New shutdown notice, the 'Voom' screen:

calikarim said:
Voom....BESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSST!
Right on, calikarim! Forget TV after this. We bought our Sony HDTV only for Voom. Before Voom all we had was analog cable on an old color set. There are no choices out there anymore for those who want quality, commercial-free, HDTV programming!

The only good news is I will save the $95 a month I was sending to Voom. But I suspect a lot of that will start going to support my local independent cinema from now on. Forget TV. Maybe we can sell our 6-month-old Sony HDTV to somebody who will settle for HD-lite, and we can recoup some of our inve$tment. :no
 
calikarim said:
22,000 subscribers ... for the last four months
They started those four months with what should have been at least 30,000 (and had a confirm reported 26,000 over six months ago). 40k is the last confirmed and reported figure. Try not to annoy 18,000 plus people by not including them in the count. (Unless you think only 22k of the 40k are annoyed at losing Voom.) :rolleyes:

JL
 
calikarim said:
Voom is the greatest thing to happen to Television since Color Tv. But what is more impressive is us 22,000 subscribers that despite the horrible way that Cablevsion tortured us for the last four months, still put up with all the rollercoaster yes, no in business out of business, dvr out, not out, 70 hd channels , 300 sd channels, satellite sold echostar. This is the most unprofessional bunch of a**holes except for Chuck Dolan who tried. Cablevision has lost lot of creditibility.. THIS IS NOT NOT THE WAY TO TREAT CUSTOMERS. WE ARE THE BESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSST!

I dont' care if they treat me like sh*t, as long as in the end i get what i want. Voom had what i wanted, and now no other services HD compares. I don't care about the voom exclusives, HDNET, INHD i just want the normal HD channels (Discovery, TNT, ESPN, HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, Stars, TMC, Universal HD). If i can find one company that offers those i'm there, but they do not exist (well for me). ARGH!!!
 
calikarim said:
But what is more impressive is us 22,000 subscribers that despite ....

Shouldn't that be 46,000 subscribers :)

BTW I read the message screen because it would have announcements about free previews, important programming, and programming info on the exclusives.

If this is the last message everyone would have read it within the last two weeks of service. What really surprises me is that ch.999 and 700 still have promos on it rather than shutdown information.

I think the exclusives that can make it on their own are Monsters-HD, WorldSport, Animania, and HDNews. In appearance it looks like much more money was put into creating these channels than the rest, except for Rush which looks like money was pumped in to make it really good.

Since Headline News no longer does headline news from 7pm-11pm ET the only source for that type of programming is HDN. Some of the Rush stuff can be incorporated into WorldSport. Equator-HD would be a poor choice due to competitors PBS-HDTV and Discovery-HD. Much of the Equator stuff first ran, and some of it still runs ocasionally, on PBS-HDTV.

Although I like Auction, Gallery, and Lab (formerly MOOV) they are such niche channels I don't think they could make it on their own. I'll have to record hours of Tank before it goes dark :(
 
davekendra said:
I've heard the news yesterday evening and it just plain bums me out. What happens with the 1 or 2 possibly viable VOOM exclusive HD channels that could draw enough people to possibly be viable, like WorldSport, Equator, & HDNews? I watched those 3 for about 95% of the total time I watched any of the other VOOM channels. Some were just never remotely economically viable, but simply experimental. Perhaps all of them. Is there a snowball's chance in H-E-double hockey sticks that WorldSport coverage of Spanish Soccer & La Liga could get picked up by someone else in North America? Frankly, it was the only HD coverage of Spanish soccer anywhere in the world. No European carriers offered HD coverage of games, and no north American providers offered soccer in Europe in HD. I would personally be willing to drop all of VOOM in a heartbeat, IF I could get my locals in high-def and WorldSport soccer every year in HD. It's sad, but that's my opinion. I just doubt it's going to happen anytime soon. :(
I get worldsport and equator but what makes yuou think hdnews would be viable for any other provider to grab
 
Phaetos said:
Problem with that is, most people don't read that screen anyway. I know I don't. I just hit the buttons to get the channel listing and pay no attention whatsoever to the message screen. The real question is how many people will be completely surprised May 1 to realize they have no service and start trying to call tech support to find no one there either.
Guess I have to vouch for Phaetos' observation, as I switched on about an hour ago and did some program planning before coming here to try to catch up...and I didn't notice it...had to go back in and check, but sadly it's there on my set too. :no

I hope VoOm will also be sending email or snail mail or something for the folks who don't live on this forum. Vicki
 
djjsin said:
I dont' care if they treat me like sh*t, as long as in the end i get what i want. Voom had what i wanted, and now no other services HD compares. I don't care about the voom exclusives, HDNET, INHD i just want the normal HD channels (Discovery, TNT, ESPN, HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, Stars, TMC, Universal HD). If i can find one company that offers those i'm there, but they do not exist (well for me). ARGH!!!

