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AT&T Acquiring DirecTV
AT&T is acquiring DirecTV. I've been a DirecTV customer for a long time. The cost of the same services is always creeping up, but I like the service (much better than Comcast, my other "choice"). Nowadays, entertainment is distributed -- just a few years ago, Netflix was an alternative to HBO, and Hulu didn't exist. Now they are creating original programming. I simply don't want to pay for HBO, Showtime, Starz, Cinemax, Netflix, Hulu, Amazon, etc. when there is only one or two programs on each that interest me. I also tend to think the mergers & acquisitions are great for shareholders and terrible for customers. I expect price hikes & more confusing options (none of which do what I want to do). So, I'm grumbling. Your thoughts? Jun 26 14 03:27 pm Link I signed up for Directv the week it became available here in my town, 15+ years now. And I have had great service. Excellent quality video, and even better customer service. But the price---has become ridiculous for the value I am (not) getting anymore. I expect to disconnect the service next week. These days, I stream 99% of the things I watch. Between Netflix (less than $10/mo), and Hulu (free) and Amazon Prime ($99/yr) I can see everything but local broadcast news and sports shows. Which I didnt watch anyway.... Just not worth a satellite bill approaching $200/mo. Directv is what was, streaming is what is. I dont know what they can do about it....servers are cheaper than satellites... Jun 26 14 04:11 pm Link You are probably right that rates will go up if the merger happens. Seems rates always go up until you drop off and then they off cheaper "Come back" offers later (e.g. Dish Network and satellite radio both here. cough. cough.). AT&T already had U-verse in some locales that had fiber optics for TV service, so this might be for those that aren't "hard-wired" or fiber optics capable. AT&T seems to keep growing no matter how much the government tried to deregulate it or keep it from becoming a monopoly. Stockholders will most likely love it, much as those who love Adobe for their Cloud subscription roll-out even though the same stockholders may not use any of the services of the companies they invest in. I know several who have Apple stock and boast about their stock portfolios having it, but zero interest at all in owning any of their products or devices which seems ironic. They seem to feed off the gadget lemmings who are into "I must have it" so they invest in their greed to make their profits. Jun 26 14 04:23 pm Link The thing is - you don't need cable or sat tv anymore. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMZ-mmUSxN8 As for the purchase - can the existing Direct-TV satellite fleet and ground network handle multiple 4K signals or is it a batch of obsolete equipment at this point? NHK starts broadcasting in that format in a couple of weeks. then "NHK’s 8K Ultra-HDTV transmissions will kick off in 2016." Japan to start 4K TV in July 2014 http://www.live-production.tv/news/3d-4 … -2014.html ------------------------------------------------------------------ Are Young People Watching Less TV? http://www.marketingcharts.com/wp/telev … -tv-24817/ -- "youth as a whole are watching less TV – and they watch a lot less than older Americans." How to Cut the Cord and Ditch Cable Once and For All http://gizmodo.com/how-to-cut-the-cord- … 1522124125 Lessons learned after cutting the cable TV cord http://www.buffalonews.com/business/tec … d-20140216 Jun 26 14 05:01 pm Link 
Model Posts: 6639 MacMurdo - permanent station of the US, Sector claimed by New Zealand, Antarctica I remember when Directv was a baby... at the time I headed up customer service for a competitor... we sold satellite programming and handled equipment troubleshooting for the old-style big satellite dishes and Primestar - the "new and improved" 3 foot diameter dish. Well, Directv eventually acquired them... and now they are being swallowed up themselves. Jun 26 14 05:53 pm Link IMO, the problem lies in getting any of them to tell you the truth. Pretty much all of them will tell you one thing to get you to sign up and then do something entirely different. That something different will most likely be a much higher price than you were quoted. Too bad AT&T is buying Direct TV because they seem to be the biggest liars of them all. Jun 26 14 10:39 pm Link GRMACK wrote: That's me. I got several thousands of shares of Apple stock & no Apple devices (and no future interest). That's because when I invest, I'm looking for return on my investment, but when I buy a product, I'm looking for productivity / value for price / compatibility. For me, Apple products don't serve my needs, but Apple stock has done well for me (which has nearly tripled in value since I bought it). Jun 27 14 09:25 am Link I have had Directv for about 12 years and service is pretty good except for heavy rains and snow and ice. But the Cost creep is pretty close to me shutting it off. Jun 27 14 10:05 am Link I have often called DirecTV and told them that we need to reduce my monthly costs. They have always had some "promotions" available which last 6 or 12 months. When the promotions expire, the rates creep up, and I call them again. I just called them yesterday, and they managed to cut $22.00 off my monthly bill. Just sayin'. (I have a pretty elaborate home theater & whole house audio setup -- making changes is not simple for me. Otherwise, I might consider alternatives). Jun 27 14 11:41 am Link Stephen Fletcher wrote: The packaging for this (NeverWet) in Home Depot suggests satellite dishes are a prime application. (should solve the snow and ice problem) Jun 27 14 12:55 pm Link Looknsee Photography wrote: You are correct. Higher cost and fewer choices. The greed of stockholders is to be blamed for this. Where ever you look, mergers are reducing our choices and increasing our costs. Look at the airlines and oil companies, for instance. Where are Teddy Roosevelt and the trust-busters when you need them... Jun 27 14 06:07 pm Link Frank Lewis Photography wrote: Well, I'm not sure I agree. Companies have to continue to grow -- when they tread water, they lose ground & eventually die. One way to grow is to diversify, acquire, merge, and so forth. It's more of a survival prospect than an act of greed. Jun 28 14 10:02 am Link rfordphotos wrote: You know, you can use an antenna to watch broadcast tv. I just connected 4' of plain wire to the center of the antenna input on the TV, and taped it to the wall. I get all the local stations. Jun 28 14 12:57 pm Link Dream-foto wrote: My home is in the "shadow" of Mt. Diablo- it blocks all the SF/Oak stations signals. I can get them, but not clear enough to watch. And I am ~just far enough from Sacramento and the valley to only get weak signals from them as well. When I finally talked my dad out of his on-air antenna, he had a big monster up on the roof on a 50 foot pole....ugly as sin and didnt work anyway.... Jun 28 14 01:09 pm Link Yeah, I live downtown in Portland, and when I moved in, there was a one-story building behind me, so pointing my satellite antenna over it was no big problem. A few years ago, that building was torn down, and a new 7 story building took its place, totally blocking my line of sight. The builders wanted / needed to glom half of my tiny back yard for scaffolding. I negotiated with them -- they can tear apart my back yard (for 18 months) in return for permission to put my dish on their roof. For those 18 months, I had to do Comcast (and hated them), but once the building was done, my dish was put on their roof. It's at the hairy limit of distance between the dish & the receivers, and it tends to pass tests marginally, but it's been fine. However, I'm looking to a future where DirecTV will deliver their content over the Internet. Jun 28 14 03:29 pm Link |
