Free TV-Show Streaming Hurts Online Sales, Research Finds

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As crazy as this may sound, people actually chose free streaming content over paying for it. In other news, water is wet, sky is blue, wasting money on studies like this is nothing new.

New research from Carnegie Mellon University shows that online piracy is not the only worry for TV distributors. Based on Downton Abbey streaming and sales data provided by PBS, the researchers find that free legal streams can significantly reduce download sales. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that free streaming options should be banned.
 
As crazy as this may sound, people will actually choose free streaming content over paying for it. In other news, water is wet, sky is blue, wasting money on studies like this is nothing new.

New research from Carnegie Mellon University shows that online piracy is not the only worry for TV distributors. Based on Downton Abbey streaming and sales data provided by PBS, the researchers find that free legal streams can significantly reduce download sales. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that free streaming options should be banned.

Sorry, grammar/spelling Nazi here.
 
No problem, I actually meant to say "chose" not "choose," my screw up was the word "will." ;)
 
I will pay any day of the week for quality. The amount of new media junk coming out is insane and it's all worthless. Also, it's brings down the value of everything else that's made and in turn people are getting offered less and less to work on almost everything in every region.
 
I will pay any day of the week for quality. The amount of new media junk coming out is insane and it's all worthless. Also, it's brings down the value of everything else that's made and in turn people are getting offered less and less to work on almost everything in every region.
I wouldn't say all of it's worthless. There's alot of educational and informal video's out there. I know the subject is about streaming and that can also be a lot different. What article is really saying in between the lines is they're seeing their revenue drop amungst the billions they made last year. Not to mention the advertising revenue.
What's really amazing me right now is how much material is starting to get rehashed and is from like "the dawn of the internet" and it's getting passed on as new material.
 
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How about that huge streaming thing called 'broadcasting' over the air? Doesn't that affect selling the same stuff?
 
They can stop worrying about stream since nearly every ISP is switching to caps.
 
Darn kids got it so good today. Back when I was your age they put quality shows the caliber of Stranger Things and Man In The High Castle on free TV and we could only watch one episode at a time, a week apart!
 
As crazy as this may sound, people actually chose free streaming content over paying for it. In other news, water is wet, sky is blue, wasting money on studies like this is nothing new.

New research from Carnegie Mellon University shows that online piracy is not the only worry for TV distributors. Based on Downton Abbey streaming and sales data provided by PBS, the researchers find that free legal streams can significantly reduce download sales. However, that doesn't necessarily mean that free streaming options should be banned.
Is it a waste? I mean sure it's obvious, but there are plenty on [H] that still believe that illegal downloads don't affect sales, which is essentially the same thing (legality aside), so apparently it's not obvious to a lot of people.
 
Is it a waste? I mean sure it's obvious, but there are plenty on [H] that still believe that illegal downloads don't affect sales, which is essentially the same thing (legality aside), so apparently it's not obvious to a lot of people.

I think it is obvious but the I don't care factor is pretty great. We all see value differently. We all view how people make money differently. We most certainly won't agree on what is reasonable profit for them.
 
Yes it is very easy to get the stream/video you want but there is one more thing. I was reading a story regarding Canada where they want to implement a backdoor into every software. A TV software client can be monitored easily (event without backdoors), while a classic TV can hardly be monitored - anything that I have found are some scholar articles:"Using the Phone’s Light Sensor to Detect the TV Video Stream" http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-319-47364-2_78
 
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Darn kids got it so good today. Back when I was your age they put quality shows the caliber of Stranger Things and Man In The High Castle on free TV and we could only watch one episode at a time, a week apart!
All while having to adjust the rabbit ears and horizontal hold knob. ;)
 
Darn kids got it so good today. Back when I was your age they put quality shows the caliber of Stranger Things and Man In The High Castle on free TV and we could only watch one episode at a time, a week apart!

Not exactly free. Commercials. Infact most tv shows are just filler for commercials.

Also, I worked on the man in the high castle pilot and wow, I've never seen so much money thrown everywhere in my life. I think they spend 18mil for 12 shooting days if I remember correctly.
 
Darn kids got it so good today. Back when I was your age they put quality shows the caliber of Stranger Things and Man In The High Castle on free TV and we could only watch one episode at a time, a week apart!

You're not wrong.

Dude I'm 44 and when I was growing up only people with money had cable (my grandparents). We had rabbit ears or crappy broken antennas on our roof, or whatever you got from the apartment main antenna. We're talking about 5 or 6 channels including the UHF ones. I personally did not pay for cable until I was like 24 and had a good paying job.

Kids today have instant access to THOUSANDS of decent HD shows, movies, etc. At their fingertips. They are all spoiled rotten. My nephew starts wigging out if he cannot get access to youtube to watch endless minecraft and other game videos.
 
All while having to adjust the rabbit ears and horizontal hold knob. ;)

I don't miss either. Also not all TVs were color in the 70s.

Dude I'm 44 and when I was growing up only people with money had cable (my grandparents). We had rabbit ears or crappy broken antennas on our roof, or whatever you got from the apartment main antenna. We're talking about 5 or 6 channels including the UHF ones. I personally did not pay for cable until I was like 24 and had a good paying job.

Same here (45th birthday next month). No cable till somewhere in the mid 20s.
 
I think you guys are forgetting that in the 70s there was barely any cable. I never heard of HBO until 79 or 80. Now everyone didn't have cable in the 80s, but there were some differences between now and then
  1. Most apartments had an antenna hookup, so you didn't need rabbit ears (at least I didn't)
  2. Cable really wasn't essential. Aside from MTV, I don't recall caring much about what was on Cable.
I think from the mid 90s through the mid to late aughts, cable was fairly essential. Today, it's only essential for sports junkies and cable news. Broadcast HD is best over an antenna and you can make one with some wood, screws and wire hangers (if buying one isn't your thing), so that alleviates your football issues and I assume other sports are on there as well (not a big sports fan). Youtube has essentially replaced MTV.

Finally, let's be honest, people in their mid 20s probably don't have cable.
 
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