A-La-Carte!

I read the blog entry by Insight Communications CEO Michael Willner about offering cable networks on an a-la-carte basis.  I appreciate his willingness to talk about the issue, but I do not agree with him.

Here's my recent experience with Insight Cable:  I wanted to add the Boomerang network for my child.  However, to get the Boomerang network I had to add this large array of channels (the "Digital Standard" package), most of which I would never watch.  I was okay with this because there were a couple of other channels, such as ESPN-U, I thought it would be useful to have. 

After I ordered the package, I was scrolling through the shows that were being offered on some of these new channels and saw some things on one channel, LOGO, that brought me up short.  I fully expect there will be individual shows on some channels that I will object to.  I don't like it but I can live with it.  However, this channel's whole existence is intended to undermine traditional morality.  I could not pay for this, even a small amount.

So, since I could not pay for Boomerang a-la-carte, I canceled my subscription to Digital Standard and Insight lost some business.  I am not completely opposed to the bundling of channels -- but the bundles should make sense.  I should not have to buy adult-themed channels to get children's channels.

--Red

Comments

[Colonel Steve]

Interesting thought, CableTechTalk. A workable solution? Yes. But missing Red's point.

Red's comment:
"However, this channel's whole existence is intended to undermine traditional morality. I could not pay for this, even a small amount."

Blocking STILL requires paying for things someone doesn't support. Sometimes, that's no big deal. Here, it is a very big deal. Kudos, Red!

My arguments of letting the economy decide still stands. You might say I'm pro-choice. Let me choose where my money goes.

[CableTechTalk]

While I understand not wanting certain kinds of content, you could just block that channel (and any others you want) with the digital cable parental controls. Read this post for more on this issue.