Is Hulu or CBS the future of cord-cutting apps? Has TiVo cracked the perfect bundle?

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CordKillers: Ep. 71 – Decidedly Less Juicy
Recorded: May 18, 2015
Guest: None

Intro Video 

• Simpsons Couch Gag, Rick and Morty

Primary Target

• Hulu pulls a Netflix, rescues ‘The Mindy Project’ from cancellation
  – Hulu picking up a 26 episode 4th season of The Mindy Project
  – Is this Hulu’s Arrested Development? Where does it go form here? Can it continue to live in two worlds (broadcast catch-up and original on-demand)?
  – Is this strategy working for Yahoo with Community? Can it work better for Hulu?
• AT&T will sell Hulu subscriptions, but not to watch on your TV
  – Hulu is partnering with AT&T U-Verse TV service to sell Hulu subscriptions.
  – AT&T customers can find the shows on a mobile app or on the Web. 

Signal Intelligence

• CBS’s Video Streaming Service Now Offers Live TV In Over 60% Of The U.S.
• CBS All Access app gets Chromecast support (Update: HGTV, Fox and FXNow, too)
  – Hulu offers catch-up for 3 main English-language networks in US
  – CBS All Access adds the other one
  – CBS can add live feeds. Now has that in 64% of markets 94 total. $5.99 a month)
  – Added chromecast support too. (Android and iOS)

Gear Up

• Plex comes to TiVo
  – Oh TiVo. You keep being so close to a really great cordcutting device.
  – TiVo Roamio getting Plex app 6/8
  – Opera-based version of smart TV apps. 720p only
  – Won’t integrate with universal search
• TiVo wants to become the legal version of Aereo
  – Multichannel says TiVo plans to use Aereo trademark and customer lists in a legal version of the service
  – TiVo CEO Tom Rogers wants to offer low-cost bundles of channels and streaming services
  – “The answer is pretty clear — it’s kind of the Aereo model, done legally and better.”
  – Event planned in San Jose for July to unveil new Aereo. 
  – Essentially Rogers says that Cable should bundle TiVos with OTA and broadband services in with their Internet.

Front Lines

• Over-The-Top Streaming Video Services To Surge To 330 Million+ Subscribers By 2019
  – No big surprises from Juniper research here, but the latest research says subscriber numbers for streaming services will rise from 92.1 million in 2014 to 333.2 million by 2019. Even less surprising is the project that almost none of that growth will come from Smart TVs.
• Twitch has launched a channel on Roku adding to its apps on game consoles and FireTV.
• BBC Global iPlayer to close in June
  – Didn’t know BBC offered an international version of its iPlayer for $6.99 a month in Canada as well as Australia and Western Europe? Well you found out too late. It’s closing the service June 26.
• Radio Times reports Netflix is trying to lure Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror away from Channel 4.
• Is Netflix seriously going to revive ‘Top Gear’ as ‘House of Cars?’
  – Word is Netflix is among the producers Jeremy Clarkson and friends have been talking to about doing a car show now that Jeremy is persona non grata at the BBC. The Mirror purports to have it on good authority that Netflix would call the show House of Cars.
• Discovery is filming virtual reality ‘Mythbusters’ and other shows
  – Discovery told AdWeek that the Mythbusters crew has been shooting in virtual reality for next season. Discovery Virtual is a division working on several other VR programs as well. 

Under Surveillance

• The trailer is out for Aaron Sorkin’s Steve Jobs biopic starring Michael Fassbender and Seth Rogen directed by Danny Boyle.
• Trailer for new Supergirl” TV Show” came out
• A trailer for the forthcoming SyFy series based on Lev Grossman’s ‘Magicians’ trilogy coming 2016. 
  – The books are inspired by CS Lewis’s Narnia series as well as an attempt to tell what a Magicians college might ACTUALLY be like. The TV series is making it GRAD school so the characters can be older
• Three-part miniseries Childhood’s End coming to SyFy in September based on the novel by Arthur C. Clarke.
• Brian: Bob’s Burgers, Rick and Morty, Mad Max, Game of Thrones
• Tom: Silicon Valley, Bob’s Burgers, Once Upon a Time, The Shield (510),  Game of Thrones, Mad Men

Dispatches from the Front

PLEASE, for the love of everything that is good in the heart of a Mother of Dragons… quit with emails and conversations about spoilers.

The Geeky Brit
–Ian, Ontario, Canada.

 

 

 

Regards WMC demise.

I too am disappointed with Windows 10 not continuing WMC. You mention apps like plex and Kodi. Yes, I use plex myself… but what I will miss most from WMC is the OTA DVR functionality. As of now, I have yet to find ANY other DVR software as easy to setup and use as Media Center.

Since there isn’t really any hope for this, or worth arguing ALL my points, I have a question?

What is the best software available to use PC with OTA tuners to record broadcasts? Preferably something that can handle multiple tuners and has a reliable guide to schedule series… oh and it has to actually RECOGNIZE the TV tuner without extensive manual setup… that was the key of WMC and what angers me most about Microsoft’s decision.

Thanks for the show.

–David C. St. Louis, MO

Go Cards!!

Kodi has OTA DVR functionality

 

 

Cordkillers. Love the show. I was one of the lucky ones to get on the deal for the Lifetime TiVo OTA for $299. Got it last week, and I am loving it. I haven’t had a DVR since I went OTA and been using Hulu as my cloud DVR per say. Now w/ TiVo OnePass, I see myself canceling Hulu (once I catch up on some shows). I can keep up w/ the motto and record what I want so I can watch what I want, when I want (and now CBS!). Cutting another monthly bill is awesome.

–Neil

 

 

 

Hello Everyone,

I have to say I love the prospect of Apple TV. I really loved the speculation where the first month for every app is free and then using that information to tailor a package to you.