oh geez you could get those channels on dishnet minus starz/cinemax/tmc/universal.
 
calikarim said:
Voom is the greatest thing to happen to Television since Color Tv. But what is more impressive is us 22,000 subscribers that despite the horrible way that Cablevsion tortured us for the last four months, still put up with all the rollercoaster yes, no in business out of business, dvr out, not out, 70 hd channels , 300 sd channels, satellite sold echostar. This is the most unprofessional bunch of a**holes except for Chuck Dolan who tried. Cablevision has lost lot of creditibility.. THIS IS NOT NOT THE WAY TO TREAT CUSTOMERS. WE ARE THE BESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSST!
What do you mean expect for Chuck, he voted to shut VOOM down. He is responsible for the way we were treated just as much as anyone else. Everyone talks about him like he is a god. He isn't any better than anyone else that voted in the 15-0 vote.

Sorry, but I call em like I see em. He treated loyal viewers like crap. Not even a letter.
 
1080iBeVuMin said:
Right on, calikarim! Forget TV after this. We bought our Sony HDTV only for Voom. Before Voom all we had was analog cable on an old color set. There are no choices out there anymore for those who want quality, commercial-free, HDTV programming!

The only good news is I will save the $95 a month I was sending to Voom. But I suspect a lot of that will start going to support my local independent cinema from now on. Forget TV. Maybe we can sell our 6-month-old Sony HDTV to somebody who will settle for HD-lite, and we can recoup some of our inve$tment. :no


Hang in there. Progressive scan DVD's and i would recommend an Unconverting HD dvd player via DVI will make dvd's HD like on your Sony. Also HD DVD is coming out in 5 months of less, that is 20 weeks. We are talking high bandwidth hd, not watered down HD lite. Hang on to your Sony. Better HD days are round the corner.
 
calikarim said:
Hang in there. Progressive scan DVD's and i would recommend an Unconverting HD dvd player via DVI will make dvd's HD like on your Sony. Also HD DVD is coming out in 5 months of less, that is 20 weeks. We are talking high bandwidth hd, not watered down HD lite. Hang on to your Sony. Better HD days are round the corner.
Yes, I am sure you are right about the HD DVDs coming soon. I am just venting the loss of VOOM. This VOOM shutdown is really a big deal to me. Not as bad for others who tolerate TV commercials and run-of-the-mill programming. I will miss my commercial-free VOOM exclusives. DiscoveryHD is my only channel left, and it's not worth subscribing to an HD-lite service for only ONE channel I like.
 
The sad part of the story is that this country needed Voom. The FCC needed Voom, the US government as a whole needed Voom. As Voom upped the HD awareness and forced D*, E* and cable to really get into the HD market, more people would buy HD sets and the analog brodcast spectrum could finally be turned over and sold.

Does anyone really think D* would have made the moves they are now making if Voom hadn't been in the picture?

Most of all, we needed Voom.
 
I wonder how they intend on gettign back all the leased equipment?Anyone have a clue.
They can certainly contract with a "collection" agency to get the equipment back. Don't worry, they WILL sell your names and contact information for this purpose if that's what it comes down to. I do have to wonder what good the equipment is for. It ONLY works with VOOM (and OTA), does it not ??

And for those who have wishful thinking that they're letting you keep the equipment because a white knight is going to come along and save the day, you're probably grasping at straws....

Also if i were an employee of voom and i knew my job was over at end of the month i think i would walk out now and start looking for a new job.
My guess: Severance package. If you ride it out 'til the end, you get back vacation pay, sick and personal days, time-of-service pay (standard is one week for every year employed .... granted, in VOOM's case it can't be much, but it's better than nothing), and in some cases, one, two, four or whatever weeks of pay "just because". If you quit NOW, you forfeit all of that. Kinda like a contract...
 
I jumped

Well the old saying aboout the fat lady singing does apply. However,The screen on my TV tells me all. Now I have VCR function with my D* as I did not have with Voom. They kept pushing the time back. Well lets see what the new provider offers in May. May(B) they might just come and pick up their stuff. It is so easy now to record my programs. I don't even have the HD package. I did request a network waiver and........... lets see what new programming comes to D* next month. Heard a new sat went up.
 
Lars said:
The sad part of the story is that this country needed Voom. The FCC needed Voom, the US government as a whole needed Voom. As Voom upped the HD awareness and forced D*, E* and cable to really get into the HD market, more people would buy HD sets and the analog brodcast spectrum could finally be turned over and sold.

