Cordkillers 98 – Ask-It Basket

Cordkillers / December 1st, 2015

The top shipping streaming boxes may surprise you as will how well TiVo is doing. And Amazon wants all your streaming money in one place.

Download audio

Download video

CordKillers: 98 – Ask-It Basket
Recorded:  November 30 2015
Guest: None

Intro Video

Primary Target

  • Chromecast Crushes Apple TV, Roku And Amazon Fire In New Sales Figures
    – Stratgey Analytics report
    – 1/4 smart TVs in use worldwide is Samsung
    – Chromecast top streaming device sales 9.2 million 35%
    – Apple TV 20%, Fire TV 16%, Roku 16% (Q3 shipments BEFORE new Rokus Fire and Apple TVs)
    – All connected devices (Smart TVs, Blu-Ray game consoles, streamers) reached 53 million in Q3, on pace for 17% rise 221 million units full year.

Signal Intelligence

  • Amazon to bundle other services into Prime Video
    – “People with knowledge of the plans” say Amazon will let Prime members bundle on-demand networks
    – Add “major, well-known movie and TV channels”
    – “Amazon will also sell prepackaged bundles of its own creation”
    – May go live as soon as next month
    – “Amazon will manage customer relationships for major media companies“
    – Landing pages for each service would exist within prime
    – Also working on technology that would permit users to directly log into other streaming services using Amazon credentials.
    – Prime estimated to have 44 million members (Consumer Intelligence Research Partners)
    – Netflix reports 43. 2 million US

Gear Up

  • TiVo revenue rises on increased subscribers
  • TiVo Quick Mode comes to Roamios
    – TiVo reported 12% increase Q3 revenue of 12$ (profits down)
    – Added 429,000 subscribers to 6.5 million up 26%. (4 million outside US)
    – Churn rate fell from 1.6% to 1.4%
    – Increased distribution agreements – services and software rose 22%
    – Costs rising
    -Projecting loss of 5-8 million in Q4 because of 11-12 million payout to departing CEO Tom Rogers
    – QuickMode, the TiVo feature that lets you speed up video playback with pitch-corrected audio, has arrived for all TiVo Roamio models. The feature came to the new TiVo Bolt last week. Romeo users will also see a new look on the Guide and faster OTA channel scanning. 

Front Lines

Under Surveillance

Dispatches from the Front

Amazon video vs Netflix interface. Yes, there’s a lot wrong w/Amazon’s interface, BUT, its X-ray feature, which I dismissed at first, makes it feel like Netflix is missing out on a huge feature. X-ray, you click a button and it tells you the name of the characters on screen and the actors. Very useful for keeping track of who’s who in shows with huge casts. Click up and you can drill down into each actor and it lists the movies and shows they’re most famous for. Click down and you’re back in the content. It’s like those popup bubbles on I forget what cable channel it was, but when you want it and what you want. You may already have talked about it and know about it but I’ve ignored the feature for so long, I didn’t know what I missed. Maybe others have as well.”

– Steve

 

 

 

Android TV as a platform has a lot of the big native apps. It adds even more with Cast support built-in.  But the only standout Android TV hardware, the NVidia Shield, is focused on gaming first.  TiVo is stuck trying to convince developers to support yet another platform.  TiVo misses enough of the big apps that it can’t be a cord cutters Only box.  TiVo would easily stand out IF they could make a combined OTA DVR & Android TV box.  The combined feature would be unmatched by the other big players.  Google should have incentive to help in order to drive further adoption of their platform. Partnership is cheaper and easier than building or buying a platform.  It is a big IF on how they could develop such a box, or even IF the new CEO would want one.  But looking at the lessons of Blackberry & Nokia in phones, if this is the move, better to make it sooner than later.”

 

–  Roy

 

 

Hi Tom & Brian,

Just a brief review of my experience on the PlayStation Vue service that I tried over the holiday weekend.

I don’t own a PlayStation, but used the service with my Fire TV Stick.  I like the interface and the picture quality is more than good enough.  While watching live TV you can almost forget you are watching streamed content.