The fact of the matter is though I don’t like Apple and mostly likely wouldn’t get an Apple TV. What I really love if the potential for the Roku TV’s. You guys have made comments before about a TV not keeping up with the Software which is a downside to Smart TV’s. If I was going to trust anyone to buck the curve on that it would be Roku. I have had my Roku 1 longer then I’ve had 3 of my TV’s so when it comes to Software keeping up with Hardware Roku I trust. The bonus of that is if after 5 year the hardware isn’t keeping up with the tech, it’s $30 for a stick and $69 for a Roku 2 right now, that is not bad in my opinion.

Thanks for your Time,
–Nicky Marson

 

 

 

Hey guys,

I wanted to add a little bit to your Apple TV predictions. In our house we primarily use Roku boxes simply due to the availability of ALL THE CONTENT. On what other device or platform can you get Amazon Video and Google Play video on the same big screen enabled device? This is what I want on a new Apple TV – apps directly from the content providers – and if the rumor is true about being announced at WWDC I’m hopeful that this might come true.

Here’s my prediction – at WWDC they will announce an Apple TV SDK and a beta that runs on current Apple TVs. This gives developers time to write and test apps prior to any new hardware. Then at this year’s iPhone event the new box is announced. This would allow them to have a fully stocked Apple TV App Store prior to launch like they did with the watch. With the technologies that came with iOS 8 and the watch the foundation is in place for building Apple TV apps as app extensions.

I can’t wait!

Thank,
–John in rainy Billings, MT

 

 

 

Hello Tom and Brian! You were discussing CBS All Access this week and Brian described it as meeting the “completeness” vector. But I wonder if you’ve actually used it?

My wife and I did a trial week to try it out and catch up on some shows we watch on CBS. But when she went to watch Big Bang Theory, it was missing several episodes – at that point, it had only the three most recent plus the first four of the season, but not the ones in between. We checked another show she watches, Criminal Minds, and found a similar result – only the last five episodes, same as is freely available on their website. They also still had the most ads of any streaming service I use – and that behind the paywall!

While it is true that other shows did have the complete current season, it was very hit-or-miss. We wound up cancelling the service because CBS “All” Access did not, in fact, give us access to all of the current season’s programming. For the same basic price as Hulu Plus or Netflix, I would expect that at the very least. Their back catalog is pretty readily available elsewhere too – for instance, I can watch any episode of Star Trek ever on Netflix. For my money, they need to worry less about the back catalog and worry more about actually providing complete current seasons.

Love the show – you guys helped me figure out what I needed to do to cut the cord, and I’m pleased to say we’re one year cable-free and don’t miss it! Thanks!

Sincerely,
–Andrew L

 

2015 Winter Movie Draft
draft.diamondclub.tv

1. GFQ: $406,655,335
2. Amtrekker: $372,030,708
3. Frogpants: $146,708,083
4. Cordkillers: $36,282,735
5. Night Attack: $23,446,781
6. DTNS: $0

Links

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Movie Draft Update, Silicon Valley (Season 2), Game of Thrones (505), Daredevil (113), The Shield (509)

00:51 – Movie Draft Update

05:21 – Silicon Valley (Season 2)

09:25 – Game of Thrones (505)

19:02 – Daredevil (113)

26:43 – The Shield (509)

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Showtime’s ready for its own HBO Now, Broadcast networks become optional and what Apple should do to keep the Apple TV relevant?

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CordKillers: Ep. Talk Good Like Shwood
Recorded: May 11, 2015
Guest: Justin Robert Young

Intro Video 

• Sense8 trailer

Primary Target

• Showtime over the Net
  –CBS CEO Les Moonves said Internet-delivered version of Showtime rolling out “in the coming months”
  – Moonves said HBO Now proving the opportunity to go over-the-top
  – “very encouraged” by $6 a month CBS all access. Whole country should get it by end of year.
  – COO Joe Ianniello: “underscores our value in retrans and reverse comp negotiations” In other words, it means we can      up our fees to affiliates and cablecos.
  –Couple ways we can go here:
  -1.) Will this creep to non-premium channels like AMC and FX? Will this be the true way to a la carte?
  -2.) Will other broadcasters follow suit in order to gain leverage in fee negotiations?

Signal Intelligence

• Sling TV may add broadcast networks but won’t force you to buy them 
  –Sling TV CEO Roger Lynch: “a key decision from the beginning” to omit broadcast content from base package
  – ‘target market’ gets it from Hulu or OTA
  – “You’ll see us launch broadcast networks in a tier,”
  -Also “It’s not our vision that Sling TV will be everything that everyone will want.”
  –Sling in my experience is definitely about watching live not on demand. HBO and AMC not very valuable there. ESPN and HGTV definitely are.
  – If Sling adds broadcast it will be a complex series of negotiations with local broadcasters.
  – Will it be able to do what Aereo couldn’t afford to?

