# Ergen: Sling TV offers growth opportunity for network broadcast affiliates



## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

As part of the Dish quarterly financials earnings call today, according to *this report* Charlie Ergen is seeking broadcast stations:



> Retrans negotiations are one aspect that Dish cites as holding up local linear broadcasts from showing up on OTT services like Sling TV, but the operator said it's willing to work with both network affiliates and owned-and-operated stations on agreements.
> 
> Ergen said that broadcasters can grow their business by taking advantage of platforms like Sling TV, which offers new, dynamic ad models that can help broadcasters get back some of the ad money they're losing to web platforms like Facebook.
> 
> Dish said it is working to get two to three more content providers added to Sling TV and then after that it will be done for a while with content deals, shifting focus toward upgrading Sling's user interface to better accommodate 80 to 100 channels.


The reality is Sling TV already has competition for CBS affiliates in the form of CBS All Access. The window exists for others so long as ABC/Disney, Fox, and NBCU either directly in their own packages or through changes at HULU don't offer live streaming of local affiliates.

In the January _The Wrap_ article *Could CW Shows Stream on CBS All Access?* the end of a CW/Netflix contract is discussed but it doesn't reflect the CBS All Access feature of live streaming of your local affiliate.

Things are evolving more rapidly in the world of streaming TV. Which of the streaming models will ultimately be more successful...

the Netflix model
the "cable-model-on-the-internet" that Sling TV represents
the network media company model that CBS All Access represents
...is unclear.


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## Wilf (Oct 15, 2008)

Different strokes for different folks. I suspect having choices will prevail for a long time. The reason the transition to streaming isn't moving faster are the corrupt politicians that are the puppets of big money that that do not want competition. When it comes to broadband, we a third world country. The last time I looked, we are about 20th in broadband quality of service. If I weren't so old, I would consider moving to Estonia or Finland <grin>, and they have really good beer.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

The bigger problem for streaming's acceptance is not just that there are different UI models, but that each app's UI is different. That's fine for those more technically inclined, not so much for 'joe sixpack'.

I've toyed with the idea of cutting the cord but then I run Netflix for these shows, Amazon for those, Hulu for others. Not to mention SlingTV, CBS All Access, and a slew of others. All with their own UI's all taking non-trivial time to load and start.

Tivo's unified search makes it easier to deal with, but they have a relatively short list of streaming services they support. No one else even comes that close.

Sent from my App Runtime for Chrome using Tapatalk


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

lparsons21 said:


> The bigger problem for streaming's acceptance is not just that there are different UI models, but that each app's UI is different. That's fine for those more technically inclined, not so much for 'joe sixpack'.
> 
> I've toyed with the idea of cutting the cord but then I run Netflix for these shows, Amazon for those, Hulu for others. Not to mention SlingTV, CBS All Access, and a slew of others. All with their own UI's all taking non-trivial time to load and start.
> 
> ...


The UI diversity is a problem. Ignoring the loading time, I don't know why all the App UI's don't have one straightforward default "My List" option on the "home page" that allows you to see what through another menu you have selected to add to that list.

That difficulty, along with having to change the decades old habit of watching whatever the channels aired this past week, has slowed my uptake.

And Crackle's UI via my Roku is driving me nuts. I cannot understand why something I did not select starts streaming when I enter the Crackle front UI. Then I struggle to stop it and find my list that I created via my computer. Oh well....


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## Wilf (Oct 15, 2008)

This is an issue that will self-fix in time. The younger generations have no issue navigating differing UI's.


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## Eddie501 (Nov 29, 2007)

Yeah, Tivo's OnePass makes it easier but I can't believe they are the only ones who have thought of this.

Ultimately, all these streaming startups seem to forget what makes Netflix so successful. No commercials and universal app support. Netflix is on everything. But want to watch Amazon on your ipad? Too bad. Want to watch Sling on your Tivo? Nope. But you literally cannot buy a streaming device that doesn't have Netflix. 

And I have tried both Sling & CBS All access. And after decades of being able to FF through commercials, I just cannot be forced to sit through all these prescription drug & car insurance commercials. Much less PAY for it. Sorry, no thanks. I know it's a source of income, but so is my subscription. Basic cable has gotten away with having their cake & eating it too, buy somehow convincing people to pay for commercials. But that's a harder sell when I'm paying the provider directly. Hulu & some of the music streaming services have proven that there are people willing to pay more for no ads. This needs to be an option for me to even consider something like CBS All access.


