoleting our technology' — come back to haunt him?"

2 of 264 comments (clear)

  1. Re:Irony alert! by gstrickler · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I saw that Dish pays around 0.25/month per subscriber to Comedy Central. Yet somehow it's reasonable to ask 2 bucks for a single episode of a single show from that channel?

    Multiply that by the number of subscribers (not actual views) and you'll find that CC is getting a hefty check. Even people who never watch CC are paying that monthly fee. Compare that to the actual revenue from episodes sold (and "sold" is a 1 time payment, not monthly or per view), and I think you'll find it makes sense. Also, episodes "sold" generally don't include commercials, so they're giving up that revenue stream too. Completely different business models.

    Rental is yet another business model, one that's closer to the cable/satellite model.

    Cable/satellite = all you can consume, but only as long as you maintain your subscription. When your subscription ends, all access ends with it. Pay the same whether you watch 1min or 500hrs per month.
    Per show rental = Pay per view (or a window of xx hours). Access ends after xx hours (or one view).
    Per show purchase = Pay more per show, but pay only once, and watch it whenever you choose, as many times as you choose.

    Either way, the content creators and/or distributors will want to make ~ the same amount of revenue. So, you will pay more up-front for a purchase, but you don't have the recurring fees.

    --
    make imaginary.friends COUNT=100 VISIBLE=false
  2. Re:AppleTV may have to deal with ISP and data cost by blahbooboo · · Score: 5, Insightful

    What this is fucking free ride you are mumbling about? I paid for my pipe, and though it may be shared with my neighbors, it's none of your fucking business where I suck down my content from.

    You are an idiot.

    You had a nice rebuttal. The name calling was unnecessary and makes you look like the idiot. Try and just stick to your argument, youll get much farther in life...