Gear Up

• Apple TV channel lineup expands with CBS Sports and USA Now
• Apple TV Remote Expected to Add Touch Pad in Redesign 
• OpenTV Sues Apple, Alleging Patent Infringement 
  –NY Times talked to “employee briefed on the product”
  – New Apple TV at WWDC June 8
  – remote will gain a touch pad and also be slightly thicker than the current version
  – The touch pad can be used for scrolling around and there will also be two physical buttons
  -Apple TV added CBS Sports and USA Now apps. Clips from CBS Sports, USA NOw requires authentication
  – Open TV suing Apple over iTunes for ‘securely delivering media to consumer devices’: OpenTV licenesed by many on-demand and DVR

Front Lines

• Cord-Cutting Alert: Pay-TV Business Declines for First Time During Q1
  –MoffettNathanson’s numbers showed a net loss of 31,000 customers for pay TV in Q1, the first time subscribers have declined. Ever. DirecTV, Verizon FiOS and even TWC added customers but it could not offset the seclines from other providers. 
• Xbox One will reportedly include TV DVR feature soon
  –Paul Thurrott, who has a good track record on this sort of thing, says a DVR feature for the Xbox One is coming, likely this year. Can the Xbox One be the one box for everything?
• Reddit is launching a video channel based on its AMAs
  –Reddit hired two producers from The Verge who’s first project is an interview series based on Reddit’s AMA feature which will show up on the Reddit YouTube channel. 
• Xfinity’s new X1 remote follows Amazon’s approach to voice controls
  –A new remote for the Xfinity X1 cable box has a dedicated voice button and embedded microphone to allow voice commands and search. It’s available for free to anyone with the X1 cable box.

Under Surveillance

• X-Files 6-episode miniseries returning Jan. 24 2016
• Hulu is reportedly making a TV series based on ‘Myst’ telling the origin story of the island.
• Sony renewed Powers with new episodes coming to the PlayStation in 2016.
• Steven Spielberg’s Amblin TV will produce a Minority Report series for Fox set 10 years after the end of pre-crime with a former pre-cog teamed up with a detective. 
• ABC has ordered a second season of Agent Carter, still sounds like an 8 episode run. 
• Sense8 teams up the Wachowskis and J. Michael Straczynski
  -It about eight strangers from all around the world who become mentally and emotionally linked. Comes to Netflix June 5.
• Fox canceled the Mindy Project but Universal is in talks with Hulu for two new seasons.
• Amblin TV will also adapt Brave New world for a series on SyFy
• Brian: Game of Thrones, Finished Daredevil, first 2 eps of Silicon Valley, couple of Bob’s Burgers, rewatched Interstellar, introduced penny to The Price is Right
• Tom: The Last Man on Earth, Bob’s Burgers, Silicon Valley, Once Upon a Time, The Flash, Agents of SHIELD, Arrow, The Shield (509), Game of Thrones, Mad Men
• Justin: Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley

Dispatches from the Front

Just finished up a big survey of cord cutters and the habits of password sharing, thought you guys might enjoy the data:
http://exstreamist.com/the-younger-you-are-the-more-likely-it-is-youll-share-your-netflix-password/
The 10 cent version:
Younger age equals a higher likelihood of sharing passwords. Older age results in a healthy fear that these services are going to put an end to all this freeloading sooner rather than later. HBO Go the largest % of “borrowed” streaming services. Let me know if you’ve got any questions / need any more info about the data, hope you enjoy!
Best,

–Rob

 

 

I’ve listened to every episode of cordkillers. In spite of Brian, I enjoy the show very much. I understand spoilers are going to occur. What I have issue with, is when people enjoy spoiling things when it’s unnecessary. Episode 67, Tom was describing the Star Wars trailer without naming Han and Chewy when Brian interrupted, mocking Tom for doing so and more than happy to provide the spoiler.
Recently, Brian thought it would be funny to watch Game of Thrones on HBO GO, skip to the end and then tweet the ending. DOUCHEBAG.
I get that Brian doesn’t understand my point of view. What I don’t understand, is why would you knowingly piss off a segment of your listeners.

–Erik

 

 

 

Hi guys,
In regards to the TiVo OTA story, last fall we purchased an OTA for my snowbird parents to use as a second DVR so they wouldn’t have to lug their existing TiVo across the country twice a year. Ok it was also so I could avoid the yearly, “how do I hook this thing up” call. Unfortunately, I didn’t do my research and was surprised to find that, unlike every other TiVo I’ve purchased over the last ten years; I couldn’t get a lifetime plan for it.
Not only did I have to pay monthly, I had to commit to 12 months. Not the best option for a device that will be unplugged 6 months of the year. After much back and forth with TiVo, they refused to budge and the cheapest option they would “give” me was to pay monthly for 18 months, cancel for 6 months and repeat.
I had finally caved and was about to sign the contract and hook up the OTA on Saturday when this deal came out of nowhere. So I reached out to TiVo one last time. Of course no such luck for me, I have to buy another OTA that has lifetime I can’t put lifetime on the unactivated OTA I already bought! Crazy but it was still a lot cheaper than what I would have done. Luckily I was able to get the deal even though it did come and go for me as well.
Anyway, long story longer, does anyone want a new unused OTA sans lifetime service?

Your penny pinching boss,
–Dan in Rochester
 

 

I have been an avid user of Windows media center DVR to record with Cablecard for years. With the software not being part of Windows 10, I was very disappointed. I have yet to find anything and then today I found this on kickstarter. . This is going to be a game changer for me. I already use HDHomeRun prime. This should be amazing. I thought this is something you should share with your audience.

• HDHomeRun DVR

–Dave

 

 

Hi Brian, Tom, and guest,

A huge potential problem exists for those who rely on WMC for their DVR on some cable providers. WMC is currently the only software approved by CableLabs to play Copy-Once content (which is DRM’d video that can only be played on the device that recorded it or a WMC extender like the Xbox 360). All other software currently available (various Kodi backends, NextPVR, etc.) is only able to play/record Copy Freely material. Generally this isn’t a major problem as Comcast and Verizon flag most content as Copy Freely and only tag HBO/Starz/Showtime and the other premium cable channels as Copy Once. Nevertheless, some providers tag everything as Copy Once and therefore some users of WMC will eventually be forced to move away from an HTPC as an option to receive cable TV on their computer.

Not sure if it was mentioned on the show either but SiliconDust has started a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds to develop their own DVR software. It appears that it will be a subscription-based program for $30/year, but the UI looks promising and it states that it should be able to play copy-once material.

