Cutting Cable Cost

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For anyone today who is a big fan of watching television shows through there laptop or other devices, you are one of the millions of people that is contributing in the decline of cable TV. If you look back 10 years ago, watching TV in the living room was a way for families to come together at night and spend time together, watching there favorite TV shows. It seemed that almost every household had a cable box in there living room. But as  we approach 2018, the demographics of the this country is completely changing. People are becoming more aware of other competitors and a more cost friendly price. Companies like Amazon, Netflix, and Hulu have a disruptive innovation that is currently taking the market by storm. As an avid user of Netflix, there is so many benefits from obtaining a service like this for only $10 per month. If you look at comparisons for cable companies, the average price you are going to pay per month is approximately $99. Even if you don’t like all the options that Netflix has to offer, there are numerous other companies that you can pay for, still falling below the price of normal cable. Over the past couple years, we have seen a decrease in the number of households that are carrying cable, about 2.5% each year. Over time thats going to add up as people start to realize whats better for them. These price differences really are a competitive advantage for these streaming websites. I can personally relate to this topic because when I was picking an apartment to live in for this school year, one of the factors that my roommates and I had to decide on was whether we wanted to pay a monthly cable bill. At first it seemed the right decision would be to get it because it would make watching different shows and games a lot easier, but we soon realized that it wasn’t worth the high price per month, when we are all capable of watching our own shows online. With this, we are all able to save $25 per month, which can go a long way to be used towards something else. Being immersed in this disruptive innovation is what allows me to further connect with the topic and understand it in a deeper manner.

2 thoughts on “Cutting Cable Cost”

  1. I’m right on board with this. I think chord cutting is up there with Uber and Airbnb in terms of the disruption it is causing to its competitors and the scale at which it is occurring. However, I still wouldn’t say that chord cutting has had as much of an impact yet. Although I agree with the two comments posted prior to mine with regard to the benefits of relying on a streaming service rather than cable, I think it’s still going to be a while before most people share the opinion we do. The article I’ve shared provides statistics on the age demographics of who is streaming, and the majority of streamers are those who are considered ‘millennial’s’ or ages 18-29. About 6 in 10 people (61%) in this age group say their main avenue for television is through streaming. Sure, it’s likely that our generation has started a trend that will only continue to snowball in chord cutting’s favor. However, it’ll be interesting to see whether the older age demographics also begin to more significantly lean away from cable. My parents are in the 30-49 age group, (37% streaming) and have repeatedly spoken about switching to a streaming service due to cost efficiency. It tells me they’re aware, and they’re not the only ones aware. If that’s the case, Netflix, Hulu, SlingTV, and others could really be on the verge of even more success than they’ve already had, and it could all be happening very soon.
    http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/09/13/about-6-in-10-young-adults-in-u-s-primarily-use-online-streaming-to-watch-tv/

  2. I was waiting for someone to talk about this! Great job. In one of my classes, we talked about cord cutting and it’s really interesting to see how many people who ONLY use Netflix, Hulu, etc. raised their hands. I’m a Netflix user myself and I find myself using it every day. Having a personalized recommendation/suggestion list is one of the key benefits (and curses) to Netflix. If you watch a certain show, the algorithms collect the data and create a list of recommendations for other shows that are similar to the one you just watched. I also mentioned that it’s a curse because you can definitely fall down a rabbit hole, binge-watching show after show! However, I do really like that feature. As for cable TV, I honestly don’t see myself watching it anymore. I only use my TV for background noise, and when I do watch it, it’s the same one channel. Companies and organizations need to adapt to this new market and create subscription-based streaming services. People are on the go more than ever, and unfortunately, don’t have the time or money for that matter for cable TV. Streaming services will more than likely become commonplace in the years to come.

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