Goodbye Directv! It's been good but......

[dalyew]

I've finally had enough with the high cost of Directv & for that matter, the entire cable/satellite service. I have switched our service to Sling TV & rely now more on our already previously subscription to Netflix & Amazon Prime Video. Because I had both before, with the addition of HBOGO, OTA channels & Hulu, I am now saving $100 per month & getting 95% of what I want to watch.

After a week of streaming all of our content & getting near bluray quality picture for most of our programming, I'm left wondering why I didn't do this earlier & save myself hundreds of dollars. I know the introduction of the Sling TV service and my Directv bill touching almost $200 per month had me looking at ways to reducing my bill, but when my wife & kids told me they hardly turned on the Directv boxes as they were using Netflix as their main source of viewing I realized I was just throwing money away each month.

Don't get me wrong, I loved Directv but I think paying over $100 per month for tv for a middle class family with other obligations is not advisable when there are cheaper alternatives now on the market, much less close to $200. I believe cable & satellite is now pricing itself as a luxury service and not yet responding to the changing viewing habits that is now here, especially by the younger 40 & under generation.

I will agree that cord cutting or shaving is not for everone but from my limited experience, it seems like a viable option for many. Let me have your feedback on this but from now on I'll be more in the IPTV section, still being a "Satellite Guy".

 

[Poke]

Yeah just depends on what you want but cord cutting could be just as expensive as having Tv Service especially when they charge any where from $7-$11 for each channel. So just do the math 10 channels could cost someone $70 bucks alone so the reality is that the Networks will always fine away to charge people only until people completely stop subscribing to their channels will they start listing to the customer. At this point with TV Service you still seem to get more for your dollar so again just depends on your needs but people will pay no matter what route they go.. But I do agree it's all way over priced for sure..

 

[mdram]

good deal, unfortunately not everyone has this option.
i would love to try streaming service, but until someone brings hi-speed internet to rural areas its not doable

 

[Tampa8]

If you are getting almost all the channels/programming you want and have the internet speed it sounds good.

 

[dalyew]

With the introduction of HBO Now, Sling Tv, Showtime offering ala carte & now ATT Uverse making a push for the cordcutters by offering 18 mbps & 45 mbps with free HBO & Amazon Prime for 12 months for $49.99 & $59.99 per mth respectively, it made me it easier for me to part ways with D*. I do believe by the end of the year we may be looking at a totally different market that will force providers like D* to look at their pricing models with a view of cutting prices or eliminating some of those "fees" they love so much. It may also suit them to lobby some of the States & Municipalities to decrease or eliminate those taxes & fees that they love to tack onto our cable & satellite bills. I believe exciting times are ahead with the customers finally winning.

 

[Jimbo]

Don't we have a "I'm going to be a Cord Cutter" Forum yet ....

Btw, I want to see how far those cord cutters get when they REALLY cut the cord ...
Cord cutting means No Cords .

The majority of people get thier internet thru a CORD .... without the internet, Cord Cutting would not even be a known sentence.

Sorry guys but it just bugs me when people come to a forum for the service that they HAVE and proclaim they are going elsewhere, wether its cord cutting or just moving on to a different service.
You would think they might want to say something it the forum they are moving too, but ya never know ...
If I leave D*, I won't be proclaiming that I am leaving in the D* forum.

 

[ChadT41]

Although I agree with a lot of your points Jimbo, the Cord Cutting is not necessarily talking about the physical cords, but STB cables to the TV, and high bills that are attached to them. I am far off from leaving Dish, and I do not try and talk my brother out of DTV. Folks really should threat less, and do more. Maybe then we would see some changes in the market. For the last 10 years, all I have heard from consumers is how dissatisfied they are, and one day they're gonna handle it.... But it just feels like talk. I remember my grandpa, when I was growing up. When something needed done, he did it. He didn't talk about it, he didn't cry about it. He just did it. What happened to those folks?