–Geoff in Maryland

 

 

Hey guys, last week Brian and Justin declared the summer blockbuster dead because Avengers 2 only had the 2nd biggest opening weekend in movie history. I really don’t understand this idea. As I write this, Avengers 2 has already made 3 times its budget. Furious 7 has profited well over a BILLION dollars, more than the budgets of all the movies in the series combined.

My point is, they can afford an an occasional flop (like Avengers 2) and still profit billions of dollars every summer. When you look at the worldwide grosses, its hard to find a high budget movie that didn’t make back its budget. In 2014, Robocop and Hercules over doubled their money. 300 Rise of an Empire tripled. Godzilla and Ninja Turtles nearly quadrupled. None of these movies were considered huge box office hits, but all were very financially successful. The ONLY high budget summer movie in the past 3 years I could find that didn’t make its money back was RIPD. It lost 52 million. Good thing Universal profited about 600 million off of Fast & Furious 6 that same summer! I think they’ll keep cranking out the summer blockbusters for some time to come.

If I’m missing something, please explain. Maybe there’s something I’m not seeing or maybe I totally misunderstood what you guys meant. Either way, would love to hear.

Thanks guys, I love the show and am proud to be supporting it!
–Andy in Taylor, Tx

P.S. Brian: standing invitation for Louie Mueller BBQ in Taylor any day this summer!

 

re: Prisoner 42

THANK YOU!!!

–Kirk 

 

2015 Winter Movie Draft
draft.diamondclub.tv

1. GFQ: $396,746,047
2. Amtrekker: $313,402,397
3. Cordkillers: $35,266,785
4. Frogpants: $30,985,315
5. Night Attack: $13,942,258
6. DTNS: $0

Links

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Movie Draft Update, Game of Thrones (504), Avengers Age of Ultron, Daredevil (108-112), The Shield (508)

02:00 – Movie Draft Update

10:50 – Game of Thrones (504)

21:19 – Avengers: Age of Ultron

37:59 – Daredevil (108-112)

47:07 – The Shield (508)

Download video: http://archive.org/download/STEp69/STEp69.mp4

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Will Hulu and YouTube capture your eyeballs with their new hit shows? Will Microsoft regret killing Windows Media Center?

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CordKillers: Ep. 69 – I Can Live with This Thorn
Recorded: May 4 2015
Guest: Veronica Belmont

Primary Target

• Hulu will drop Hulu Plus brand
  – Hulu will stop calling it’s paid service Hulu Plus in order to reduce confusion.
• Hulu hits 9 million subscribers as TV and mobile viewing takes off 
  – 60% of 9 million subs no longer watch on a computer. Watching 30% more content than a year ago
• Hulu Scores Streaming Rights To “Seinfeld,” Signs AMC Deal
  -Seinfeld – complete series 180 eps.(June)
  -Exclusive on FUTURE AMC Networks (BBCA, We, IFC, Sundance)shows (Fear the Walking Dead but not The Walking Dead)
• Hulu ORIGINALS
  – 11/22/63 – based on Stephen King book starring James Franco produced by JJ Abrams
  – Director Jason Reitman (Juno, Up in the Air) comedy drama “casual”
  – Amy Poehler-produced original comedy “Difficult People” coming to Hulu
  – Jason Katims (FNL, Parenthood) “The Way” family in crisis in faith-based org.
  – Freddy Wong behind the scenes of Rocket Jump’s action clips
• Cablevision is bringing Hulu to its cable boxes

Signal Intelligence

• YouTube is dominating TV networks with mobile alone 
  –YouTube reaches more 18-49 on mobile than any TV network
  – YouTube visits up 40% from last year
  – TSV up 50%
• YouTube, AwesomenessTV Partner For Feature Films Led By Digital Stars
• YouTube To Fund Original Series From The Fine Bros, Joey Graceffa, Prank Vs. Prank, Smosh
  -ORIGINALS
  – Fine Brothers scripted series taking a satirical look at singing competitions
  – Prank vs Prank does a prank show but with celebrities.
  – Joey Graceffa murder mystery reality series with youtube stars
  – Smosh: Ian and Anthony work at a theme restaurant + hilarity
  – AwesomenessTV will create feature films starring YouTube Creators. Films will premiere on YouTube,

Gear Up

• RIP Windows Media Center: Microsoft’s HTPC software won’t come to Windows 10
  –Windows 10 will not be able to run Windows Media Center.
  – Microsoft told Ed Bott in a private meeting
• TiVo Roamio OTA now selling for $300 with no service fees
• ChannelMaster DVR+ 1 TB
  –For a limited time (which may be over? seems to come and go based on browser) in the US you can get a TiVo Roamio OTA DVR for $300 with lifetime service.
  – That’s compared to previous $50 plus $15 a month service charge
  -Compare to Channel Master DVR+ 1 TB for $399. Pay $39 for WiFi if needed

Front Lines

• Comcast brings Periscope-style live streams to the cable box
  –Comcast is brinining Xfinity Share to iOS and Android so anyone with a TRIPLE PLAY Xfinity package can stream video to their own X1 cable box or anyone else they know with an X1 cable box. 
• Comcast plans YouTube-like online video service
  –Here’s something that makes *slightly* more sense? The website called “The Information” says Comcast is working on its own YouTube competitor meant to deliver video to people with Comcast’s Cable TV package. So how long before they give up and scrap that idea?
• NBC copies Netflix by making David Duchovny’s new show available to binge-watch on day one
  –In more old industry imitating new, NBC is making all 13 episodes of Aquarius, starring David Duchovny, available for streaming on NBC.com and the NBC app starting with the show’s premier May 28th. Stunt or new standard?
• Movie streaming service Popcorn Time blocked by UK court
  –The United Kingdom’s High Court ruled last week that UK ISP’s must block five website that host downloads of the PopCorn Time bittorrent client. So that’s it. Nobody in the UK will ever be able to use Popcorn Time to watch copyright-infringing content ever again. Problem solved.

