Sky blames piracy for lost customers. Sky: it's time to wake up and smell the coffee.

Forums › Sky, Neon, Lightbox › Sky blames piracy for lost customers. Sky: it's time to wake up and smell the coffee.

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#1870061 21-Sep-2017 10:44

Dratsab:

I'm struggling a little with this concept. How does Sky spending subscription money to make promotional adverts about themselves, and upcoming programming, subsidise the subscription viewers pay? Are the programming adverts made by the content sellers who in turn pay Sky to show them?

To let you know about shows that are on and therefore entice you to watch them and serve up even more advertising, just like promos on FTA work. Promotional ads are pretty much the same, like Melody telling us that they have the Sky Perks app, which in theory increasing the value proposition for being a Sky customer, or some guy rambling on about being a Sports customer helps the grassroots of the game. And then there are the times when paid advertising isn't allowed (Sunday mornings, religious holidays) when they need to fill the void with something.

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Rikkitic

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#1870103 21-Sep-2017 11:10

stinger:

Dratsab:

I'm struggling a little with this concept. How does Sky spending subscription money to make promotional adverts about themselves, and upcoming programming, subsidise the subscription viewers pay? Are the programming adverts made by the content sellers who in turn pay Sky to show them?

To let you know about shows that are on and therefore entice you to watch them and serve up even more advertising, just like promos on FTA work. Promotional ads are pretty much the same, like Melody telling us that they have the Sky Perks app, which in theory increasing the value proposition for being a Sky customer, or some guy rambling on about being a Sports customer helps the grassroots of the game. And then there are the times when paid advertising isn't allowed (Sunday mornings, religious holidays) when they need to fill the void with something.

Here is an original idea. Try filling the void with some actual programming!

Plesse igmore amd axxept applogies in adbance fir anu typos

Oblivian

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#1874110 28-Sep-2017 13:56

Someone been reading these threads? :)

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/97333437/sky-tvs-exodus-tough-to-stop-but-a-fresh-attitude-could-slow-it-down

tdgeek

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#1874115 28-Sep-2017 14:01

Oblivian:

Someone been reading these threads? :)

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/97333437/sky-tvs-exodus-tough-to-stop-but-a-fresh-attitude-could-slow-it-down

Read it, nothing new. Numbers still the same, Sky can't drop to Netflix price, move along, nothing to see here

Oblivian

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#1874119 28-Sep-2017 14:04

tdgeek:

Oblivian:

Someone been reading these threads? :)

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/97333437/sky-tvs-exodus-tough-to-stop-but-a-fresh-attitude-could-slow-it-down

Read it, nothing new. Numbers still the same, Sky can't drop to Netflix price, move along, nothing to see here

I was more referring to the clearing up of apparent rights cost/subscriber etc. Seems to be similar to what was talked about many a page back.

tdgeek

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#1874129 28-Sep-2017 14:22

Oblivian:

tdgeek:

Oblivian:

Someone been reading these threads? :)

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/industries/97333437/sky-tvs-exodus-tough-to-stop-but-a-fresh-attitude-could-slow-it-down

Read it, nothing new. Numbers still the same, Sky can't drop to Netflix price, move along, nothing to see here

I was more referring to the clearing up of apparent rights cost/subscriber etc. Seems to be similar to what was talked about many a page back.

I didnt see any of that, and just re read it now too. What do you mean exactly. To me, in short, they can improve the flexibility of services, but they are limited in how much extra value they can offer at no extra charge.

Plus,

Even if Sky decided to make no profit, it would still need to charge an average of nearly $64 a month – more than four times the price of Netflix or Lightbox.

Because of Sky Sports, Sky spends roughly $38 a month per customer on content.

People arent moving to alternative viewing, they are removing their viewing to get different viewing at cheap as chip prices. Foregoing what they had been paying money for JUST to save money. Bit hard to complete against that fallacy

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#1874140 28-Sep-2017 14:35

Maybe if Sky fired most of their lawyers, and stopped with the frivolous lawsuits, they could save some money.

