Hard News by Russell Brown

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Hard News: U: It's about the combos

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  • Graeme Edgeler, in reply to izogi,

    At least in Australian Freeview, the infomercials have dedicated channels, like TVSN, and electronic guides that include specified quality programming like “The Roomba Hour”.

    We have that on NZ Freeview too.

    Wellington, New Zealand • Since Nov 2006 • 3215 posts Report Reply

  • Luke Williamson,

    I have almost given up on TV completely. I find it virtually impossible to find anything I want to watch on the standard channels and am now a dedicated Fatso user along with getting my son to download whatever series I feel like watching , e.g. Archer, Game of Thrones, Dr Who, Downton, etc. If you don't like Generic Crimeshow, or cooking, or home renovating (with the exception of Grand Designs), the choices start to get pretty limited. We have to have satellite to get any TV where we are in Warkworth so have been using Sky for the standard free channels but have just cancelled that and going completely to computer based.

    Warkworth • Since Oct 2007 • 297 posts Report Reply

  • B Jones,

    I discovered last night that my Samsung tv now has an app that connects straight to TVNZ On Demand. I'd managed to jury-rig tv3's on demand service through the TV's browser but it was very cumbersome, and TVNZ was the same except it failed to actually work. So I got to watch First Crossings and One Born Every Minute, without ads, last night when I felt like it. I think that's the end for me and broadcast tv.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 976 posts Report Reply

  • Myles Thomas,

    Closing U is a direct result of government policy to require a significant dividend of TVNZ. While channels around the world are expanding their digital presence ensuring their future survival, TVNZ is going through a type of asset-stripping process, except they're not even selling things off, just closing them down.

    As media consumers we get what we vote for.

    Auckland • Since Apr 2011 • 130 posts Report Reply

  • Craig Young,

    I'm debating whether or not to switch to digital at all. The only things I'd miss might be either Doctor Who, Walking Dead or American Horror Story: Asylum, The Nation and Q&A.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 573 posts Report Reply

  • Aidan, in reply to Damian Christie,

    I have MySky, have had since it first launched. But I make a reasonable amount of use of the +1 channels. Quite often, it’s the Sky +1 channels for 1 or 3 (501, 503), which I then use to MySky record something that I missed the start of, so that confuses the model somewhat I guess…

    Don't quite understand, are you saying you have recordings which would overlap start and end, so you record them separately on +1 channels?

    Or that you run out of tuners so record something on a later slot?

    I ask because the first problem can be solved, but most PVRs don't manage to do it gracefully, unfortunately. The second problem is pretty much solved already as there exist PVRs with more physical tuners, or PVRs that have dual tuners but can record 2 streams from each. The tuner can only tune one "MUX" at a time, so the 2 streams have to be on the same MUX. Not sure how that works in NZ but in Aus that means 2 streams from a single "station", e.g. 2 ABC programs and 2 SBS programs can be recorded simultaneously.

    As B Jones pointed out above, +1 can simply be handy, to catch something you don’t necessarily bother with enough to record but wouldn’t mind watching rather than whatever is on an hour later.

    Apart from sport we just don't watch live TV for 5 years or so. Apart from live sport, and even then we sometimes chaseplay what little rugby they show on Aus free to air TV so we can skip through half time. And it's not to avoid ads, as we mostly watch ABC which doesn't have ads in the middle of programs.

    PVRs can hoover up so much good content, often from times we wouldn't be able to watch anyway, that there is always something we choose to view waiting to be viewed.

    Also, we don’t have Sky in our bedroom, which is where Harry watches a bit of morning kids’ telly while we have our coffee and try to cope with the fact it’s 6am.

    There are some PVRs that can share pre-recorded content between them, or run as a server for a media player.

    ABC2 is used to replay some popular content from ABC1 during the following week. I quite often record something at that later slot if I forget to set a timer the first time round. But this is curated, for popular shows. And of course there is always the catch up service which is brilliant.

    A +1 channel is lazy and suits the TV station down to the ground. They provide a useful enough service, it is cheap as chips and they don't fracture their audience so their ad revenue suffers. Win for the TV station, loss for the consumer.

    Canberra, Australia • Since Feb 2007 • 154 posts Report Reply

  • Damian Christie, in reply to Aidan,

    Don't quite understand

    No, just simply that I'll see something on TV I wouldn't mind watching, from the start, but since I didn't record it already, and will probably forget to watch again in 50 minutes on +1, I'll just record the +1.