Under Surveillance

• 23 Adult Swim series including Harvey Birdman, Venture Brothers, Rick and Morty, Aqua Teen Hunger Force and more are now available on Hulu.
• Netflix and Ellen are making a ‘Green Eggs and Ham’ TV show
  –Netflix has commissioned a 13-episode animated series based on Dr. Seuss’s Green Eggs and Ham due to arrive in 2018. Jared Stern of Wrek-it-Ralph is on board to write the show and Ellen Degeneres is producing.
• Brian: Daredevil (8-12), Avengers: Age of Ultron, Prisoner 42
• Tom: Daredevil (8-13), Flash, Agents of SHIELD, Arrow, Bob’s Burgers, Silicon Valley, Last Man on Earth, Once Upon a Time, Avengers: Age of Ultron, The Shield (508), Game of Thrones
• Veronica: Ex Machina, Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley, Veep

Dispatches from the Front

Hi Tom and Brian,

Hope all is well!

Wanted to throw in my two cents on your discussion on Nielsen. While Nielsen has branched out to cover various forms of digital and non-TV media, their bread and butter is still heavily fixed on the television medium. As far as I’ve seen and experienced, comScore remains the preferred service for digital advertisers. That being said, I wouldn’t go all conspiratorial on them – to Tom’s point, it’s more likely they’re coming from the lens of TV, though it’s also easy to spin the news any way you want.

Best,
Derrick

 

 

 

Hi guys
I know you talked about it but Periscope could be a real game changer. I am not a big boxing fan but with all the hype I peeked in on the big fight Saturday. It worked pretty well. How long do you think before they shut this down? Can they? Just looking through the app it does have a lot of possibility besides illegally streaming stuff.
You guys rock
Thanks
Ken F

 

 

 

Thanks to y’all, I have officially cut the cord this week. Just wanted to show my love.

Thanks guys,

Andy

 

 

 

I have a pick, that is a little time sensitive. It is a Kickstarter campaing for Sideclick. It is a secondary remote that clicks on to your Roku, Apple TV, or Amazon Fire devices. It allows you to control basic functions like power and volume for your TV/receiver. Hopefully a cheaper way to get down to 1 remote.

It goes until May 21st. I pledged, and hope others do as well, seems like a cool little device.

Thanks

Mike
 

 

Hey guys,
I can’t tell you how refreshing it is to listen to your show since I’m watching GOT on Sunday’s but, even better, as you recap Daredevil. For the first time ever, I’m ahead of you and love to hear you wonder what’s coming next. And maybe for next weeks you can put on your cotton conjecture hats and theorize on the impacts of Daredevil season 2 on the other Marvel/Netflix shows. Will expectations be higher or was Daredevil the most popular of the crowd so the others will fly under the radar?

Thanks,

Norm 

 

So I was excited to get the first survey in the mail which I completed (and got my crisp $1 bills) . The first survey, if I remember correctly, did mention shows you could watch online and asked about watching habits.

I was more excited when we received a Nielsen survey packet in the mail (my wife was not excited but then I flaunted the crisp $5 bills in this envelope) but later realized, as a cord cutter, there was zero information I could fill out on this survey. They even have VCR references in the packet. Turns out there is no where on the survey to add shows that you watch online and they only want cable, satellite, or OTA programs. I just thought this was interesting and trying to find the best way to return my survey. Maybe filling it out with only online shows (House of Cards, Kimmy Schmidt) and saying when I want on whatever device I was bitches!

Kyle from Jacksonville

 

2015 Winter Movie Draft
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1. GFQ: $382,584,913
2. Amtrekker: $191,271,109
3. Cordkillers: $33,245,253
4. Frogpants: $28,754,625
5. Night Attack: $0
6. DTNS: $0

Links

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Movie Draft Update, Ex Machina, Game of Thrones (503), Daredevil (105-107), The Shield (507)

00:41 – Movie Draft Update

04:27 – Ex Machina

07:35 – Game of Thrones (503)

18:23 – Daredevil (105-107)

29:46 – The Shield (507)

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The war of numbers continues, while the war of cord-cutter packages rises and it all means we win more awesome shows.

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CordKillers: Ep. 68 – Schrodinger’s Cords
Recorded: April 27, 2015
Guest: Eklund

Intro Video 

• What if man of steel was in color?

Primary Target

• Nielsen: Cord cutting’s no big deal
• Streaming overtakes Live TV
• Netflix Is 6% of TV Business, 43% of Ratings Decline
  –Nielsen data released Thursday.
  – 93% of households with cable, broadband and SVOD will drop BB or SVOD before cable.
  – Young people cancel cable often because of moving

  -Deloitte study – streaming has surpassed live TV
  – 56% stream movies 53% stream TV 45% watch TV programs live
  – 14-25 72% streaming video among most valuable service 58% pay TV

  US Analyst Michael Nathanson of MoffettNathanson
  – Netflix now makes up 6% of total TV viewing
  – Nathanson figures that Netflix accounts for 43 percent of the ratings decline the networks experienced last quarter.

