Why Do We Still Need Cable Boxes?

[@melanzystaa]

Well, in Europe you just buy yourself a TV with CI+ slot and voila, u got cable TV without the STB if u need it.

[@ERDude]

In my country you just plug power and a cable to the tv and boom.

[@pear7777]

That's the one-way solution he mentioned, isn't it?

[@jezusko]

True

[@Jothsal]

​@@ERDude depends on the company, in south america some cable providers are analog, so you don't need a cable box

[@christopherkidwell9817]

Answer: Because the companies want to DRM and Encrypt every single thing in the real world to prevent you from doing what the Supreme Court said was legal: Recording content off cable. Also, DRM is better called "Digital Restriction Mechanisms".

[@NekoiNemo]

So bottom line is: "piracy is still by far simplest AND most convenient way to get media content".

[@jhoughjr1]

Nemo Nekoi theft usually is expedient

[@tophatter-qy5rh]

and really overpriced to pay for

[@GAMIR_SFM]

No one said theft, he said Piracy.

[@xenonram]

Piracy is the most difficult, pain in the ass, way to get content. It's a lot more of a pain than turning on the cable box. That's one of the reasons most people still have cable. They don't want to deal with the building that comes along with streaming; both theft/piracy or legitimate streaming.

[@tophatter-qy5rh]

Both are expensive to pay for

[@Kwipper]

I cut the cord back in 2009. I haven't felt the need to ever go back. Why? KZbin, Netflix, and Bittorrent.

[@julius8631]

Yeah well... American TV is pretty shitty

[@BillAnt]

Man you've missed a lot of fake news... Dang it! lol

[@heloapako]

​@@BillAntmissed a lot of alien news

[@foufoufun]

The real question is: "Why does cable still exist?"

[@BillAnt]

Simple, cuz there's a sucker born every day. lol Looks like cable companies aren't doing so well nowadays, I've noticed that they have started selling cellphone service too. Their long running monopoly days on the "big fat data pipe" are numbered once 5G is rolled out all over, including the new StarLink. ;) In 2015 I built my own 4G-LTE router (now you can buy them ready made like the WG3526/WG1608, etc) and for less than fifty bucks a month I get the same if not better internet almost anywhere I go I just take it with me (now with 5G). Over the air digital TV and streaming is plenty enough for entertainment. The best part, is that the "cable bill" never goes up!! F*ck those wallet sucking cable companies, they are disgusting with their CONstant price increases. I'm sure some can relate, and rest... well keep throwing money at them. lol

[@ramabeus9530]

because alot of people don't have access to high internet speeds or don't even know how to access or subscribe to online services ? convenience sake ? i mean there's quite alot of reasons to be fair

[@willstikken5619]

Because they own the only high speed networks that reach nearly every home in America and also have the agreements in place for the variety of channels and content available. With the way things are going people will soon be paying for multiple streaming services to a degree that rivals cable with a fraction of the distribution costs for the streamer.

[@BillAnt]

With real 5G just around the corner, that "high speed network" monopoly could soon be over. For the past 5 years I've been using regular 4G LTE mobile hotspot patched into my router and I can't even tell the difference between cable and mobile web. Consistently getting around 100Mbps down and 50Mbps up with very low latency paying just $45/mo for unlimited data, and streaming live TV through ATTWatchTV for a mere $15/mo, which is still only $60 with all fees and taxes included compared to the ridiculous cable service I was paying well over $150/mo. Seems like cable keeps going up while mobile prices are going down. It's a really great time for consumers :)

[@willstikken5619]

@@BillAnt With 5g that's possible but unlikely. I say that because of the companies involved in delivering this data. There will be data caps based on cellular service limits rather than residential or commercial usage. 5G will allow people to get high speed that cant now but it wont be cheap for those who can already get broadband. and if i were limited to your bandwidth id definitely notice it...

[@reggiebenes2916]

I haven't had cable in ten years. I do miss the 20 minutes of lawyer commercials every 30 minutes of program though.

[@gregscott3562]

Reggie Benes no no ki

[@thelemonlama2722]

I'm glad nothing has changed in 10 years

[@pyeltd.5457]

Uthman Baksh that's the same with KZbin tho

[@BillAnt]

Hmmm so without those lawyer commercials how do you know which good lawyer to hire?! lol just kidding, Google it ;D

[@AzaIndustries]

@@pyeltd.5457 Not really, you can pay significantly less than cable to remove ads on youtube, or use blockers.

