[mythtv-users] The Death of MythTV in the US?

[Jack Trout]

On Mon, Mar 31, 2008 at 11:08 PM, Dewey Smolka <dsmolka at gmail.com> wrote:

> >  The idea that renting boxes to subscribers is a "revenue stream" is
> >  very new, and not universally accepted.
> >
> >  In the "old days" what were know as "converters" were a royal PIA to
> >  cable companies. They had to purchase them, maintain them, inventory
> >  them, tote them around town, chase after them from subs who had moved,
> >  prevent subs from breaking into them and generally have to deal with
> >  them.
>
> I suspect you're right about them 'olden days', and I also suspect
> you're right about the 'business types'.
>
> I really don't know what converter boxes cost wholesale, but I do try
> to follow prices. I know that I bought the exact same modem that
> Comcast leases with an internet subscription. I paid around $65
> retail, without trying to shop around for the best price. Comcast
> leases this modem for $5/mo. That leads me to believe that the STBs
> they lease probably cost them around $60-$100 wholesale (when Comcast
> asks $5-$10 per month).
>
> I have to believe that there are a whole lot more people who who keep
> their subscriptions for >=2 years than break the box, cancel, or
> disappear. It isn't a good profit proposition in the short term since
> Comcast has to put the money up front, but in the long term, the boxes
> pay for themselves in 10-12 months. Anytime they can lease an STB or
> modem longer than that is pure gravy.
>

CableCard was the answer to this question, although it doesnt help in
MythTV. The Government passed a bill that said cable providers that leased
boxes had to issue users the ability to own thier own box. Well how can you
do this and still be able to have controll over what the box sees?
CableCard, a card from the provider with its own controllable keys that it
can address with a standard interface your box can expect to be there when
it needs premium content. The problem? most companys wont install a
cablecard for you, yet around here they are using cablecard in thier own
boxes, with peice of voice tape over the access door.
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