Signal Intelligence

• Verizon Says It Doesn’t Need ESPN’s OK for Custom TV Plan 
• Fox Sports and NBC come out against Verizon’s custom TV plans
• ESPN sues Verizon over bundling package
  Last week Verizon started offering more flexible bundles. ESPN said VZN couldn’t do that.
  TUESDAY
  – VZN CFO Fran Shammo “We believe that we are allowed to offer these packages under our existing contracts,”
  – Fox Sports to BloombergBusiness: “We reject Verizon’s view that it can pursue the new packaging scheme it announced yet still comply with our agreements,”
  – NBC to BloombergBusiness: does not meet the current terms
  MONDAY
  – ESPN suing Verizon for breach of contract: “We simply ask that Verizon abide by the terms of our contracts,”
• Cablevision Debuts “Cord Cutter” Packages Combining Broadband, Free Antennas, And Optional HBO NOW
  – Cablevision “Cord Cutter” package. 50 mbps Internet, HBO Now and Mohu Leaf antenna $44.90 a month for first year plus $15 a month for HBO plus $4.95 for modem lease so… 65 a month… for 12 months
• Comcast entices potential cord-cutters with updated Internet package
  –Comcast Internet package now $67.95 a month (Limited Basic, HBO, 25 Mbps) in Washington

Gear Up

• Xbox One gets Miracast streaming support with new update 
  – Miracast support coming to Xbox One
  – Android, Windows phone amd PCs cast photo/video to console or mirror screen
  – Comes in SmartGlass Preview app on Xbox One
  – Live TV streaming coming too (in NA)

Front Lines

• After Comcast’s failed bid, Charter wants to give Time Warner Cable another try
  –Comcast dropped its attempt to merge with Time Warner Cable last week citing government opposition to the merge, but the Washington Post says its sources say Charter is now exploring a bid for TWC. SHould TWC settle for second choice or just stay single as a powerful self-confident independent woman—cable company?
• AT&T/DirecTV merger likely to be approved
  –The Wall Street Journal says AT&T’s proposed acquisition of DirecTV is likely win approval from the US FCC. The US Department of Justice also has yet to raise any significant issues. Should the combined company be called Direcattv?
• Marvel’s Been Hiding a Star Wars Easter Egg In Its Movies
  –Marvel president Kevin Feige told Cinema Blend that he is so obsessed with Star Wars that he has made sure somebody gets their arm cut off in every Phase Two Marvel movie as an homage. Is this gratuitous, awesome or both?
• The directors of The Lego Movie are making an animated Spider-Man film
  –Phil Lord and Christopher Miller of The Lego Movie fame are producing and writing a treatment for an animated Spider-Man movie to come out July 20th 2018. Too much Spider-man?
• Bill Paxton takes on Daniel Radcliffe in GTA TV show ‘Game Changer’
  –The BBC has confirmed that in its upcoming Docudrama about the making of Grand Theft Auto, called “Game Changer” – Daniel Radcliffe will play Rockstar games co-founder Sam Houser and Bill Paxton will play lawyer Jack Thompson. Do you dare say anything about Thompson and risk a cease and desist for uttering his name? Hmm?
• NBC’s live sports streaming comes to Apple TV and Roku players
  –NBC Sports has launched a version of its Live Extra app for Apple TV and Roku. Still need a qualifying cable subscription to access that. Just thought you should know. 

Under Surveillance

• Netflix ordered a 10-episode series co-created by Aziz Ansari and Andy Yang (Parks and Rec EP).
• Fuller House is officially coming to Netflix
  –Netflix has officially ordered 13 episodes of Fuller House produced by and guest starring John Stamos. Candace Cameron-Bure, Jodie Sweetin and Andrea Barber will star. Discussions with other members of the Full House cast are ongoing.
  Pregnant and recently widowed DJ Tanner-Fuller (Cameron-Bure) is living with her younger sister (Sweetin) and lifelong best friend (Barber) and her “feisty” teenage daughter. All join to help raise DJ’s two boys and prepare for the birth of the new baby.
• Paramount has a Galaxy Quest TV show in development.
• Netflix has approved a second season of Daredevil for 2016
  –Previous commitments prevent Steven DeKNight from continuing as showrunner. Doug Petrie and Marco Ramirez will stay on and take the helm.
• Brian: Daredevil 5-8, Game of Thrones,  Garfunkel and Oates
• Tom: Daredevil (5-7), Flash, Once Upon a Time, Last Man on Earth, Arrow, Agents of SHIELD, Game of Thrones, Ex Machina, The Shield (507), Mad Men
• Ek: Hockey, Hacking the System
   

Dispatches from the Front

Hey guys,

Coming from a broadcast TV background I found your discussion on periscope last week very interesting. I work in Sports broadcasting and as a rights holder we own the rights to any video shot in the venue. We often use spectators footage from instagram, we don’t need to ask permission because we already own the rights.

If periscope gets big enough they will have no choice but to setup a content management system to block copyright infringement. I think Twitter is being very naive saying that they have a take down procedure. That sounds like a law suit waiting to happening, especially when other online video providers have active system’s to pull content ie YouTube and even Twich.

Aso I would have thought bars would have paid for commercial access to the cable company so if HBO is part of the package I don’t see what the issue is. Here in Australia how much a bar pays for access to subscription TV is tied directly to how much turnover the bar has. It ends up for a larger venue as several thousand dollars a month.

HBO is probably caring more about piracy because they now sell a streaming service. Previously you would need a cable subscription to view HBO. People downloading HBO show probably fall into the category of people who don’t have cable, HBO would want to convert those people into streaming customers. People generally stop pirating because its easier to pay, seems like its good business sense to make pirating as difficult as possible.

Love the show,
– Hosko the sports director

 

 

I’m a time warner business class rep. In regards to the HBO story, bars ar actually requires to buy a bar/restaurant package, and any other type of service is actually against some city ordinances. PPV, AND SPECIALY Broadcasrs are billed on a per head estimate or fire capacity rating for the facility. This discourages establishments from just paying the residential price and just raking in a massive profit without the actual content creator relieving their supposed due. Hotels have a hospitality package in which we sell what’s called a hospitality insert package, which why they provide HBO, and other channels within their lineups. In those instances they pay a flat rate per TV set., and it’s typically more than the consumer cost, because it’s considered public display. Thought I’d give you a little insight.

