CBS All Access Is Too Expensive In A Market With A Lot Of Other Choices
I liked "The Good Wife," and I really liked the first episode of "The Good Fight," the Christine Baranski spinoff.
However, it's on CBS All Access, which means no access without paying -- Hello?! -- $5.99. A month. And that's for the version with commercials. The version without is $9.99.
So, I'll watch the two freebie episodes, and then, sayonara.
I really, really do want to watch this. The thing is, there's just too much good TV all over the place that doesn't cost that. We're watching "The Man in the High Castle" now, along with "Homeland" (a little weak this season), and we'll start back up soon with "Billions."
Maybe they'll eventually sell it to Netflix or put it up on Amazon, and we'll watch it then.
In short, I think CBS made a mistake in their pricing.
But Gregg came up with a workaround: Wait till they drop all 10 episodes, then get the CBS All Access for a month and watch them all. (Or, if there's a two-week free trial period, binge-orama!)
P.S. I love Christine Baranski. I actually got to record her a few times when I was producing commercials. She's a class act and a terrific actress.
They'll crash and burn, and find out that it's easier to license such premium content to their competitors.
Why would I spend $9.99 for a CBS only access when I can spend a similar amount and get the whole Netflix/Amazon/Hulu/iTunes/Vudu library?
I R A Darth Aggie at February 23, 2017 5:57 AM
The networks are still operating in a silo. Their business model is obsolete, but they cling to it like a drowning man to a piece of driftwood.
I don't need to tune in every Thursday at 9pm to watch a show. And Neilsen ratings mean nothing.
Networks need to attract a broad audience to a program at a specific time in order to charge advertisers. Content streaming sites need only make the content available to the public. The content streamers can put niche programming in their portfolio without disrupting their mainstream programming. A broadcast network cannot. It must get as many eyes as possible on a program at a specific time. That means broadcast networks cannot put a The Man in the High Castle out there without knowing in advance that it will appeal to a broad audience. Explains why the networks shows are all bland and basically carbon copies of existing shows or retreads of past shows.
Networks view their online content sites as competition for their main delivery channel, broadcast television affiliates. The network affiliates don't want to have to compete with other network affiliates as well as their own network's Web site for the eyes of viewers.
Many major retailers have scrimped on their online sales channels to avoid cannibalizing their retail stores, losing sales to Amazon and other retail sites in the process (yes, Macy's, I'm looking at you). The networks are doing the same thing.
Broadcast network content online cannot be so cheap and readily available that you don't tune in every Thursday at 9. That's where and when they want your eyes, not on a streaming site at your convenience.
Legacy brick and mortar business models are becoming obsolete. Legacy businesses are struggling to reconcile their contractual obligations to their franchisees and affiliates with the modern online economy which encourages centralization.
Conan the Grammarian at February 23, 2017 6:40 AM
I was under the impression that the CBS All Access conduit would also include shows that would not be available anywhere else. Ah, yes.
https://www.cbs.com/all-access/?ftag=AAM6d13ff2
So, they are directly competing with their affiliates. You're right, they are in a silo, Conan.
I R A Darth Aggie at February 23, 2017 8:19 AM
A "silo" of profitability. See also: Retail, newspapers, transportation and on and on...
The broadcast experience is hardly unique. Television is torpid, but now YouTube is torpid as well. For whom, exactly, are you weeping?
Crid at February 23, 2017 8:36 AM
At least that show seems enjoyable. Star Trek: Discovery is going to be a CBS All Access exclusive too, but it's a hideous mess. They have everything but scripts primed out.
This ad sums up the state of how it is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OTRt1p5l22A
Sixclaws at February 23, 2017 8:46 AM
I weep for no one. If the broadcast networks cannot adapt to the new paradigm, they will fail. That's business.
Sometimes the paradigm shifts without a clutch and the old business models no longer work, but the company is invested so deeply in the old model that adapting to the new paradigm proves disruptive.
I merely point out the problems with their model. The broadcast affiliates paid serious money for the affiliation and are not going to surrender their territorial rights without a fight.
I once worked for a retail company facing a similar problem. The company had to develop an online sales model to keep up with the competition, but the retail store managers and division managers were concerned that online sales would cannibalize brick and mortar sales (and, by extension, their sales-based bonuses). The company found a solution to the issue and managed to keep the brick and mortar folks happy while devising a strategy to compete in the online arena.
The old business models are dead, the users just don't know it yet. Hollywood is clinging to a now-obsolete business model (opening week box office as a determinant of a movie's financial success and popularity, theaters as primary distribution points, standard pricing for all movies, etc.).
It will be interesting to see how all of this shakes out. The music, newspaper, and publishing industries are all still adjusting to the new digital distribution paradigm with some success. The biggest paradigm shift the digital distribution model offers is the reduction or outright elimination of the role of the middleman (record companies, movie theaters, brick and mortar stores, and broadcast affiliates).
Conan the Grammarian at February 23, 2017 8:59 AM
CBS is crazy. For the same price each month you can get just about every other network on Hulu. And I like that Hulu and Amazon Prime are picking up interesting shows from around the world that never would air in the U.S. otherwise.
PS: Roku was one of the best entertainment investments I ever made. There's a hell of a lot of really enjoyable stuff on YouTube (including complete old movies, which are my favorites) and they look great on my TV streamed through Roku.
Kevin at February 23, 2017 10:18 AM
I'd love to watch that show too. But I'll wait for it cause they're stupid. Love my Amazon Prime. The best subscription service I purchase. I use the free book rental each month, the music streaming that is comparable to iTunes, and the TV/movies keep me hooked. At some point if I can figure out how to have my local channels only, I'm gonna ditch cable and just use my Prime and Netflix and be done with the rest of them. Oh, and the 2-day free shipping is the bonus. Apparently I saved $500 in one year on shipping by using Prime. Don't. Judge. Me.
Oh, and uh. There's always Kodi that is, ah, accessible on your firestick. Not that y'all would use that or anything.
gooseegg at February 23, 2017 10:16 PM
"Star Trek: Discovery"
As long as their theme song isn't similar to the series-sinking excretion from "Star Trek: Enterprise" they might have a chance.
I'd be hard-pressed to find worse.
Gog_Magog_Carpet_Reclaimers at February 24, 2017 1:41 PM
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