It would have the added bonus of reducing bad optics

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=optic

JimmyH

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#1874571 29-Sep-2017 10:26

tdgeek:

People arent moving to alternative viewing, they are removing their viewing to get different viewing at cheap as chip prices. Foregoing what they had been paying money for JUST to save money. Bit hard to complete against that fallacy

It isn't just to save money, although that is a big driver for many. I'm enjoying Lightbox, and will shortly be adding Netflix (which I have been enjoying while staying with friends). As well as substantial cost savings it's also about:

entertainment without those god-awful interminable ad/promo breaks being shoved into the middle of shows; and
smooth multi-room experience (I can watch it on the living room TV, the bedroom TV, the laptop etc) without the extra monthly fees, wiring and hassles of Sky's clunky multi-room.

Plus, one of the attractions of Sky was that with no DRM on the analog outputs I could stream the STB around my house across my LAN. The DRM they have pointlessly applied to the new decoder broke that element of the value proposition as well. Their DRM is a pointless value detraction -it's now no more hassle to record something off Lightbox/Netflix than Sky should I want to do so, and it's far easier to play them in multiple rooms than Sky since Sky's DRM broke that functionality for my equipment.

The ads/promos issue is a big one for many, and for me it's actually more important than the price difference. Even if the Netflix/Lightbox range is smaller, there is still plenty there, and the absence of ads, promos, pop-up banners, and shouty "accelerated flow" promos over the credits mean that the viewing experience is vastly more enjoyable.

Fundamentally, the only compelling reasons to retain Sky now are if you are a sport fan, and/or if you are a rural user without good broadband/terrestrial coverage.

I thought (unusually for Stuff) that the recent article was a good one, that summed up the issues quite well. Sky's current business model is obsolete and an evolutionary dead end. If they don't/can't change it, they will decline and die.

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#1874602 29-Sep-2017 11:09

JimmyH:

Fundamentally, the only compelling reasons to retain Sky now are if you are a sport fan....

Hasn't that always been the case? Beside Sports, is there any other content on Sky that is worth the entry price that can't be gotten through other providers?

tdgeek

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#1874609 29-Sep-2017 11:12

JimmyH:

tdgeek:

People arent moving to alternative viewing, they are removing their viewing to get different viewing at cheap as chip prices. Foregoing what they had been paying money for JUST to save money. Bit hard to complete against that fallacy

It isn't just to save money, although that is a big driver for many. I'm enjoying Lightbox, and will shortly be adding Netflix (which I have been enjoying while staying with friends). As well as substantial cost savings it's also about:

entertainment without those god-awful interminable ad/promo breaks being shoved into the middle of shows; and
smooth multi-room experience (I can watch it on the living room TV, the bedroom TV, the laptop etc) without the extra monthly fees, wiring and hassles of Sky's clunky multi-room.
Plus, one of the attractions of Sky was that with no DRM on the analog outputs I could stream the STB around my house across my LAN. The DRM they have pointlessly applied to the new decoder broke that element of the value proposition as well. Their DRM is a pointless value detraction -it's now no more hassle to record something off Lightbox/Netflix than Sky should I want to do so, and it's far easier to play them in multiple rooms than Sky since Sky's DRM broke that functionality for my equipment.

The ads/promos issue is a big one for many, and for me it's actually more important than the price difference. Even if the Netflix/Lightbox range is smaller, there is still plenty there, and the absence of ads, promos, pop-up banners, and shouty "accelerated flow" promos over the credits mean that the viewing experience is vastly more enjoyable.

Fundamentally, the only compelling reasons to retain Sky now are if you are a sport fan, and/or if you are a rural user without good broadband/terrestrial coverage.

I thought (unusually for Stuff) that the recent article was a good one, that summed up the issues quite well. Sky's current business model is obsolete and an evolutionary dead end. If they don't/can't change it, they will decline and die.