[@lhl2500]

Ahem.. Let be honest, DRM stands for: Digital Restriction Management.

[@BillAnt]

OR Ditch the Restriction Management! ;)

[@thomasgriffin5340]

Dicks Ruining Media

[@PowerStar004]

Destruction of Rights for Money

[@DokuFREENET]

Lucky here in germany, you get a CI+ Modul, and can use every box you want, it only needs CI+Support (but witch tv these days doesent have one!)

[@adamsiekierski3133]

Doku FREENET I have it in Poland too

[@leonro]

Yup, same probably goes for the rest of Europe as well. And we could also buy these modules without a rent!!!

[@oli1505]

tvs today don't have it? my samsung ue55ks8080 from 2016 has one i looked up on new 2018 samsung and LG the cheap and expensive ones have ci+ slots

[@remcovangoozen6146]

we have it here in the netherlands too... (only ziggo) but the provider want's to stop it and move us to a "newer" system with their own cable box costing me a monthly fee but my old ci+ cards still work in my tv so i don't need it "jet"

[@Johanneslol11]

:) here in the netherlands you can get one to!

[@thereallantesh]

I haven't had a cable box or cable TV for over 10 years. These days there are only 2 TV shows I bother to watch, and for that I simply go to the network's website, and cast it to my Chromecast. I'm far happier collecting old movies on physical media, and watching those instead.

[@Xeno_Bardock]

Everyone should move to internet. I never watch anything on TV channels.

[@LulfsBloodbag]

I don't even pay for T.V anymore.

[@Sam-gf6ue]

Streaming sports is ugly though

[@Adam.Piper62]

That works great unless you live in a place where the internet is crap, we just want to watch normal TV I mean at least in the UK if you own a TV you still have to pay TV Licence so you just as well watch free view. and the problem is with internet TV as you have to choose what you want to watch which is all well and good until you have a family who all want different things rather than just having to pick from what's on

[@mozardthebest]

I still watch cable...

[@Sam-gf6ue]

@Kronixio the picture quality is good but at least on a tv, the stream is noticeably juttery and that is "normal" according to the company.

[@azbesthu]

In europe there are big differences between providers. There is a provider how dedicated itself to proprietary iptv, so you have to use they box for every tv. An other provider have public iptv, anyone can subscribe, you just need to have internet connection and androidtv, appletv or handheld device, also chromecast is supported by they apps. And an other provider has mostly unencripted dvb-c and analogue over optical network. And lot of provider also have some limited app based online thing, but mostly not really usable or limited to handheld or browser.

[@Pallineon]

I hate cable, it costs so much for how little you may use it.

[@markplott4820]

ATSC 1.0 is here and its completely FREE to use.

[@XellosMetallium]

randy s I love ota channels. i used to watch arthur on pbs there was foxkids, wbkids then after 4pm we got sit coms but after my hs days somehow they die out. probably internet was on the rise. i remember a informercial comparing cable and dsl internet.

[@shaneintegra]

@randy s There are still a lot of OTA channels though... I made a homemade antenna and get about 63 channels on average

[@Pallineon]

im 15 all wierd ass cartoons are for kids half my age. All the wierd shit is a corporate cashgrab. I grew up watching tom and jerry annd scooby doo, the old and original versions.

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

@randy s We skipped ATSC 2.0 and are waiting for the release of ATSC 3.0...

[@Wntstoriseup]

As a former cable tech for a large company, I can say that this is very well put together. Great job Linus and crew.

[@andreipop1]

What? In Europe we have CI+ card, and all TVs have this option. We have guides and also dvr function. Every thing works of the tv remote and you don't need the stupid box and another remote. Seem like the USA is quite behind on this.

[@nelo7149]

Portugal is also behind on this. Only 2 paid TV providers have digital channels without a need of a box or even a card, I guess...

[@peanutbutteroctopus1]

We're not behind the cable companies are just greedy

[@CanuckGod]

Interestingly enough, the US was still ahead of Canada on that, as we never even had the option of CableCard up here; digitally it was set-top boxes for everyone, all the time.

