As of Sunday, cable companies are supposed to provide, for new installations, STBs which are CableCard-enabled. This requirement will supposedly make all new STBs compatible with all cable companies - the proprietary stuff is in the the CableCard.
It's my understanding that Suddenlink, CableOne and Grande are all still waiting on the new boxes and the FCC has stated that enforcement of the new regulation will not be enforced if the operators can show that they have the new boxes on order. When any local subscribers receive one of the new boxes, I'd like to hear about it. Will you be charged extra for the CableCard? Most companies seem to charge from $2 to $5 per month for them and the cards were somewhat problematic for installers when the cards first appeared.
Locally, a couple of cable companies have expressed a concern about the theft of the STBs. The older proprietary boxes cannot be used with another cable company but people often steal them anyway. If the new boxes are generic, theft is likely to be a bigger-than-ever problem.
A waiver was granted by the FCC to Verizon and other cable operators with all-digital network.
Tuesday, July 03, 2007
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6 comments:
It seems that the cable companies have never passed up a chance to raise prices. So a charge for the cablecard is almost a sure thing.
And not only the CableCard but they'll likely raise rates because the new STBs are more expensive than the non-CableCard STBs. Well, here. Read it for yourself.
I guess the consumer groups got what they wanted (non-proprietary STBs) and, once again, it'll cost us all more money.
Help me understand this. If you buy one of those fancy-schmancy A/V receivers that are CableCard enabled, won't you be able to dispense with the STB?
Yes, you don't need a STB if you have a CableCard-enabled TV but if you want a DVR for use with cable you have two alternatives to the STB... Tivo Series 3 or an MCE computer. The Tivo can be had now for only(!) $600 plus $16.95 a month for the guide service and the MCE means Vista. Not much selection in my opinion.
Hopefully we'll see better choices within the next couple of years. There are rumors of a dual tuner box with M CableCard but most expect it to sell for as much or more than the Tivo when it comes out.
It seems like this stuff isn't that complicated from a technical standpoint, and you'd think that competition would step in to drive costs down as in every other area of "emerging media."
I guess the real issue is whether there's sufficient consumer demand to support multiple manufacturers.
You're right that the stuff isn't much challenge technically... however I believe regulation is driving the show as much, if not more, than consumer demand. Copy protection has severely limited choice.
Also, the fact that people seem to want to pay $19.95 a month forever as opposed to a one-time purchase of $X00 for a set-top-box makes off-the-shelf products a more risky venture for equipment manufacturers.
Check back with me in 2 years and we'll compare notes again.
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