I guess what I don't understand is for those who are unhappy about the cost of a DVR from cable provider, why not buy a TiVo and just rent the cable card? I set my dad up with two of them so his cable bill isn't higher.
Sent from my iPhone > On Apr 7, 2016, at 8:09 PM, John Robinson <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > > > > Today I received my TimeWarner bill, they have increased the DVR set top > boxes by $4.23 cents, to a total of $34.48, $413.76 for the year or in the 10 > years we have lived here to over $4,000.00…. > > Times are changing, I sent a note on 2/9/16 about the FCC’s “Unlock The > Box”….it’s gaining legs and the two article below give hope. The second was > published yesterday and at the bottom is a link for us to send our approval > or disapproval. Wouldn’t you think it would be in our best interest for > cost as well as preserving a program of importance? > > John > > > FCC votes to fight cable's reign over set-top boxes > And you could see lower monthly bills. > > 02-18-16 > > <464526214.jpg> > > > Last month, reports surfaced that the FCC planned to pry set-top boxes out of > hands of cable and satellite companies. Today, the Commission passed the > "Unlock the Box" plan that would do just that. The proposal aims to introduce > more competition when it comes to the boxes you rent from television > providers. As it stands, you have to lease the equipment from a cable or > satellite company for a monthly fee that's added to your bill. You have > little choice in the matter, and those fees earn service providers millions > of dollars a year. With the FCC plan, opening up cable boxes to third parties > would not only lower costs, but make it easier for pay-TV subscribers to tap > into internet programming like Netflix and Hulu. > > Under the new rules, cable companies would have to give third-party device > makers, like TiVo, the information they'd need in order to build set-top > boxes. This would not only provide alternatives to the hardware that > television providers tack on, but it's meant to drive better software > interfaces as well. Of course, with billions on the line for cable and > satellite companies, this issue is far from being resolved. > > Before today's vote, Republican Commissioner Ajit Pai noted that instead of > increasing competition, the FCC should be trying to kill the set-top box > altogether. "Right now we are en route to eliminating the need for a set top > box altogether and apps can turn the iPad or phone into a navigation device," > Pai explained. "The commission should be encouraging those efforts. But this > proposal would do the opposite." Bob Quinn, AT&T's SVP of Federal Regulatory, > agrees with Pai, calling the FCC's move "a missed opportunity" and expressing > concerns over companies like Google being privy to consumer viewing habits. > Quinn explained: > > The focus of that proceeding could have been how to eliminate the set-top box > while protecting content creators' incentives to develop interesting > programming, building upon and growing the base of minority programming which > exists today, and ensuring that what consumers watch on television remains > none of Google's business. > > Quinn went on to explain that the Commission would need to set up a > regulatory process to oversee the whole thing, which will take time and > money. "As an added bonus, the FCC will have to establish an enormous > regulatory infrastructure to create and oversee this new technology mandate > that involves the creation of new technology standards and standards bodies," > he said. > > The AT&T SVP argues that the policy will stifle the very innovation it seeks > to encourage. > > By "unlocking" the set-top box, the FCC also wants make it easier for > independent and diverse content providers to reach their audience. In other > words, the Commission wants to boost minority programming. "We hope that the > two proceedings launched by the FCC today will ultimately result in better > representation in the media for people of color and that representation > matters," said Alex Nogales, president and CEO of the National Hispanic Media > Coalition. > > > > > <logo_full.png> > ELECTRONIC FRONTIER FOUNDATION > DEFENDING YOUR RIGHTS IN THE DIGITAL WORLD > > > APRIL 6, 2016 | BY CORY DOCTOROW AND MITCH STOLTZ > > The FCC's Plan To Unlock Your Set-Top Box Is About Competition, Not Copyright > > The Federal Communications Commission is trying to open up the closed world > of TV set-top boxes, with the goal of finally killing that dust-gathering, > power-sucking box altogether. They’ve proposed a new rule known as “Unlock > the Box” that allows devices and apps from any manufacturer to connect with > your home cable or satellite TV feeds. We think the FCC’s effort has the > potential to unlock new competition, delivering cost savings and innovation. > > Imagine being able to search for shows and movies available on your cable or > satellite TV service, online services like Netflix and Amazon, and even > over-the-air broadcasts, all with the same search-box. Imagine being able to > change and customize your cable's janky interface as much as you do with PCs, > smartphones, and browsers, and to add new features from any source. Oh, and > imagine not having to pay $231 a year to rent a set-top box that's really > just a three-generations-stale PC in an ugly case. The FCC’s “Unlock the Box” > proposal might achieve all this, if we nudge the agency to do it right. > > The set-top box is a frozen artifact of a bygone age whose features have been > caught in a time-warp of innovation-through-permission. For the past 20 > years, everyone who's had a cool idea for making the pay-TV experience better > was sent packing. If the FCC's order comes through, they'll deliver. > This isn’t about control over copying, but control over the entire experience > of TV watching, from the studio to your eyeballs, and over search and > discovery as well as viewing. Open competition could bring many more options, > like new TV interfaces that present recommendations from various critics and > tastemakers, or from your friends. New video devices could take you straight > to those shows and movies in one step, no matter which of your pay-TV or > Internet video services they appear on. This could be a boon for niche and > non-mainstream programs of all kinds. > > So, when you hear from opponents that Unlock the Box rules will violate > copyright, ask them: do you mean copyright, or the made-up right to tell > people how they're allowed to watch? > > And consider sending a comment to the FCC asking them to pass the Unlock the > Box rules, before April 22. (Enter "15-64" in the box labeled "Proceeding > Number"). > > > _______________________________________________ > MacGroup mailing list > Posting address: [email protected] > Archive: <http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/> > Answers to questions: <http://erdos.math.louisville.edu/macgroup/>
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