Does anyone really think D* would have made the moves they are now making if Voom hadn't been in the picture?

Most of all, we needed Voom.
What moves?
 
djjsin said:
I dont' care if they treat me like sh*t, as long as in the end i get what i want. Voom had what i wanted, and now no other services HD compares. I don't care about the voom exclusives, HDNET, INHD i just want the normal HD channels (Discovery, TNT, ESPN, HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, Stars, TMC, Universal HD). If i can find one company that offers those i'm there, but they do not exist (well for me). ARGH!!!
I'm with you there most of voom21 is a worthless, except for rush,equator,and rave. I just like everything else they have to offer. To bad they're shutdown, but life goes on.
 
Vicki said:
I hope VoOm will also be sending email or snail mail or something for the folks who don't live on this forum. Vicki
I got my Email this last Tuesday and my bill for April 4th thru May 3rd in the mail on Monday. I guess I'll have to send in for a short month.
D*#n I'm going to miss this service I've had C-band, Dish, and Direct and Voom was the best service going as far as I was concerned. :(
 
Filing alleges Dolan's ally is fake

BY HARRY BERKOWITZ
STAFF WRITER

April 14, 2005

Even though the story of Voom seemed all but ended, a 43-page filing made public yesterday provides more evidence of how bizarre the battle over the satellite TV service has been between Cablevision and its chairman, Charles Dolan.

The joint filing with the Federal Communications Commission by Cablevision and satellite TV rival EchoStar Communications claims a consumer group that partnered with Dolan in trying to block the sale of Voom's sole satellite does not really exist. Also, a check of records indicates the president of the purported group -- the Association of Consumers to Preserve and Promote DBS (direct-broadcast satellite) Competition -- was tied to the former consulting firm of Voom's chief operating officer, Mickey Alpert.

Dolan and the association had told the FCC in a 53-page joint filing March 28 that Cablevision's deal to sell the satellite to EchoStar for $200 million would reduce competition and hurt consumers. Instead, they argued, Dolan should be able to buy the satellite to keep Voom alive.

Last week, the 15-member Cablevision board reconfirmed its decision to shut Voom rather than hand it over to Dolan, and this time the vote was unanimous, and included Dolan.

But that still left the requirement for Cablevision, which on March 29 disavowed Dolan's FCC filing, to elaborate on its argument that the filing should be ignored. Otherwise, Cablevision could face a lawsuit from EchoStar, which has called Dolan's filing perplexing.

Not only is Dolan's contention moot because of the Voom shutdown plan, Cablevision and EchoStar claim in their new filing, but "all available evidence strongly suggests that the association is a mere fiction, created by a single individual ... Jerome Sandler, for the sole purpose of filing the petition."

Sandler, 70, reached at his home in Rockville, Md., said, "What they say is not true," but he declined to comment on how many members the association had, or when it was formed and why.

A record in the Maryland Department of Assessments and Taxation identifies Sandler as having been the registered agent in the incorporation of Alpert & Associates. Sandler, a Voom subscriber since last May, declined to comment on that also, referring that matter to Alpert, who did not return a call.

The new filing by Cablevision and EchoStar also expands on the argument that EchoStar -- whose service Cablevision, the nation's sixth biggest cable operator, has mocked in advertisements -- should be strengthened to benefit consumers, especially in rural areas, which have been slower to gain access to high-definition television channels.

The unusual battle pitted Dolan against his chief executive son, James, a longtime opponent of Voom who signed the contract to sell the satellite.

According to the new filing, during the past six years Cablevision invested $1 billion in Jericho-based Voom, which stressed high-definition channels. But the service attracted only 40,000 customers, mainly in urban areas, and had less than $15 million in total revenue.

In contrast, EchoStar was gaining 40,000 customers every 10 days while Voom suffered "astoundingly high" customer dropout rates, suggesting a "low likelihood of viability," the filing states.

Dolan, who last month ousted three directors who had condoned the deal to sell the satellite, plans on Monday to drop three more, cutting the size of the board to 12, including nine who do not require approval by non-Dolan shareholders.

Cablevision spokesman Charles Schueler did not return a call seeking comment from the company or Dolan.
Copyright 2005 Newsday Inc.
 
i am not paying the Voom guys another dime ~ collections or whatever, they broke their 6 month deal with me:) the 4 boxes are now sitting in my closet, switched to timewarner .. got 2 hd dvr's for $7/month and they gave me 6months at $65 a 50% discount, plenty of time to see what happens next with E or D .. the picture is definitely not as good .. but they have all the regional sports, so that is good. i loved voom .. such is life.
 

Charlie Chat and Voom 21

E-mail from Voom - Official Shutdown Notice

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