– Anonymous

 

 

Hey Shwood and Tom,

I’m hoping that you guys can shed some light on how us Cord Killers can stream the big fight this weekend legally.
My current setup is Sling TV + Plex on my Fire TV and HTPC. Additionally, I have a PS4. Is there a way I can watch the fight?
Boxing, take my money!

Your boss,
– Nick

 

 

Hey Tom & Brian,

I want to first say thank you for splitting out It’s Spoilerin’ Time into a separate news feed. I often go back & watch those episodes to hear your opinions after I’ve caught up on the shows.

However this week I was disappointed to find the Movie Draft Update being covered only in the Spoilerin’ Time episode. I really liked this being part of the main show for the Winter Movie Draft, and would have completely missed it altogether if I hadn’t noticed the rundown for this week’s Spoilern’ Time episode.

Any chance of seeing the Movie Draft Update making its way back into the main show? As you’re boss, I’d really appreciate it!

As always, keep up the great work!

– Benjamin

 

 

Just saw the most recent Cord Killers and have some clarification to offer. You said that PlayOn is $10 a month after an intro period. [[CNET said $10 for 3 months — think Tom read it wrong]] PlayOn and PlayLater (basically internet DVR that records to your PC hard drive) together are normally actually only $40/year but here’s the BIG thing: They are on sale for $50 (OK, $49.99 but don’t you HATE that?!) for lifetime use right now, only $90 when not on sale. A onetime expense and done. …The sole negatives are that PlayLater records in real time, so if you are getting an hour-long show, it takes an hour, and closed captions are painful and pretty much a loss. For one example, an unscrupulous person could record HuluPlus shows and then play them back with the ability to FF thru commercials…
They are great, almost essential tools for a cordcutter.

-Dan

 

2015 Winter Movie Draft
draft.diamondclub.tv

1. GFQ: $363,306,485
2. Cordkillers: $30,291,700
3. Frogpants: $25,075,475
4. Night Attack: $0
5. DTNS: $0
6. Amtrekker: $0

Links

patreon.com/cordkillers
Dog House Systems Cordkiller box

Movie Draft Update, Game of Thrones (501-502), Daredevil (102-104), The Shield (506), Mad Men (710)\

00:34 – Movie Draft Update

03:19 – Game of Thrones (501-502)

11:59 – Daredevil (102-104)

23:09 – The Shield (506)

26:44 – Mad Men (710)

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Why HBO needn’t worry about piracy, why Netflix wants to kill TV, and new news about the Star Wars. 

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CordKillers: Ep. 67 – You’re Excited for a Prequel
Recorded: April 20, 2015
Guest: Ron Richards

Intro Video 

• Netflix is incorporating audio description tracks for the visually impaired

Primary Target

• HBO Go Usage Was Higher Than HBO Now on Sunday Debut
• HBO Now passes toughest test by streaming Game of Thrones premiere on time
• HBO orders NYC bar to stop showing Game of Thrones
• Large-scale Game of Thrones leak has HBO targeting Periscope streams
• HBO’s Wasting Its Time Sending Periscope Takedown Notices
  -HBO Now premiere on Game of Thrones went smoothly.
  – HBO Go had some sporadic issues. As did Sling TV
  – Most people watched on HBO GO according to Sandvine (Go consumer 5x bandwidth 3.4% to 0.7%)
  HBO Not pleased with:
  – Brooklyn bar “videology” sent cease and desist for showing GoT (did same thing with Sopranos)
  – Sent takedown notices to Periscope for streams of the show
  – “In general, we feel developers should have tools which proactively prevent mass copyright infringement from occurring on their apps and not be solely reliant upon notifications,” HBO says in a statement.
  – Accounts in violation can be suspended or shut down according to ToS.
  – First 4 episodes leaked as torrents from DVD screeners. Avail. on Popcorn Time.
  – 8 million people watched the premiere anyway.

Signal Intelligence

• Netflix signs up new members like crazy in record-breaking quarter 
• Netflix Says HBO Isn’t a Threat (Yeah, Right)
• Netflix Aims at TV, Not HBO, Says CEO Reed Hastings 
  – US subs passed 41.4 million (+2.28 million)
  – International passed 20.88 million (+2.25 million)
  – US not biggest in average hours watched per sub
  – Letter to shareholders: HBO and Netflix “are not substitutes for one another given differing content”
  – Hastings in earnings call: “Linear TV has been an amazing 50-year run. Internet TV is the way that people will consume video in the future.”
  – Will update look of TV apps in second half of year

Gear Up

• YouTube switches off its mobile app for second-gen Apple TVs and older iOS devices
  –YouTube switched off app for 1st-gen Apple TVs, older Sony TVs & Blu-ray Discs, Panasonic TVs & Blu-ray Discs, older iOS devices (iOS6 and older), and devices running older versions of Google TV.