However, the DVR functionality was lacking.  After advancing or rewinding, the video would repeat itself multiple times.  It would often freeze as well, causing me to close the app and restart it.  Of course, this happened while I was trying to sell my wife using this to cut the cord.  

I wondering if these problems are due to me using the Fire TV stick, a problem with the service or just bad luck.”

– John

 

 

 

“In episode 97, the talk of people now being more loyal to individual shows instead of broadcast networks really struck a chord (no pun intended) with me. I rarely even think about what network a show is on anymore. I don’t think, “”Oh yeah, FOX is the channel with Gotham.”” I just know I need to watch it on Hulu. The network is mostly irrelevant to me.
… I think a la carte becomes far more interesting when we’re talking about picking and choosing individual shows instead. …I would love a streaming service that charged perhaps a nominal base fee per month, and then allowed you to pick and choose shows to add to your monthly account at a reasonable monthly rate. Want to subscribe to Agents of SHIELD for an additional $2.99 per month? Just click the check box. Decided you really didn’t care for Heroes Reborn after a few episodes? Uncheck it for next month.

You can kind of do program a la carte now by buying seasons on Amazon, iTunes, Google Play, etc., but at ~$20 a season, it’s a much bigger up-front investment, and locks you in to a show that you might not want to continue watching a few episodes in.

Love the show,

– Justin

 

 

 

As a long-time timeshifter (Three Beta machines at one time, then TiVo, now MythTV and RoKu), I’m still in search of something that fully replaces the TiVo season pass.  Sure RoKu and other streaming devices allow searching across multiple services to find a program, but I want something to manage the shows that I already do watch..  So, when the new Daredevil episodes come
out, they should pop onto the list of available un-seen episodes automatically.  I shouldn’t have to constantly check Man in the High Castle to see if the newest episodes are out yet.  So, I want the device to keep track of what series I watch and keep tabs for new episodes, then once I have watched them..  The Netflix “”My List”” can sort of do that, but just for Netflix content, so long as I manually add/remove shows when new content is available and when I finish the current episodes..  With all of the steaming
services coming around, I want to manage all of them consistently and not have to constantly be manually polling each service and show to find if new episodes are available.  That tedium is what computers are good at.”

– Marcus

Links

patreon.com/cordkillers

2015 Winter Movie Draft

 

It’s Spoilerin’ Time 97

Cordkillers / November 25th, 2015

Winter Movie Draft, Triage, Agents of SHIELD, The Man in the High Castle (103), Jessica Jones (101-104), Fargo (206)

01:19 – Winter Movie Draft

05:00 – Triage (Winter Movie Draft)

07:17 – Agents of SHIELD (to date)

12:02 – The Man in the High Castle (103)

20:43 – Jessica Jones (101-104)

33:39 – Fargo (206)

Download audio

Download video

It’s Spoilerin’ Time 96

Cordkillers / November 18th, 2015

Winter Movie Draft, Triage, Fargo (204), W/ Bob and David (Season 1), Star Wars Rebels (Season 1)

01:32 – Winter Movie Draft

02:56 – Triage (Winter Movie Draft)

04:02 – Triage (Fargo)

07:20 – Fargo (204)

12:39 – W/ Bob and David (Season 1)

24:45 – Star Wars Rebels (Season 1)

Download audio

Download video

It’s Spoilerin’ Time 95

Cordkillers / November 11th, 2015

Winter Movie Draft, The Walking Dead (601 & 602), Fargo (204), The Leftovers (206), The Shield (713)

01:19 – Winter Movie Draft

06:18 – The Walking Dead (601 & 602)

16:54 – Fargo (204)

25:17 – The Leftovers (206)

33:49 – The Shield (713)

Download audio

Download video

Cordkillers 95 – Too Much TV

Cordkillers / November 10th, 2015

Should TV networks hold back content from Netflix? Netflix says there’s not enough TV. Time Warner wants to reduce commercials.

