The ShowmeTV thread

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#992430 22-Feb-2014 17:25

Behodar:
JimmyH: For a delivery platform, they could do worse than to resurrect TiVo (which they were involved with before), setting up local support and giving them an attractive Freeview PVR (which people will buy) and that they can also push content to.

I saw a quote from Simon Moutter this morning where he referred to set-box boxes as "dinosaurs". Don't hold your breath for a Tivo relaunch.

Watching it on a PC will be the killer for this.. They need a STB and / plugin for smart TVs.

Regards,

Old3eyes

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#992432 22-Feb-2014 17:30

JimmyH:
sbiddle:
JimmyH: They need a delivery platform and some content.

You're clearly unaware of the massive Auckland/Wellington/Christchurch CDN that Telecom have already built.

Yes I was unaware of it, but it wasn't actually what I was referring to.

I meant a platform in subscribers homes which makes it feasible for them to watch the content. Bearing in mind that a lot of people (me included) prefer to watch films on their TV rather than their computer, they need a way of connecting their platform to TVs. Networked mart-TV penetration is fairly low and fragmented (each manufacturer needs to push out an app), and not that many people have networked media players etc.

Some form of attractive set-top box is probably required. Hence my comment that they could do worse than to resurrect TiVo. As a capable networkable twin-tuner Freeview PVR, it would likely have wider selling appeal than a box which was just a SparkTV STB.

The Apple TV box would be a good place to start.

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Old3eyes

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#992486 22-Feb-2014 18:14

vexxxboy: it will all come down to live sport.If they can get 1-2 of the big sports, then they have a chance.

Personally not interested in sports. A good way to get varied non-sports content would win me over.

Generally known online as OpenMedia, now working for Red Hat APAC as a Technology Evangelist and Portfolio Architect. Still playing with MythTV and digital media on the side.

turb

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#992507 22-Feb-2014 18:44

I'm so glad I went for an HTPC. Rhymes with flexibilityyyyyyyy.

Interests: HTPC, Web App authoring.

JimmyH

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#992517 22-Feb-2014 19:01

BigPipeNZ:
JimmyH:
BigPipeNZ: It's truly fascinating to me how many experts on content rights and programming NZ seems to suddenly have, judging by this forum, twitter, and the comments on NBR etc

So many people seem to inside knowledge of the most intimate details of Sky's content rights holdings, Netflix's content strategy, what is, or is not, available and at what price. Amazing.

Yes, but much of the discussion can be summarised as:

"To stand a chance of competing with Sky and other options such as Netflix, they need to have a good content range, and have to find a a way to launch with enough content to entice subscribers/viewers"

Which is a fairly rational starting point.

Most of the rest is speculation about possible ways they could try and achieve this. In come cases very speculative. But interesting none the less.

that much, at least, is trivially obvious to anybody, and I'm pretty sure my buddies at TDV working on at are sensible enough to know this.

You would think so. Blindingly obvious in fact.

However, amazingly, it does seems to have escaped the people behind Quickflix, Ezyflix, and CASPA.

Benoire

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#992609 22-Feb-2014 22:54

The only way I am ever going to give up Sky is if another company, in New Zealand, was to offer Rugby, Formula 1, Hyundai A-League and the English Premier League. Whilst EPL is no longer fully with Sky, the others are and in HD and I haven't found any other suitable way to watch these.

PoHq

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#992644 23-Feb-2014 06:16

BigPipeNZ: It's truly fascinating to me how many experts on content rights and programming NZ seems to suddenly have, judging by this forum, twitter, and the comments on NBR etc

So many people seem to inside knowledge of the most intimate details of Sky's content rights holdings, Netflix's content strategy, what is, or is not, available and at what price. Amazing.

It's a discussion. A discussion on a forum no less. In a discussion on a forum people speculate and discuss potential scenarios. It wouldn't be the most exciting of places if we all replied to threads with "I'm not an expert on the matter so I can't comment"

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Jas777

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#993135 24-Feb-2014 09:22

Agree with YOU Benoire, The thing that worries me is that so called competition will not result in a reduction in price but an increase. Look at BT in the UK.