 

[larry55]

I know cable and satellite may cost more than we want to pay . Since we both retired now we enjoy Directv it our form of entertainment since we don't ever go to the movies anymore. We both love sports .

 

[david_gilbert]

my 2 year contract is up next month and I am seriously considering killing DTV. we pay 100.00 a month for a genie, 2 minis and a HR24. the 2 minis and the HR24 have not been watched in months. Everything we watch in the den on the Genie can be streamed within a day or so of air, plus we have Netflix and Amazon Prime already so no added expense there. I also have my parent's login so I can have access to stream HBO/SHO/Disney/whatever else even if I cancel.

The biggest hurdle for many around here is data caps. My mom has a 450gb cap and with my 2 daughters there watching Netflix all day she keeps going over and having to pay extra each month. My house has business class cable so no caps, but at 300.00 a month(my office pays for this) it is not an option for most.

 

[Blackloz]

When I think of cord cutting myself I think of just having OTA with say a TiVo Romeo and a good BD player(for physical media not streaming) and that's it. No monthly TV service of any kind, streaming or otherwise

 

[TheRatPatrol]

When I think of cord cutting myself I think of just having OTA with say a TiVo Romeo and a good BD player(for physical media not streaming) and that's it. No monthly TV service of any kind, streaming or otherwise

Don't you still need the internet to get guide data, or can you still get it over a phone line?

 

[osu1991]

yes it requires internet for the Roamio guide

 

[Blackloz]

I'd still run internet to them. I just wouldn't pay a monthly subscription for any TV services. I'd probably also pay the TiVo lifetime fee all at once.

 

[dalyew]

Although I agree with a lot of your points Jimbo, the Cord Cutting is not necessarily talking about the physical cords, but STB cables to the TV, and high bills that are attached to them. I am far off from leaving Dish, and I do not try and talk my brother out of DTV. Folks really should threat less, and do more. Maybe then we would see some changes in the market. For the last 10 years, all I have heard from consumers is how dissatisfied they are, and one day they're gonna handle it.... But it just feels like talk. I remember my grandpa, when I was growing up. When something needed done, he did it. He didn't talk about it, he didn't cry about it. He just did it. What happened to those folks?

Couldn't have said it better! I too was tired of the talk & have voted with my money. Why do that & hide that info in some obscure forum? I don't like when people come here to complain about Dish unless they have or looking to sign up with D*, but I have always appreciated hearing from those who are leaving or thinking of leaving. If I followed Jimbo's logic I would have to scour the other forums looking for their point of view.

 

[ChadT41]

Point of views and threatening to leave are two seperate things. POVs help tremendously, but the whining that some people(not implicating anyone in particular.) is just useless.

 

[Aridon]

Sling TV and Hulu are useless to me. I refuse to be forced to watch commercials and giving up my DVR for sub quality streams (sling) doesn't do it for me.

Now I have thought about cutting the cord and go full torrents. We don't watch that much TV but the PIA factor is just too high for me to bother with it for all our viewing needs.

$100 a month for TV really isn't that bad. That is a ton of entertainment for very little money.

 

[ZoSo925]

I've been to all the Comdex and CES shows over the years and they all show off this wonderful digital age TV stuff, but it's still too early to see what is going on. There is too much red tape and bullsh@$ politics involved. Greedy pig companies like Scientific Atlanta are not helping either with their monopoly.

 

[Ronnie-]

for sub quality streams (sling) doesn't do it for me.

Have you tried sling? I do not currently have it but used it a few months. With my internet the quality was actually on par with sat service.

 

[ChadT41]

As proud as Charlie was of his new baby... I would expect SlingTV to only grow.

 

[Aridon]

Have you tried sling? I do not currently have it but used it a few months. With my internet the quality was actually on par with sat service.

We tried it and was not impressed with the quality at all. Sports would get blocky with movement. Not terrible with regular tv shows but its not even close to the same even on a killer connection.