Download audio

Download video

CordKillers: 95 – Too Much TV
Recorded: November 9, 2015
Guest: Lamarr Wilson

Intro Video

Primary Target

  • TV Studios Plan to Cut Back on Netflix, Digital Subscription Sales
  • Time Warner Says It Will Hold Back Shows From Netflix, Other SVOD
  • Time Warner plans to win back cord cutters by showing fewer ads
    – Peter Kafka at ReCode reports TV execs signaling they will stoff selling best stuff to digital services, netflix in particular
    – 21st Century Fox CEO James Murdoch September changing “business rules”
    – Time Warner CEO Jeff Bewkes: “[undercut] yourself by having somebody else pay a fraction of the cost and create a better inventory on the various shows you yourself invented.”
    — Also said may retain rights longer delay/forego licensing
    – Discovery CEO David Zaslav: “It’s just not rational that all of us in the content business sold our content to a distributor and have allowed that distributor to gain so much share and offer it without our brands.”
    — May make them ONLY available on cable VOD “Tv Everywhere”
    – Another reason CBS ALL Access got Star Trek
    – Netflix to shareholders last month: “Some studios will choose to license content to SVOD services like Hulu, Amazon – –  – Prime Instant Video and Netflix. Others may not,”
    – Netflix point out show’s creators/producers want to make sure the show has been maximizing money
    – Time Warner networks will cut down commercial inventory
    – HBO, movies and games all strong
    – Turner revenue declined
    – will reduce ad load starting with younger-skewing nets like TruTV
    – From 18-19 minutes all the way to 10-11 per hour
    – Said would have little to no impact on revenue

Signal Intelligence

  • Netflix CEO: Actually, There’s “Not Nearly Enough” TV
  • Netflix’s short episodes helps parents negotiate kids’ bedtime
  • Netflix will produce original Bollywood and anime programs
    – FX CEO John Landgraf over the summer: “simply too much television.”
    – At NYTImes DealBook conf last week Reed Hastings: “He’s wrong. There’s not nearly enough.”
    – Consumer spending on entertainment, which he said has been “growing faster than disposable income for decades.”
    – “We need to go beyond the normal spectrum to get quality,” he said. “I’m hopeful that over time we can make a great Bollywood show, that we can make a great anime show.”
    – Hastings said TV Everywhere that brings network content to multiple devices is what he’s always been “most scared of”
    “The big system has to figure out TV everywhere.”
    – Netflix Notes: Dinotrux 5 Minute Favorites series features three short episodes based on Dreamworks’ popular Netflix show, that give kids their final fix of TV for the day in a small dose before bed.

Gear Up

Front Lines

  • Sony’s PlayStation Vue picks up ESPN, Disney, and ABC in huge content deal
    – Disney announced a deal bringing ESPN, the Disney Channel, ABC, and ABC Family to the PlayStation Vue service. All ESPN-related channels will be included. Local ABC affiliates may opt in as well for live programming. No word on when or if it will add to the $50 a month price.
  • Fox Shows On Hulu Will Offer Reduced, Only 30-Second-Long Ad Option
    – Hulu subscribers on tiers that still see ads can choose to have an interactive ad that gets rid of ad breaks in exchange for interacting with one 30-second ad. The ad comes at the beginning but can also be chosen during the first ad break or when the user presses pause. These engagement ads are more expensive than traditional ads and will only be available on current season shows when an advertiser has bought one. They are launching on Web and mobile but will eventually be on all Hulu apps.
  • Vice’s cable channel, Viceland, will launch February 2016
    – Our emailer from last week was right. Vice and A&E announced they will launch the channel Viceland in February 2016. Spike Jonze oversees Gaycation with Ellen Page and Portraits with Marc Maron, as well as versions of its YouTube shows. No waiting period between Web and TV for shows either. It will replace H2 on lineups. 
  • NewsON Brings Your Local News Stations To iOS, Android And Roku
    – NewsOn has launched offering local news for subscribers on iOS, Android, and Roku. Backed by TV stations it will offer local news coverage from 118 stations in 90 markets which NewsON says is about 75% of the US.
  • Tidal has decided to get into original TV shows
    – Music service Tidal will now offer some original TV shows. No Small Talk is a half-hour stand-up comedy show, comprised of five episodes and hosted by Cipha Sounds which premiered November 3rd. And the second season of YouTube series Money & Violence, which is about a group of criminals living in Brooklyn, created by and starring Moise Verneau. That one is on Tidal for a week exclusvie before coming to YouTube.
  • Jon Stewart has signed a four-year contract with HBO
    – HBO announced that Jon Stewart has signed a four-year production deal to focus on short-form digital content meant for HBO Go and HBO Now, with the possibility of making other film and TV programs. Stewart’s job will be to “view current events through his unique prism.” 

