How things have changed

[Jimbo]

My ISP dropped data caps almost 3 years ago. A couple of months back we got an email notifying us they were replacing their cable with fiber and just last week I saw the crew up on the road about a mile from me so they are in fact already working on it. Onward and upward.

So, it will be about 6 months before they will be active in your area.
As a General rule.

 

[AZ.]

While leaving the grocery store today, I passed the Math Tax machine and was shocked. Mega now costs $5? Wasn't it $2? Who pays that?

I heard that it was going up few months ago.....Dont see myself ever buying one at that price.

 

[ncted]

While leaving the grocery store today, I passed the Math Tax machine and was shocked. Mega now costs $5? Wasn't it $2? Who pays that?

The people who run the games know that people want to play for larger jackpots. Mega used to be $1 while PowerBall was $2. Then Mega went to $2, and now $5. The bigger the jackpot, the more people play because people don't make smart decisions.

 

[Bruce]

While leaving the grocery store today, I passed the Math Tax machine and was shocked. Mega now costs $5? Wasn't it $2? Who pays that?

Stupid people.

There is only one way to make money, invest, every month, keep putting money in a investment account, roughly $300-500 a month, do that for 30 years.

While there is no guarantees, better than the damn lottery.

 

[navychop]

Sadly, from my experience, this is rarely followed

 

[MikeD-C05]

Suckers that think they are going to win.

Stupid Tax is what we call it. The poorest people seem to pay that tax over and over down here in Texas.

 

[FTA4PA]

My ISP dropped data caps almost 3 years ago. A couple of months back we got an email notifying us they were replacing their cable with fiber and just last week I saw the crew up on the road about a mile from me so they are in fact already working on it. Onward and upward.

When we got our cable internet installed about two years ago and ditched Verizon DSL ( ) the cable company tech said they would be upgrading to fiber here as well in the future. Soon please!

 

[Bruce]

The Gauge for June is released, Nielsen reported a bigger increase for streaming over Broadcast and Cable combined-

Streaming Extends Gains Over Broadcast and Cable With 46% of TV Viewing in June

The category's 46% share of TV was driven by Netflix and a seasonal boost in viewing from school-aged audiences, according to Nielsen

www.yahoo.com

 

[Jimbo]

Stupid people.

There is only one way to make money, invest, every month, keep putting money in a investment account, roughly $300-500 a month, do that for 30 years.

While there is no guarantees, better than the damn lottery.

Right along with going to the Casino ...

If I have Money I want to Give Away, I can find much better ways to do it.

 

[navychop]

Earlier this year we vacationed with relatives who loved going to floating casinos- err, "Cruise Ships."

 

[savarese04]

Earlier this year we vacationed with relatives who loved going to floating casinos- err, "Cruise Ships."

cruise ships are actually a super cheap (and easy) way to travel.....if you stay out of the casino.

 

[TheKrell]

cruise ships are actually a super cheap (and easy) way to travel.

If you're a stowaway! My 5 night cruise to Bermuda is costing me a small fortune. Then there are add-ons like Internet that are outrageously overpriced.

 

[llokey]

The Gauge for June is released, Nielsen reported a bigger increase for streaming over Broadcast and Cable combined-

View attachment 183722

Streaming Extends Gains Over Broadcast and Cable With 46% of TV Viewing in June

The category's 46% share of TV was driven by Netflix and a seasonal boost in viewing from school-aged audiences, according to Nielsen

www.yahoo.com

Two questions: 1) Where does YTTV and all of the other streaming cable-like services fit into this graphic and 2) What is Other that is so significant?

 

[Bruce]

Two questions: 1) Where does YTTV and all of the other streaming cable-like services fit into this graphic

YTTV ( and the rest) is actually lumped in with cable and broadcast, since it is the same channels, Broadcast via a MVPD and vMVPD counts as broadcast, not cable or streaming, Cable via a MVPD and vMVPD counts as cable not streaming.

2) What is Other that is so significant?

here- the "other" category represents all television usage not classified as Broadcast, Cable, or Streaming. This includes a variety of unmeasured sources, like unmeasured Video on Demand (VOD), audio streaming, gaming, and DVD playback

 

[Bruce]

The Gauge for June is released, Nielsen reported a bigger increase for streaming over Broadcast and Cable combined-

View attachment 183722

Streaming Extends Gains Over Broadcast and Cable With 46% of TV Viewing in June

The category's 46% share of TV was driven by Netflix and a seasonal boost in viewing from school-aged audiences, according to Nielsen

www.yahoo.com

From the above-

From October 2024 to May 2025 , basically the complete Traditional TV season, Broadcast went from 24 to 20.1, a drop of 3.9

Same timeframe, Cable went from 26.3 to 24.1, a drop of 2.2

Both combined, had a bigger drop, 6.1, than the gain streaming made, +4.3, during the TV Season.

What that means, less and less seem to care about Traditional TV.

That is what happens when you produce less new programming, gives people another reason why they leave Paid Live TV.

 

[Ronnie-]

Right along with going to the Casino ...

If I have Money I want to Give Away, I can find much better ways to do it.

I do enjoy going to casinos, but not as a way to "make money" as that is rarely the case. Last year was an exception for me.

Its stress relief for me, I take what I am willing to lose, and quit at or even before that.

Tons of perks comped (or rather prepaid lol) that are nice to get.

And yes, I COULD put this money into my investment accounts along with what I already do, but life is short, and you might as well enjoy at least a small part of it while you are able.

 

[telstar_1]

States have been seduced by the siren song of "easy revenue" ever since they started lotteries back in the 70s. Now it's video gambling everywhere and sports betting on your phone.

 

[DS0816]

Stupid people.

There is only one way to make money, invest, every month, keep putting money in a investment account, roughly $300-500 a month, do that for 30 years.

While there is no guarantees, better than the damn lottery.

Many people don't save $300 to $500 per month—which is the equivalent over 30 years of $108,000 to $180,000 (prior to any interest)—because they don't have the income to do so.

Putting some money into the Lotto—especially a multistate one—has such people figuring, "Someone has to win. It can be me."

 

[dishdude]

And yes, I COULD put this money into my investment accounts along with what I already do, but life is short, and you might as well enjoy at least a small part of it while you are able.

Exactly, you have to save for retirement but you also need to live and enjoy life. You can't take it with you and traveling when you're 80 doesn't sound too fun. Like everything in life, it's a balance.

 

[Bruce]

Many people don't save $300 to $500 per month—which is the equivalent over 30 years of $108,000 to $180,000 (prior to any interest)—because they don't have the income to do so.

Again, how much do they spend on Starbucks per day, breakfast out, instead of eating at home.

Do they pack a lunch or go out, how about dinner, make it at home, or go out/order door dash/etc, etc.

If they did Starbucks everyday, that is about $10 a day with tip, in a 30 day month, $300 alone right there.

These are all the thing we did, made coffee at home, along with breakfast, pack a lunch, made dinner at home, never bought cars we could not afford, or too big of a house.

Those little things allowed us to save and start up a investment account.