[@callmezucc9318]

Everyone is ditching cable anyhow, ask any 20yo if they're gonna buy cable

[@mormantu8561]

Well its not really my region of expertise but I think that a set top box is still requires in Belgium and in the Netherlands

[@Computern11]

In New Zealand we have Freeview which is essentially free digital TV. Every TV has an inbuilt decoder.

[@AZREDFERN]

How about everyone just stop paying for cable, they’ll take the hint.

[@motoryzen]

Good luck. Do you realize how many braindead idiots there are out there that LOVE drama queen reality trash tv that is primarily found with a TV subscription? Shit, you want to talk about bringin the Walking Dead to life? Just convince every tv subscription company in the USA to all of a sudden die and you will REALLy see a bunch of dumbass zombies out protesting/bitching about it. I couldn't agree more with your point. I haven't had a tv sub in 10 years, and I don't miss it for a nano second.

[@1blackice1]

Now that cable companies have DRM in the form of encryption, many of them don't disconnect customer's cable when they stop paying. They just deactivate the account and lock them out of the signal. I know for a fact Spectrum does this. If someone were to crack the cable company's encryption and post the hack for everyone to use....that would be an interesting day to see.

[@motoryzen]

Yes...that's called a " soft" disconnect. However, that type of temp disconnect is ONLY viable within a two to three week period from the date the soft disconnect happens. With comcast ( and this has been this way for over a decade easily. I used to work for them -_-..unfortunately.lol ), if you are late more than 4 to 7 business days( depending on region or state) without paying the full amount due, you get soft disconnected. If you don't pay what was due in full within 3 weeks or less, they WILL still send a tech onsite nearest to your physical line to your nearest pole and physically cut off your line. Sometimes they charge a late fee if you're soft disconnected even once in a one year's billing cycle, ...sometimes they don't. others..they charge a late fee..every time. Then in order for service to be restored to that address in your name OR even for your spouse's or relative's name if they confirm that the spouse or relative lives there. he or she MUST pay no only the balance that was due, but a late fee and a reconnection fee FIRST....in full in addition to a deposit up front in full before comcast will send a tech out to reconnect the line. Finally, that account is treated like a new account ONLy the account owner is not eligible for any promotional discounts for at least 6 months of paid-on-time-in full billing cycles.

[@Nurse_Xochitl]

@@motoryzen wow that's pretty shitty

[@BeNice108]

I tried to convince my dad to stop paying for cable after the multiple times he'd bitch and moan about the bill. He's just too stubbornly lazy to accept any other options because he must have his local channels for some reason.

[@iamchriswick]

Funny enough most TV's sold in Europe support DTB cards, and the Cable company (yes, just the one - Viasat and Canal Digital just merged) in Norway offer DTV card readers for all their subscribers and the only thing you loose access to is on demand programs...

[@ClaytonGrimwald]

We don't have to deal with that shit in Japan, all TVs come with a card (looks like a credit card with a chip). You just slot the chip in the back of the TV and job done, you have access to cable TV. Unfortunately you have to buy a Japanese TV (which are fairly pricey), I can't buy the same TV for half the price at the NEX on base because American models don't have the converter built-in.

[@ayyy3606]

ClaytonGrimwald They also have cable boxes like that in America.

[@dnoodspodu1159]

Completely irrelevant for some people I stopped watching TV even before KZbin was created

[@dnoodspodu1159]

Completely irrelevant for some people I stopped watching TV at all even before KZbin was created

[@MAYORMcCheesed]

Agreed! Was going to say the same thing! At the wife's house in Japan put the little credit card in the slot and presto you got B channels galore!

[@apemoon1731]

In the UK, we have terrestrial digital TV that you receive via an aerial (antenna) for free. Around 200 channels. I can plug a USB hard drive into my TV and record what I want.

[@cashwood]

Andrew Moore sane in the US but not as many channels

[@djsnowpdx]

Why does every industry have this monopoly bullcrap!?

[@mccalejk2]

Blame your city. They don't want telephone lines with extra wires so they sign deals with cable companies to be exclusive in their cities.