Under Surveillance

Dispatches from the Front

Hi guys,
Coming from a lifelong Trek fan, I understand why the internet exploded over CBS’s decision to bury the new series behind a paywall. I also see CBS’s side, they are taking a huge risk with what will likely be a cast of unknowns, a huge f/x budget and a hard sell to top advertisers.
No matter how good the pilot is, though, I won’t be subscribing to All Access. Not because CBS shouldn’t do what they did, they have every right, but because they don’t offer any other programming that interests me right now. I already own everything Star Trek that I like so I really have no need for the back catalog. I’m only moderately interested in Supergirl (which is also All Access only online) as it’s clearly targeted at a female audience and the whole Kryptonian on TV thing has been done to death.
I do want to watch the series, so I am going to take the Netflix approach. As Tom so eloquently stated, you can subscribe and unsubscribe to these services at will. When the first season is complete, I’ll join All Access for a month and binge watch the whole thing in a weekend. Problem solved and no internet cursing!
Of course, it will end up being really good, or during that month I’ll find something there that I’ll have to watch and I’ll end up subscribing long-term. Then all the CBS executives will hold their pinky up to their mouth and laugh that evil laugh. Those bastards.

– Paul

 

 

 

I’m a huge Star Trek fan. Not go to conventions and dress up huge, but otherwise yeah. I have no problem paying for CBS All Access to get Star Trek. And it would have be horrible past the second season for me to stop watching. Every Star Trek series is notorious for having a slow first couple of seasons (well except for TOS). Plus, if ST fans don’t show their support, we could lose out on future properties!

Live Long & Prosper
– Tom

 

 

 

New TV shows need to hit a critical mass before they attain true popularity.  Putting the first season of any TV show behind a paywall that hardly anyone is using yet, is a huge mistake.  Even a brand as big as Star Trek can flounder with such a definitive barrier. 

Yes, Trek fans will be happy to pay and CBS will gain subscribers, but will it be enough?  CBS has a track record of cancelling shows in their first or second season if the views are low.  Everything from the original Flash TV show to The Crazy Ones to Extant.  Will they give Star Trek a chance if too few subscribe?

What about those that decide to wait for the season to end, and binge watch the whole thing in one month and cancel?  Star Trek does not seem like a property that should be used as a test in this way – it has been off the air for too long and has too much to prove.

In the end I believe this experiment will fail even if the show is actually good, as we will once again have to wait another decade for more Star Trek on the small screen.  After all, it was the CBS acquisition of Paramount studios in 2005 that finally spelled the end for Enterprise.”

– Paul

 

 

 

Star Trek will have to be as good as Star Wars makes the audience feel. If SW doesn’t live up to the hype, there is no hope for ST. Because of the timeline, ST will be a television complement to the massive SW movies, sort of like a pacifier in between the bottle. At this point, we don’t know if the audience viewing ST will be on an intergalactic high or going through space fatigue.

On another note, Childhood’s End is coming up in December which is not soon enough me. I think it was Brian that mentioned how much he loved the book and that convinced me to read it. I loved it enough to seek out my own copy at a local free bookstore (1960 edition). Thanks!

And thank you both for all the hard work you do.

– Abry 

 

 

 

Hi guys,

I’ll put my vote in for not reading Preacher. I read it, and while I didn’t dislike it, it was hardly my favorite book. Not anywhere near my top 10 or even top 20.

It feels oddly dated. When I read it, I assumed it was made in the 80’s because of the art style, but was surprised to find that it came out from 95-00. I guess my other problem is that it’s a Garth Ennis book, and while I don’t mind violence he seems to relish in it and write for it. He seems to like the shock value.