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## lparsons21 (Mar 4, 2006)

That's the problem in a nutshell. One box has one collection of apps, the other has a different set with Netflix, YouTube and Hulu seemingly the only ones on all.
I've got an Apple TV 4, TiVo and Amazon Fire tv as well as the tv itself being of the smart variety. Frankly the Fire TV gets the most use because it has 4K Netflix and Amazon Prime, between those two apps I'm covered well for 4K with the exception of UltraFlix which has a good selection of 4K PPV. That app is on the tv. 
Apple missed the boat with the newest Apple TV by not having 4K and so far, no Amazon Prime. TiVo does a good job of unified search with a smaller subset of streaming services but I don't think even the Bolt is offering 4K support for the streamers. And I've read that their Hulu app doesn't support the premium add ons.
Amazon is irritating in some ways. No support on Android tv other than the Sony's, nor on Apple TV for whatever business reason they can concoct.


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

I am surprised that DVR type services are not the first feature of streaming services. Years ago when SkyAngel Satellite converted to IPTV they offered rewind as part of their IPTV service. The IPTV service failed and is gone. But it should be noted that they provided (at a cost) the receiver. It was not a BYOD service.


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## Wilf (Oct 15, 2008)

Streaming is an access anytime type of service, I don't see why one would want a DVR for that. Also, most pad and laptop apps allow for a 30 sec rewind, and one can used the "slider" to easily move forward or backward as well. Roku has fast forward and backward buttons, if using your TV for viewing.


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## James Long (Apr 17, 2003)

"No DVR" only works when the content is available for streaming at any time. Any program that is "live only" is lost unless one can capture the stream on their own device. Is every program on every streamed channel immediately available for replay?


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Also, for folks with slower connections it can be more convenient to "DVR" that streamed content and watch later so that you can view a higher bitrate version than you otherwise could have watched streaming.

And for people with bandwidth caps, being able to "DVR" it means you can watch it again later without having to waste your download bandwidth again.


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## Wilf (Oct 15, 2008)

James Long said:


> "No DVR" only works when the content is available for streaming at any time. Any program that is "live only" is lost unless one can capture the stream on their own device. Is every program on every streamed channel immediately available for replay?


I am not aware of much "live only" streaming being available. I believe "CBS All Access" does have "live" streaming, but back episodes are available for streaming as well. NewsON has some live streaming, with repeats of what was streamed until the next live stream.



Stewart Vernon said:


> Also, for folks with slower connections it can be more convenient to "DVR" that streamed content and watch later so that you can view a higher bitrate version than you otherwise could have watched streaming.
> 
> And for people with bandwidth caps, being able to "DVR" it means you can watch it again later without having to waste your download bandwidth again.


I don't see how a low bitrate streaming and DVRing will turn the program material in a higher bitrate product. However, bandwidth caps are the bane of all things internet - we need to vote out the corrupt politicians and restore competition, or, alternatively, encourage municipal internet (which is also a political issue).


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## Stewart Vernon (Jan 7, 2005)

Wilf said:


> I don't see how a low bitrate streaming and DVRing will turn the program material in a higher bitrate product. However, bandwidth caps are the bane of all things internet - we need to vote out the corrupt politicians and restore competition, or, alternatively, encourage municipal internet (which is also a political issue).


Low bitrates while streaming result in poorer video... but if there was a "DVR" option to download and store, I presume it would not self-correct for the lower bitrate and would instead let you download the entire high-quality video if desired. There's stuff I can watch because my computer is up to it, but my Internet is not... so whenever possible (like iTunes) I like to be able to download a high-quality file to watch later rather than trying to stream it as I'm downloading.


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## Reaper (Jul 31, 2008)

Wilf said:


> I am not aware of much "live only" streaming being available. I believe "CBS All Access" does have "live" streaming, but back episodes are available for streaming as well. NewsON has some live streaming, with repeats of what was streamed until the next live stream.


Sling TV has some channels which are live linear stream only. The Turner family of channels are this way, with no VOD. AMC Networks channels are too, with select titles available via VOD, such as The Walking Dead.

