Intel's Attempt At A-La-Carte Television Hits Delays

bill_mcgonigle writes "Updating the previous story, Forbes and Gigaom are now reporting that Intel is running an internal startup aimed at offering an internet-connected set top box with a-la-carte 'cable' channel subscriptions. They also apparently plan to record everything and offer all content on-demand. While some are skeptical that content providers will give up their cable cash cow and they've run into licensing problems already, perhaps the economic effects of cord-cutters will finally make this business model viable."

Just give up pay TV content

[TWX]

We had cable until COX took Turner Classic Movies off of analog cable and put it on digital cable, at which point we had enough. Discovery Channel, The Learning Channel, The History Channel, and Sci-Fi/SyFy were already on the way down but hadn't hit rock bottom yet.

We don't miss it. Between XBMC, free content or ad-supported streaming content via our network-connected Blu-ray player, and free content via web browser, there's no reason to pay for content that still comes with ads anymore.

Cut the cord permanently.

Misguided in so many ways...

[picoboy]

Anyone else read the arrogant comment attributed to some unnamed source at Intel, stating that Intel was frustrated with "everyone doing a half-assed Google TV so it's going to do it themselves and do it right." ?

So, not surprisingly, Intel has now run into "delays" in securing agreements with content providers (in this case, the word "delay" means a quantity of time as large as forever). Why on earth would Intel believe that they have the consumer electronics clout to pull this off where Apple and Google continue to fail?

And who in their right mind at Intel decided to blast the media with their arrogant claims before they actually secured the elusive content agreements? Are they this completely incompetent as to think that Internet TV has anything at all to do with their fabulous semiconductor technology, instead of realizing it has everything to do with negotiation and leverage?

The kool-aid must run strong...

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Duh

[headhot]

Intel managed to make themselves look completely clueless and oblivious to the market. If it were so easy, Apple would have done this 5 years ago with the AppleTV, that was their plan to begin with.
Ala carte over the top is the holy grail that every tech company has been chasing. Google, MS, Apple, Sony, Netflix, Tivo, Roku, Nitendo, anyone with an box with an internet connection and a tv output.
All of them have been stymied because it would be the end of big contents business model. Making people pay for content they don't want or need and running adds on it.

Re:They'll relent eventually

[Dan667]

the mpaa and riaa are still suing people who download stuff online so don't get your hopes up. If I was a stockholder I would be pissed at movie and tv companies missing the boat in moving to internet distribution. Only music is half way decent because Apple (and Amazon) dragged them kicking and screaming while throwing huge wads of cash at their faces (which I am actually surprised they accepted, the riaa only cares about control). Idiots.

Re:Misguided in so many ways...

[headhot]

The content industry wont let cable do it, and the vast majority of the operators want ala carte.
If they wont let cable do it they would never ever let an over the top provider do it. Intel has no understanding of this market.

Re:Just give up pay TV content

[TWX]

I have found that the cost of one month of cable can pay for one or two seasons of a show a month. We went through M*A*S*H, Star Treks TOS and TNG, a bunch of Doctor Who and Torchwood, Inspector Morse and Lewis, and we're halfway through Farscape, with La Femme Nikita and Babylon 5 to follow.