Anyway, there’s more I could say, but it’s not really worth it. I say skip it and read something by Brian K Vaughn instead. Can’t ever go wrong with that 🙂

– Matt

 

 

Links

patreon.com/cordkillers

2015 Winter Movie Draft

Cordkillers 94 – CBS = Cash Buys Star Trek

Cordkillers / November 3rd, 2015

CBS uses Star Trek to sell subscriptions, Sling TV sees surprising behavior, and whether you should by Apple TV. 

Download audio

Download video

CordKillers: 94 – CBS = Cash Buys Star Trek
Recorded: November 2, 2015
Guest: Andrew Mayne

Intro Video

Primary Target

  • New ‘Star Trek’ TV Series a Go at CBS All Access
  • Holy Crap, They Are Officially Making a New Star Trek TV Series
    – Star Trek returning to TV January 2017
    – New characters, not related to feature film
    – “Introduce new characters seeking imaginative new worlds and new civilizations, while exploring the dramatic – contemporary themes that have been a signature of the franchise since its inception in 1966.”
    – Produced by Alex Kurtzman (Fringe, Writer on movies)
    – Preview episode on CBS, subsequent eps on CBS All Access ($6 a month)
    – International distribution on TV and “multiple platforms”

Signal Intelligence

  • Sling TV’s chief dishes on Apple, Chromecast and the future of online TV
    – CNET interview with Sling TV CEO Roger Lynch
    – Sling still adding Chromecast support, no word on when
    – Roku, Fire TV, Nexus, Xbox One
    – Lynch says more people adding Sling and keeping cable than he expected 5-10% of subscribers
    – On Demand more pop. than expected. The more on demand added the more people watch
    – “When we were first talking to programmers about what ultimately became Sling TV, we were selling them on the idea,” he said. “Now programmers who aren’t on Sling TV are selling us on the fact that they should be.”
    – A Sling TV spokeswoman said the company is evaluating development of an app for Apple TV.

Gear Up

  • Tom, Bryce (and Andrew?) share thoughts on new Apple TV
    – Tom
    – Siri great while in show
    – Scrubbing SO much improved with touchpad
    – Navigation and especially text entry is awkward with touchpad
    – Logging into services is a PAIN
    – Siri on home screen seems about 50-50
    – Be careful where you put remote, activated it accidentally a lot. Accidentally changed channel from roku a couple times
    – A few times I picked the remote up upside down and dodn’t notice at first.
    – Interface feels like Nintendo to me
    – Bryce
    – Siri natural language hit-or-miss
    – “What did they say” not turning on captions 🙁
    – Siri skipping is great
    – Touchpad /feels/ sensitive for someone like me who is used to resting thumb on cardinals
    – Power on and IR volume control is magic on a non-CEC TV
    – Only time it crashed was during Music playback. Music is still woefully wanting–no control overshuffle, repeat, Play Next
    – Nice to see the official experiences for Hulu/Netflix/HBO, but pining for YouTube.
    – Most apps don’t show info on pull-down menu–just audio/sub options.
    – Crossy Road is great, Rayman has always befuddled me, Shadowmatic seems workable, but less tactile.
    – Plex server wasn’t upgraded, couldn’t test official app
    – Hoping Podcasts returns.
  • Early tvOS App Store sales charts show popularity of games, app prices substantially higher than iOS
    – Developer Steve Troughton-Smith accessed some web chart data to find out that at the weekend games made the most downloaded paid apps on Apple TV
    – Rayman and Crossy Road top free apps followed by HBO NOw, NAtGeo and FoxNow
    – Netflix number 32???
    – Jonas Boserup has live access with similar results
    – Slide to PLay published its own list also similar
  • Apple TV App Store Tops 1,000 Apps: Games & Video Apps Dominate, But Discovery Is A Challenge
  • BBC iPlayer app coming to Apple TV ‘in coming months’ 
  • Siri will soon control Music on the new Apple TV
  • Podcast app may yet come to Apple TV

