Time to dump standard TV

[Mervin]

Reality is staring us in the face so that we can dump DSTV and get Apple, Tivo, Boxee or Roku to stream Web TV to our homes. Having the pleasure worknig from home and have a TV in my office... the worst is that most channels have nothing NEW... News can be had from the net, sports... well for some that is important.

Walking past my young sons room with Disney channel showing the same content over and over again in such a way that he even can say the dialog along with the broadcast.  And this for 'ONLY' R600.00 (+-) a month.  What a load of crap.

Time to do some research and replace.

PS: The best advert for DSTV is watching SABC for a while.  Statistically I would like to know from all the SABC TV license (actual) payers what content they would like to see.  But I presume this we will never see.

[KenMasters]

I have to say, I do think people are a little overly critical of DSTV and SA TV in general.

I'm afraid that a bunch of channels repeating the same old programming is just the nature of satellite and cable. Watch TV anywhere in the world and it's the same story. I happen to think SA TV is pretty decent considering what we pay. It might seem expensive, but in relation to what they charge in some other places it's not that bad. My cable costs R850 a month (and that's not even for all the available channels) and my TV license costs R5500 a year.

I'm sure there's a lot that can be done to improve things, I just mean it doesn't seem as bad to me as some people make out. And to me the internet is not yet the solution. Definitely not in South Africa at any rate (of course I'm only considering the legal/morally correct means of sourcing content). I suppose though that it also depends on the sort of programming one enjoys.

[Mervin]

Sourcing should be legal of course.  Steep TV license fees I may say.. what country are you in Ken?  If I compare to UK and States we are definitely in the higher bracket for what we get.  Also some countries would bundle broadband with the cable which is a bonus.

When I bought DSTV many eyars ago, the channel that convinced me was the SciFi channel which then was removed from the selection.

I just think we are at the brink of a drastic change in TV broadcasting as we know it.

[KenMasters]

Sourcing should be legal of course.  Steep TV license fees I may say.. what country are you in Ken?  If I compare to UK and States we are definitely in the higher bracket for what we get.  Also some countries would bundle broadband with the cable which is a bonus.

When I bought DSTV many eyars ago, the channel that convinced me was the SciFi channel which then was removed from the selection.

I just think we are at the brink of a drastic change in TV broadcasting as we know it.

I'm in Denmark, which is one of the most expensive. At R1 600 per year the UK is amongst the cheapest in Europe, although I must say I really didn't think much of the BBC's programming. As for cable, when I lived there all that ever seemed to be on was reruns of Jerry Springer, The Simpsons and Star Trek:TNG.

I'm totally with you on the Sci-Fi channel though. I was very upset when they removed it from the DSTV lineup. They should really try to bring it back but I can understand where they're coming from. It's hard to justify the expense when so few South Africans are into those types of shows.

I agree with you though, TV's going to change in a big way. But I think it will take quite some time for that change to trickle down to Africa.

[Shonver]

I'm totally with you on the Sci-Fi channel though. I was very upset when they removed it from the DSTV lineup. They should really try to bring it back but I can understand where they're coming from. It's hard to justify the expense when so few South Africans are into those types of shows.

My main motivation working towards getting DSTV was based on the Sci-Fi channel. It was indeed disappointing to eventually discover that this was no longer included.

[PAPPA3]

My main reason for not getting dstv is the long wait for good stuff.  I prefer to spend my hard-earned cash to buy movies.  Most Mr Video stores sell their fairly recnt dvds for R50 each. That's 12 movies for R600 each month, or 144 movies a year!  Of course you can get the movies when they hit the shelves too.  I also enjoy sets like BBCs "Life" nature dvds - 9 1/2  hours of top notch entertainment for R276!  Somehow I want something tangible at the end of the month.  Ah well, to each his own...

[RS4]

@Mervin, you might like this:

http://www.ps3za.co.za/forum/showthread.php?t=56939&highlight=syfy

[Steerpike]

You do not need a TV license if your television set has the tuner removed. This is clearly outlined by the SABC in their license literature.
I presume you need some authorised company's certificate that they have removed or disabled the tuner.

The fact that a VHS video recorder or MNET decoder can be used to give a composite video feed to a tuner-less TV set does not matter - the requirement applies only to the TV set.

[KenMasters]

@Mervin, you might like this:

http://www.ps3za.co.za/forum/showthread.php?t=56939&highlight=syfy

Oh, I like this very much as well, good news! I figure it's probably headed for DSTV though, given the expense of the channel.
Although I wonder how much better DSTV would be in general for people like me if they didn't focus so much of their budget on sport.

Actually, on second thought, it would be a good play on TopTV's part to go for SyFi Channel and differentiate themselves by content in such a way.

You do not need a TV license if your television set has the tuner removed. This is clearly outlined by the SABC in their license literature.
I presume you need some authorised company's certificate that they have removed or disabled the tuner.

The fact that a VHS video recorder or MNET decoder can be used to give a composite video feed to a tuner-less TV set does not matter - the requirement applies only to the TV set.

"Anyone using or having in his/her possession a television set or any device capable of receiving a broadcast television signal is required to have a valid (paid-up) TV licence."

http://www.tvlic.co.za/portal/site/tvlicence/

[Crafty]

I've heard the rumors that sci-fi is comming back. But I've allready canceled my dstv sub. Well not really canceled, but dropped to that R20 a month Free to Air option.
I also do not think that if sci-fi returns I will re-subscribe. The thing is, sci-fi will be just about the only channel I watch, unless there is a good movie on, and perhaps action channel late friday night. :-)
So to pay R600 for pretty much one channel is stupid.
What I'm doing now, is buy a R400 contract each month at the video store, and use that to rent box sets. So you get an entire season of a series you want to watch, and you can keep it for a week!
R200 cheaper a month, and I see what I want to see :-D
The Other R200 can go towards a new release DVD every month