I like what the AMC Networks backed Shudder.tv does, offering a pristine, commercial free HD "live" linear feed for free, and VOD under subscription.

I read the other day about a Roku app that offers content free that is ad supported, or commercial-free under subscription. I think that's a good model.

I recently went back to Roku because they have the most content choices. I have to be disciplined and not be lured away by slicker UIs...

I'd really like to see Sling TV add the Discovery Networks.

What I wonder is why the OTA classic TV networks don't sign up with Sling TV, like MeTV, Antenna TV, Bounce TV, Cozi TV, Decades, GetTV, Movies!, Retro Television Network, This TV, Grit, and Comet. It would surely give their advertisers more exposure. And although they're usually broadcast as sub-channels locally with low resolutions, many of these channels are available from the source in HD.


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## Beerstalker (Feb 9, 2009)

Exactly, my internet service is too slow to stream video very well other than SD. However, I do not have data caps, so with iTunes I can download my digital copy movies in 1080p to my desktop computer, then watch them on anything I want over home streaming, or by syncing the movie to the iPhone/iPad, etc. 

Same thing with DirecTV's On Demand. I can't actually watch it while it streams, it buffers way to much or just refuses to work at all, but I can tell the DVR to download the movie to the hard drive at it's highest quality, and then watch the recording later after it has downloaded fully.

I really wish that apps like Netflix, Hulu, etc could work the same way on my AppleTV4. I have 64GB of storage, I wish I could go into Netflix and tell it to download a bunch of episodes of Daredevil, or Jessica Jones, and then come back a couple days later and watch them off the internal storage in 1080p, instead of watching it streaming and having it buffer all the time, or look like VHS quality. Because of this I usually don't even bother watching Netflix at home, I just wait until I visit my parents, or my mother-in-law and watch Netflix at their houses.


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## Reaper (Jul 31, 2008)

IMHO, slow uptake isn't due to differences in UI/UX, it's because most people subscribe to just a single service. Many use Netflix or such as a _supplement _to their traditional pay TV service. Others "cut the cord" to save money, and probably think it doesn't make sense to subscribe to more than one service.

I saw a recent news story that indicated that something like 80% of households with access to streaming apps subscribe to just a single service.


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

Reaper said:


> IMHO, slow uptake isn't due to differences in UI/UX, it's because most people subscribe to just a single service. Many use Netflix or such as a _supplement _to their traditional pay TV service. Others "cut the cord" to save money, and probably think it doesn't make sense to subscribe to more than one service.
> 
> I saw a recent news story that indicated that something like 80% of households with access to streaming apps subscribe to just a single service.


Netflix is the largest. It's also true that a relatively high percentage of Netflix customers only watch movies. The problem with Netflix is that it doesn't own outright that much content and content owners are only now beginning to implement their own streaming services. We don't really know what is likely to happen. Some of the handwriting is on the wall as reflected in other threads. Here's examples.

Time Warner, which owns directly or through subsidiares a lot of content, now owns three streaming services - HBO Now, Shudder, and DramaFever. Time Warner is not the only large content owner doing this. When license renewal time comes up with Netflix, either Netflix subscribers are going have access to far, far less content or they're going to be paying a lot more.

NBCU will be launching a number of streaming sites which likely will end up with less content on HULU from NBC, USA, Syfy, Bravo, etc.

Then there's the CBS All Access model which provides lives streaming from your local TV station as well as on demand access to CBS Corporation subsidiaries produced content.

And AT&T has just announced their plans to compete with Sling TV by offering internet streaming DirecTV.

The "one streaming service" option for cord cutters is likely to be far, far less attractive by 2025 except for a relatively small group that would be similar to the relatively small group of folks who watch only OTA TV. And by 2025 it may end up costing more to get the programming you want to watch through streaming compared to cable/satellite.

For comparison, we're still in the "driving Model T Fords" period of streaming TV and not much beyond the 1908 Model T...


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## phrelin (Jan 18, 2007)

And while I wasn't looking apparently about the day I started this thread, this became available to Sling TV customers in the Chicago, Fresno-Visalia, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, Philadelphia, Raleigh-Durham, and San Francisco DMA's for $5:


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