Front Lines

  • Neil Gaiman Is Getting His Own Television Series!
    – UK’s Sky Arts TV channel is giving Neil Gaiman an anthology show called “Neil Gaiman’s Likely Stories.” The series will adapt four of Gaiman’s short stories. Production will begin at the end of November directed by Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard. 
  • Netflix’s ‘Beasts of no Nation’ already has 3 million views
    – Netflix content chief Ted Sarandos told Deadline that Beasts of No Nation has more than 3 million views after its first two weekends of availability. With an estimated average worldwide ticket price of $4.86 that would be equivalent to a worldwide gross of 14,580,000. As a comparison that’s better than “Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”
  • BFI focuses on movie classics with £5 streaming service
    – The British Film Institute will supplement its purchase and rental service BFI player with a new subscription service for £5 per month. BFI Player + has 300 movies and will add more in future. The service will highlight curated classics and comtemporary films including a weekly pick from English film critic Mark Kermode. The service will be available for desktop tablet and phone. Not, TV.

Under Surveillance

Dispatches from the Front

Hey Guys,

Your boss Dave in Cloudy Madison, WI

re: Football Stream on yahoo!

In response, to the uh oh regarding the numbers Yahoo reported keep in mind (full disclaimer that I’m a Packers fan):
– it was on early Sunday Morning when people are still sleeping off Saturday night
– It was the Jaguars vs. Bills. Not a big draw on a normal Sunday and probably a 3rd or fourth tier game
– It was from London. yawn.
– Multi tabs.. I opened a dedicated tab for this and then pulled it into a secondary monitor and maximized it. So while the browser may report other tabs open may be open, it doesn’t mean I’m not fully watching the game.
– it was auto launching on all Yahoo! Sports pages, e.g. open my fantasy football team, autolaunch even though it was already open

re: Justified
Tom, you need to watch this show! Just ask the TMS guys. IMO its not really a procedural cop show, its more of a modern Western. Having said that don’t forget the new Westworld is coming which you may want to do too.

Hope all is well,
– Dave

 

 

 

I just wanted to defend the numbers that Yahoo got for its first streaming event of an NFL game. First off the game came on at 6 AM Pacific time. This cuts out a significant portion of the audience as most people on the west coast aren’t up that early. Second, it was the Bills vs. Jaguars, two smaller market teams both of whom aren’t very good this year. Given these things I wouldn’t call Yahoo’s streaming numbers a failure, quite the opposite!

– Josh

 

 

Hi guys,

I listened to your latest episode and heard you talking about the box office deal Paranormal Activity is using for theaters and streaming.

I was amazed you didn’t know about the other thing that is happening with that movie. When we saw it over its opening weekend it had 3 ads for 1 movie in between every trailer they showed. Then as soon as the movie ended and the credits started rolling they played a longer ad. That’s right, there is an ad for a movie INSIDE of this movie! I was furious.

Love the show,
– Justin from Dallas

 

 

 

I wonder if part of the reason that Community failed on Yahoo was the Yahoo video app its self. It’s gotten better but it’s always been pretty bad. When community first started, I think the app was still annoyingly auto-playing video when you started it and made it really hard to find what you wanted.

I’m a huge fan of Community and consider it one of my top 5 favorite sitcoms of the last decade. But being on Yahoo kind of killed it for me. If it were still on TV or had gone to Netflix I would have watched it because it would have been in front of my eyeballs already

– Matt, Sterling VA

 

 

 

Hi, Brian and Tom!

In episode 93 you discussed the story about Vice buying TV stations overseas and partnering with current content providers here in the States. Over the summer, I attended a book signing/Q&A with Brad Meltzer here in N. VA. During the session the question about when to expect new episodes of “Lost History”.

He said (and I’m paraphrasing) that he’s recently met with History and they were working something out. One of the issues was that H2 was going away and going to become Vice TV. History and H2 are owned by A&E which back in August 2014 struck a deal with Vice. After hearing this, I found these articles from April 2015 from The Hollywood Reporter and the New York Times confirming it, which made me sad because I like “Lost History”.

Hug and Kisses!

– Mike aka gadgetchaser

 

Links

patreon.com/cordkillers

2015 Winter Movie Draft