By Richard Teasdale
TV watchers and home phone users fed up with the high fees charged by wired service providers got a comprehensive review of their options for cutting or “shaving” the cord, at the December General Meeting of DACS. Bill Saturno, the evening’s speaker and a former DACS board member, is an expert on the subject.
Bill has been a cord-cutter since the year 2000. He put the possibilities for cord-cutting into perspective by comparing the online options available in 1999 to those of today. The growth in speed of internet access has been the key change that has made cord-cutting a realistic option today. Whereas online speeds back then were typically 28 kilobits per second, today they are measured in megabits per second. In his own case of a 2-person household, he is able to get all the services he needs over a 3 megabit per second internet connection, which is cheaper than the fastest connections now available. (This saving may not work in families of 4 or 5 people, where several users may be downloading media-rich content simultaneously.)
Faster internet speeds have made many alternative services viable. It should be noted here that “cord-cutting” is a slightly misleading term, since most options rely on the use of a broadband wired internet connection. However, some wireless internet options are starting to appear.
The obvious advantage of cord-cutting is the saving of money: the average cable bill today is $100/month or more. Bill pointed out a further advantage: the opportunity to save personal time by watching TV programs when you choose, instead of when the broadcaster decides to show them. This is called time-shifted programming.
As an alternative to cutting the cord entirely, service consumers have opportunities to lower their costs by “cord shaving”, i.e. by buying less expensive bundles of services and obtaining a few desired services by other means. New options appear regularly.
Cord cutting typically involves lifestyle changes (i.e. some loss of convenience) for those who are accustomed to watching TV live. If you are the type of person who likes to watch live TV and perhaps discuss it the next day with friends and co-workers, cord cutting may not work for you. For others, there could be a trade-off between saving money and adjusting to the necessary lifestyle changes.
Another issue facing prospective cord cutters is the fact that access to local TV stations may be limited. However, some alternate service providers are starting to provide local TV.
Bill’s approach to the topic was very systematic, as he recommended a three-step process that provides a roadmap for aspiring cord-cutters to follow.
First: Define your viewing habits, i.e. identify which shows are important to you and when you want to see them, e.g. news, sports, documentaries, movies, soap operas, etc. Do you want to see them live, or is a day or two later okay?
Second: Find out where your favorite shows are offered; i.e. on which service plans. What packages or combinations of packages provide those channels? Bill presented a list of non-cable services that are available to the prospective cord-cutter. (The list may be seen via his website – see below.) He illustrated some of these options with details of Sling TV’s offering and those of some other vendors, e.g. Apple TV, Roku and Vudu.
Third: What hardware options can deliver your service selections to you? Bill ran down a long list of possibilities (again, see his website). Included was an option that many people no longer consider: an antenna. Although not workable in some areas, an antenna can be an economical and high quality solution for local TV reception. Bill mentioned the Leaf Antenna as an example. A website, www.antennaweb.org, provides information about antenna orientations which will provide the best reception.
Standalone options exist for displaying programming from your computer device to a TV screen, e.g. Apple TV, Chromecast, etc., but in many cases, this function is now built in, e.g. Smart TVs, Blu-Ray DVD players, etc.
After the break, Bill answered a number of questions from the audience. A number of points emerged.
Alternative sources of programming typically involve no contracts and, in many cases, the service can be put on hold, at no charge, when the customer is not going to use it for a while.
DVDs can be borrowed for free from local libraries. In addition, some libraries, e.g.
Danbury Library, have Roku devices and iPads available for borrowing. YouTube also has a lot of media content available for free.
Netflix has a physical DVD option (for an extra charge).
Finding particular content you want – Tivo, Roku, and (soon) Apple TV have search features for locating specific content. The website, www.canistream.it, provides information about which services carry specific TV programs and movies.
Cord-shavers can try to negotiate a lower price from the cable company. Sometimes service providers would prefer to accept lower revenue over losing you as a customer.
The FCC has recently changed the rules regarding set-top boxes, to require cable providers to allow them from third-party suppliers. These will probably result in some savings for cable customers but Bill estimated it will be two years before they appear on the market. This and other technological changes are leading towards cable companies becoming just internet providers, a trend which they are fighting.
Bill’s alternative to landline phone service is to be a 100% cellular phone user. He explained how he was formerly a user of conventional phone service because it used to be immune to power outages. This is no longer the case.
Many internet-based alternatives to conventional phones are now available, e.g. Google Hangouts provides free domestic calls. Other examples are Ooma and Ting (recommended by Bill).
Home security systems, traditionally based on landline phone service, now commonly use a cellphone line for either the primary or backup connection. However, a member of the audience cautioned against the use of cellphone-based systems (including medical alert systems) if the cellular service is not of high quality.
Finally, Bill mentioned that he would be happy to give advice to people looking to cut the cord.
Bill Saturno’s presentation slides may be seen by going to www.promodog.com and clicking on Cord Cutting.