Front Lines

• Verizon’s ‘customizable’ FiOS TV packages violate contract, says ESPN
  –Verizon announced plans to offer new FIOS TV packages that gave users basic channels and two channel bundles of their choice for $55 a month or $65 with Internet. Additional bundles can be added for $10 a month extra. Late Friday Disney released a statement that the bundles were not authorized under existing agreements that don’t allow ESPN or ESPN2 to be distributed in separate sports packages. 
• HBO renews Silicon Valley for third season
  –HBO will not only bring Silicon Valley back for a third season but announced it has acquired the rights to Vimeo show High Maintenance. HBO will air 6 new episodes of the series and make previous episodes available as well. Thanks to sporknpork on Twitter for the tipoff on High Maintenance.
• Netflix creating 4K successor to Planet Earth
  –Here’s a roundup of Netflix show announcements. Silverback Films, the creators of Planet Earth are doing an 8-episode 4K series called Our Planet set to arrive in 2019. Orange is the New Black got the green light for a fourth season in 2016. Season 3 is coming June 12. And Dragons: Race to the Edge from Dreamworks will appear on Netflix June 26. 
• Sony’s Crackle To Introduce Scheduled Programs In Addition To VOD Offerings
  –Sony’s Crackle is adding an “Always On” channel; that will start playing as soon as you launch the app, starting on Roku in May. Also coming to the channel Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser, with David Spade and Christopher Walken, on July 16 a new season of Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee on June 4 and a stop-motion animated series called Supermansion featuring the voice of Bryan Cranston coming in autumn.

Under Surveillance

• New Fantastic Four trailer
• Official Batman vs. Superman trailer
• J.J. Abrams reveals new Force Awakens teaser, details
• Everything We Know About The First Star Wars Spin-Off Film, Rogue One
  –Star Wars Anthology: Rogue One “A band of resistance fighters unite for a daring mission to steal the Death Star plans.” Set between Revenge of the Sith and A New Hope. 
• Brian: Game of Thrones, Daredevil
• Tom: Game of Thrones, Silicon Valley, Mad Men, Daredevil, Last Man on Earth, Agents of SHIELD, Arrow,  The Shield (506), Orphan Black
• Ron: Shark Tank, The Wrecking Crew (documentary), Daredevil, Silicon Valley, Mad Men, The Flash, Louie

Dispatches from the Front

 Hey Tom & Brian,

I’ve given up writing this review of CBS All Access a few times now because there were just so many problems with the service. But I’m happy to report that with a few recent updates, they’ve moved from “terrible” to “more than tolerable”!

Previously, you could only watch in a browser, on iOS, or on Android. And with iOS, AirPlay isn’t natively supported in the app. This meant no easy big screen viewing. Additionally, your position in an episode wasn’t saved. Want to switch devices, or just come back and finish later? Be prepared to watch a bunch of ads while searching for the spot you left off.

Thankfully, a brand new CBS All Access channel just launched on Roku! And coupled with the recently added per device remembering of playback position in episodes, I’m happy to say this $6 a month service is finally tolerable enough to use for all the cord killing Elementary fans out there.

Now, if they can just get some more diversity in their ads, they can be upgraded from “more than tolerable” to “not actually that bad at all”.

Love the show!

–Tom

Hey guys,
Just listened to the spoiler n time ep when you talked about the season finally of Better Call Saul. Funny thing that I picked up because I have been watching along with my wife as she works her way through Breaking Bad. I just watch an episode with my wife in BB where Saul says “I once convinced a girl that I was Kevin Kostner” and then thought, wow, I just saw him do that on BCS.. It was a cool moment that had I not been watching BB at the time I’m sure I would have never picked up. I will say that as my wife has been exposed to Saul in BB she is a bit how she was when she met Tyrion Lanester for the first time. “Why do you like him, he’s kind of a dick, and why did they make a show about Saul” I just told her, Saul grows on you like the imp did, and hang in there. so maybe my email will get read because I provided a great transition from last week’s show to next week’s spoils of gold for the season premere of Game of Throwns. Love the show. Love you guys, listen so much you feel like friends. Keep it up, as my summer picks up in real estate, I will become a BOSS..

–Jeff

 

 

Just watched episode 64 where you talk about the Amazon Fire TV Stick and how it now has the convenience of logging in through pesky hotel login pages. I travel two weeks a month just for work (three with personal travel included), so a Chromecast is always in my bag. Streaming content (e.g. Netflix, Youtube) over crappy hotel internet has never been an issue for me. A few of the hotels that I stay at don’t require you to use to web browser login page, so Chromecast works great for those trips, but I have yet to find a work around for the places that do have that ridiculousness. Knowing that the Fire TV Stick has a simple solution to this makes it very appealing just for travel purposes alone, which means that I could leave the Chromecast plugged into one of the Home TV’s 24/7.

Hope this gives a small insight to us traveling plenty and how we try to consume our content on the road. Love the show. Keep delivering the goodness.

–Nick 
 

 

 

Just wanted to bring up a quick point about the YouTube subscriptions that are paid by time spent viewing. I understand details are few, but I would like to know how they handle playlist and gaming the ‘time spent viewing’. What prevents me from starting a playlist of cordkillers and leaving for work? Do they implement the Pandora style ‘are you still listening/watching ?’

Again details are vague and let wild speculation rule the land. Just interested in your thoughts as creators.

–woogi

 

 

A couple of things:

First, CNet has an article about how those of us outside of the Apple eco-system can get HBO Now via the PlayOn service. Here’s the article — http://www.cnet.com/how-to/watch-hbo-now-on-android-and-roku-right-now/

Second, I’m sure you’ve been corrected a thousand times about this, but the pronunciation of Hauppauge is not “how-pudge”, it’s “hop-ogg” or “hop-pog”.

Third, I took a few months off from Cordkillers so I could read all 5 of the Game of Thrones books, but I’m back and have resumed my patronage.

–Chris

 

2015 Winter Movie Draft
draft.diamondclub.tv

1. GFQ: $318,273,110
2. Cordkillers: $23,681,298
3. Frogpants: $15,845,115
4. Night Attack: $0
5. DTNS: $0
6. Amtrekker: $0

Links

patreon.com/cordkillers
Dog House Systems Cordkiller box

Movie Draft Update, Better Call Saul (110), Daredevil, The Shield (505)

00:32 – Movie Draft Update

04:36 – Better Call Saul (110)

13:40 – Daredevil (101)

20:21 – The Shield (505)

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