I dont bother with ads I FF past them, rarely watch anything live. Same on FTA

I agree, the only reason to Sky is sport or rural, or unless the family enjoys the wide range of genres on Basic. Its a bit of a mess on multiple SVOD looking for stuff thats not a series.

Sky can't do bugger all right now. They will move stuff to OD as the article showed, and one day they will alter the options and pricing.

Whats obsolete though? The billing model or that its linear?

tdgeek

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#1874611 29-Sep-2017 11:14

Senecio:

JimmyH:

Fundamentally, the only compelling reasons to retain Sky now are if you are a sport fan....

Hasn't that always been the case? Beside Sports, is there any other content on Sky that is worth the entry price that can't be gotten through other providers?

Precisely. I agree, the only reason to Sky is sport or rural, or unless the family enjoys the wide range of genres on Basic. Its a bit of a mess on multiple SVOD looking for stuff thats not a series.

If Basic was combined with Neon for $20, thats a nice option that may well happen one day not too far away. Plus Sport

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#1874664 29-Sep-2017 12:45

Senecio:
JimmyH:

Fundamentally, the only compelling reasons to retain Sky now are if you are a sport fan....

Hasn't that always been the case? Beside Sports, is there any other content on Sky that is worth the entry price that can't be gotten through other providers?

Sky provided wider range content then Freeview, now there's a way of increasing that content range without going through Sky, which is also presented with no adds, I enjoyed content on Zone channel RIP, but not the promos during programs

ockel

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#1874668 29-Sep-2017 12:49

rugrat:
Senecio:

JimmyH:

Fundamentally, the only compelling reasons to retain Sky now are if you are a sport fan....

Hasn't that always been the case? Beside Sports, is there any other content on Sky that is worth the entry price that can't be gotten through other providers?

Sky provided wider range content then Freeview, now there's a way of increasing that content range without going through Sky, which is also presented with no adds, I enjoyed content on Zone channel RIP, but not the promos during programs

Ironic isnt it, that Sky shuts down The Zone and then signs the DC Universe content. Wouldve looked much better on The Zone in HD than on The Box in SD.

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#1874905 29-Sep-2017 18:52

tdgeek:

Whats obsolete though? The billing model or that its linear?

As per my previous posts it's a few things, including:

their distribution (satellite is expensive, fixed (limited) capacity, and the costs don't scale if customer numbers dip
their infrastructure model (dish/decoder installs/repairs cost a bundle and tie up a lot of capital)
their equipment (eg decoders being rolled out in 2017 are obsolete before they even arrive - no 4K, no HDR, tiny hard drives etc), and
their linearity (a whole bunch of what is on the channels can't be found on the on demand library if you miss it)

tdgeek

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#1874974 29-Sep-2017 22:33

JimmyH:

tdgeek:

Whats obsolete though? The billing model or that its linear?

As per my previous posts it's a few things, including:

their distribution (satellite is expensive, fixed (limited) capacity, and the costs don't scale if customer numbers dip
their infrastructure model (dish/decoder installs/repairs cost a bundle and tie up a lot of capital)
their equipment (eg decoders being rolled out in 2017 are obsolete before they even arrive - no 4K, no HDR, tiny hard drives etc), and
their linearity (a whole bunch of what is on the channels can't be found on the on demand library if you miss it)

While I will counter you, I also agree.

1. Satellite your correct. The costs can scale nicely if numbers increase, although in a small country that is limited.

2. It does. Dishes are $400. At any one time Sky has 800,000 subscribers, so say one million dishes at $400 capitalised. Let alone installs which on deals are free

3. I love the MySky. My old plasma is awesome, I have no need for HDR/4k, yet

4.I dont use linear. I watch what I want when I want. Recording or OD is the same

Short term they cant do much. Add more features and convenience at same cost, = added value. Thats ok

Seperate Basic and Sports. Neon a bit cheaper. They are heading towards a full OD alternative to linear, and multi access. But you need to remember, Sky is not NF or LB, unless Neon and Basic are seperated from sport subsidy, then they are.

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