[mythtv-users] HDHR Prime

[Gary Buhrmaster]

On Thu, Oct 31, 2013 at 1:38 PM, Michael T. Dean
<mtdean at thirdcontact.com> wrote:
.....
> They do now, but there was a notice in recent bills on the other side of the
> state from Jay (Brighthouse Central Florida, which includes the East coast,
> but is separate from Brighthouse Tampa Bay) that they will be dropping all
> analog channels and (some? all?) customers will need tuning adapters

TiVo and Ceton/SiliconDust OCUR users no doubt.  No (TTBOMK)
TV's with CableCARD slots support Tuning Adapters (they are
going to have to get either DTAs or full STBs.  However, it is rare
to use SDV on the Limited Basic package (Basic Basic, or just
Basic), depending on your MSOs confusing naming plan,  which,
btw, can vary from region to region), so that HD-DTAs can continue
to work.  So people with Limited Basic may not need TAs.

> (available for $1/mo, IIRC).  While the notice wasn't specific, I assumed
> they are moving to an SDV-only approach, possibly with encryption.

Of all the MSOs, BrightHouse seems to be almost unique in
charging for Tuning Adapters.  However, one of the reasons
Comcast apparently started charging for the DTAs was that
people thought that since it did not cost them anything, they
could just abandon them, or throw them away at the end of
the contract (or sell them on eBay to others that thought they
would get "free" TV by purchasing them).  Charging a "nominal"
fee makes it clearer(*) you are renting something of "value", and
had to return it when you stopped sevice (Comcast, of course,
still charged one a lost equipment fee if you did not return the
DTA, but trying to collect on those fees was problematic
(i.e. usually not possible)).  So, perhaps charging the nominal
fee makes some sense for BrightHouse too (and, of course,
there is a bit of profit there, but given the failure modes of
TAs (especially the older Cisco model with the internal amp
that have at least anecdotal reports of a failure rate in excess
of industry norms) I am not sure they really make a profit).

Gary

(*) Of course all that paperwork you got when you got the
DTA said you had to return it at the end of the contract.
Want to estimate the number of people who (a) read the
paperwork, and (b) remembered what they read when
they are in the middle of moving out of their current
household?