    Wellington • Since Nov 2006 • 1164 posts Report Reply

  • Richard Grevers, in reply to bob daktari,

    New Plymouth • Since Jul 2011 • 143 posts Report Reply

  • Aidan, in reply to Damian Christie,

    No, just simply that I’ll see something on TV I wouldn’t mind watching, from the start, but since I didn’t record it already, and will probably forget to watch again in 50 minutes on +1, I’ll just record the +1.

    Oh right. I'm possibly over-thinking this a little.

    Canberra, Australia • Since Feb 2007 • 154 posts Report Reply

  • Tim Michie,

    Regardles of what I think about Jono and Ben I've very glad Rose quickly got a gig. If she wasn't the best hing about U then I'm forgetting something.

    Auckward • Since Nov 2006 • 614 posts Report Reply

  • Gaz Tayler,

    Okay, so as an ex-TVNZ friend explained it to me, U was always on a limited time as it was the remains of the old charter, so there was a clock ticking somewhere, but as Russell points out, viewer figures were pretty good.

    Kevin Kenrick stated that it was not commercially viable, so why is that so if viewer numbers were good?

    I suspect that TVNZ's media sales team have never adjusted for the U audience.

    Personally I'd have gotten impatient with the sales team, .. thoughts?

    Auckland • Since Aug 2012 • 14 posts Report Reply

  • Rob Stowell,

    Ad sales in TVland are slowly declining. I think that's the bottom-line: free-to-air ad-supported TV is in contraction rather than expansion mode, despite some costs coming down in the digital age. (Others have gone up)
    Public broadcasting is the best option. Most countries do it. Subscription may have a little more life left, but I reckon its model will have to change away from Sky's current "fairly big lump sum every month for a little you content you do, and a lot of content you don't want."

    Whakaraupo • Since Nov 2006 • 2120 posts Report Reply

  • Kyle Matthews,

    No, just simply that I’ll see something on TV I wouldn’t mind watching, from the start, but since I didn’t record it already, and will probably forget to watch again in 50 minutes on +1, I’ll just record the +1.

    The feature on mysky where you can hit record halfway through a show, and as long as your mysky has been on that channel (regardless of whether your tv was on etc) since the show started it records the whole thing is a goodie.

    Since Nov 2006 • 6243 posts Report Reply

  • Heather Gaye,

    Is it possible that somewhere there's an ideological argument from the current govt's POV about "competing" with private companies (ie Sky)? While not necessarily the intention, it'd seem like a nice little bonus of the progressive asphyxiation of Freeview.

    Morningside • Since Nov 2006 • 533 posts Report Reply

  • Sacha, in reply to Heather Gaye,

    an ideological argument from the current govt's POV about "competing" with private companies

    they call it "crowding out" - our companies just aren't up to it, so they need a hand

    Ak • Since May 2008 • 19745 posts Report Reply

  • simon g,

    Sommet Sports, on Freeview Channel 14, has just closed down. No cash, no ad revenue, it seems.

    So, one more alternative to the Sky-Monster has gone. Shame.

    Auckland • Since Nov 2006 • 1333 posts Report Reply

  • Tim Michie, in reply to simon g,

    Woah. Did not know.

    PRESS RELEASE 12 December 2014

    As at 12.00pm today free-to-air sports channel Sommet Sports will cease transmission.
    Launched 18th July 2013, Sommet Sports has delivered both live and pre-recorded sports on Freeview Channel 14, and Sky Channel 69. Funding initially understood to be available for the channel upon launch had largely never materialised and Sommet has been forced to attempt to deliver a full nationwide broadcast channel on one third of the finance.
    “I am totally gutted at not being able to sustain something that we have long held a fervent desire to deliver to New Zealanders. Sommet was born from a dream to deliver free sports to all kiwis. Sadly this dream is not to be.” says Andrew Reeves, Director of Sommet Sports Ltd. “We have been blown away by the amazing support and consistently growing viewership that we gained in such a short time. We can only thank our loyal fans who have stayed with us until the end.”
    “Being the ‘new kids on the block“, we also struggled to gain a strong foothold with most advertising agencies. This coupled with an acute funding shortage has left us with the sad reality of having to make the difficult call.”
    “I would like to thank OMD, Spark, McDonalds, KFC and Fiat Chrysler group for their support and belief in our vision of delivering ‘Free Sports for Kiwis’ “.
    Message ENDS

    Auckward • Since Nov 2006 • 614 posts Report Reply

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