Benoire

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#993139 24-Feb-2014 09:28

I guess I don't mind how I get my sport, although I'd still want it integrated in to my media pc setup (server>client model), I do care if I have to pay more, such as with Premier League Pass, in the name of competition.

ShowmeTV either needs to be a complete replica of Sky TV in terms of live sport and the entertainment programs (HBO etc.) or simply a netflix equivalent. This also applies to cost, it must either replace Sky and be appropriately priced, or be a cheap on demand service.

I would hate for it to get some of the live sports and then leave the others untouched requiring multiple subs running into the $100s a month, especially if they where to follow the sky model of requiring a base package.

BlueShift

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#993392 24-Feb-2014 15:45

SO given the the current state of the local market:
Netflix - $12ish/month if you know enough to set it up
Quickflix $15/month need a suitable device/app
Igloo $25/month need the STB (freeish)
Sky $50-120 month depending on channels and hardware and HD and whatever. Over $100 for what I'd want from them anyway, not that I'm a subscriber.

Assuming Telecom can achieve something close to Netflix in terms of content and Quickflix in terms of accessibility, (since they've stated they want to be NZ's Netflix and that STB's are sooo last year). What do you you reckon they price the service at and by comparison, how much would you be prepared to pay?

I think Quickflix provide a reasonable service, under various content restraints, and I figure if Telecom can get better content than them, with a decent range of non-PPV stuff, that would beat the crap out of Igloo and Quickflicks. I'd be happy to pay $20-30 a month, depending.

sultanoswing

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#993510 24-Feb-2014 18:19

Plenty of content out there I'd look at for a few bucks (less than $20/month anyway), and that shouldn't be too expensive & isn't legally available streaming elsewhere at present:

1. Old TVNZ classics - stuff that's currently on Heartland
2. Kid's stuff - Rufus, Wiggles, Warner Bros. e.g. Bugs Bunny/Roadrunner et al. Also stuff Netlfix recently lost in the USA ie Nickelodeon (Dora, Diego, Wonderpets...)
3. HBO content (GoT) - OK - this would be pricey
4. A decent selection of general Netflix-style content
5. Some live sport (Tennis and Golf majors). OK - this would also be expensive.

Buzz Bumble

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#993531 24-Feb-2014 18:48

I can see a big issue coming thanks to "exclusivity" and the growing different TV content options. It's likely to mean you have to pay for multiple content providers just to watch the shows you want to watch, and a load of dross you don't. :-(

It has already started to a limited degree. Some shows only play on Sky channels, or (as with the Star Wars Clone Wars animated series) start playing on free TV and then got dropped and further seasons are only available on Sky's Cartoon Network.

Paying for specific individual shows (as per iTunes can do) would in some ways be better than a monthly "catch-all" fee, but it may well work out more expensive.

Benoire

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#993536 24-Feb-2014 18:59

I agree Buzz Bumble. We can already see that with Premier League Pass that if you want to watch live English Premier League in NZ you have to sign up to an additional service on top of Sky Sports (assuming that you want other sports).

I'll say again that we have to be aware that we may simply swap monopolies around when new providers come to the market, again like the EPL as the only way to watch live English football is now with PLP and not Sky.

What we really want are the rights holders (HBO, EPL etc.) to open their rights up to multiple companies that will bid for entire packages, not just sections... That is the only way we will truly see competition in the TV space...

sultanoswing

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#993551 24-Feb-2014 19:04

Paying for specific individual shows (as per iTunes can do) would in some ways be better than a monthly "catch-all" fee, but it may well work out more expensive.

^^^ this.

Of course the alternative to such content agglomeration is Channel BT - and this fact ought to be a solid incentive to content creators to get the distribution model right. If they continue to try to artifactually divvy the globe up into regions to maximise their cash extraction according to what the captured market will bear (can't blame them for trying in the capitalist system, of course), then they encourage people to explore alternatives.

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#993565 24-Feb-2014 19:20

Telcom's new TV venture name 'comfusing'

Two New Zealand companies with similar names to Telecom's newly announced internet television venture, ShowmeTV, say resulting consumer confusion will have "massive implications" on the growth of their businesses.

And to show the link above IS NOT MY TYPO, here's the high quality headline on NZ Herald:

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