[@TuxerTuxar]

Muney

[@coolsnake1134]

Apparently now Comcast actually not only still supports cable card in 2023 but they also allow you to use your own purchased cable box with their systems and it will work the same as the Xfinity provided ones. They don’t sell them directly on the website but they do hint that you can get them from Gray market sellers, usually eBay. they do seem to be pretty expensive though, they seem to be around $400 for an HD DVR cable box with a 1 TB hard drive

[@vatril]

Here in Germany a lot of people, my family included still use terrestrial TV (over antenna). It is encrypted and allows for stuff like guides and so on. To decrypt it you just need a CI module, a little card/module you plug into your tv. For interactive content, your TV needs to be connected to the internet. Then you have features like video on demand, extra info and so on.

[@OttoWerse]

Over here in Europe, almost all TVs still have a "CableCard" Slot, it's called CI+ (Common Interface +) though, so I don't know if it's really "the same" but it looks the same and works the same and is very much not dead.

[@hhs_leviathan]

I remember back in the early 2000s in Latvia we all had cable without cable boxes :) Just an antenna cable. Ultra sweet, some companies still do it!

[@morganrussman]

The same used to be the case for some spots in new York state for spectrum cable, one used to be able to watch cable TV completely without a cable box. Unfortunately, that ended up changing in about January of 2018 when spectrum changed the signal to a subscriber only signal.

[@jurisjancevskis9076]

es esmu latvietis

[@rayanking4773]

same in italy

[@Jothsal]

In my country only one company did the antena cable, but they shutdown it in 2013 becuause they moved to the ass satelite

[@mr._ejiire]

clearqam gang

[@NegitoroIsBestShip]

I haven't had a TV package in over 8 years. I cut the cord before it was cool.

[@louiehorwood660]

Explain to someone who has never had a cable subscription what cutting the cord means. Dis-continuing service?

[@redneckraconteur]

I gave away my televisions several years ago. Not worth it to me.

[@NegitoroIsBestShip]

@@louiehorwood660 Yeah. Cutting the cord refers to cancelling TV service in favor of exclusively using internet services like KZbin/Netflix/Hulu/Amazon ect. Year over year TV is losing customers at an increasing rate.

[@tonystechchann]

Normal telivision is boring when all it is re - runs... I prefer Netflix or OTA for TV

[@Jamie-kg8ig]

Yeah it's more expensive, generally has worse stuff(in my opinion) and I have to deal with all kinds of bullshit too. Why on Earth would I ever sign up for a cable TV subscription?

[@johnmoore1495]

I pay $7.50 a month per box. Yet when we’ve canceled a box, they don’t ask for it back. They probably pay off all the non-DVR boxes on the first month that you “rent” them. It’s so fucking dumb, and they wonder why people are cutting the cord.

[@jasongooden917]

The cable box is connected the.. TV tuner The TV tuner is connected to the...PC The PC is connected to... Camtasia Doing the piracy dance!

[@jeschinstad]

Well, most people can't do that anymore, because PC TV tuners doesn't support HDCP, so you need one of those Chinese HDMI splitters that removes HDCP. Windows also respects DRM, so Camtasia won't work on encrypted online media. If you run Windows as a virtual machine in a Linux system, then you can grab whatever you want, though. So as long as Windows is not forbidden, piracy will be simple.

[@d1t5]

Oh my god I remember this

[@Justin-Hill-1987]

Just hook an antenna into the back of your TV. Use the remote control to turn on the TV. Press the menu button on your remote control. Use the D-pad on your remote control to navigate through the menu until you reach a "scan for channels" option. Use the D-pad to select the "DTV" option, and select "scan"... Sit back and wait for your antenna to scan for all the local channels and digital subchannels in your area (there might be some good digital subchannels, such as Laff, Comet, Movies!, Decades, COZI TV, Heroes & Icons and Buzzr in your area.). Flip though the channels with your remote control to see what you've got in your area. Enjoy the fruits of your labor. :)

[@larrylentini5688]

One of many reasons cable is dying. Good riddance.

[@alesh-cz]

oh how different is the TV world in Europe :) We have DVB-C (C for cable), which is present in nearly every TV on the market and pretty much all TVs have the PC-Card slot for the CAM module for encrypted channels. Yes, the DVB-C by iteslef doesn't enable the DVR (which doesn't matter much as most TVs can do that internally anyway) or VOD, but there's the thing called HbbTV, which majority of TV stations now support. HbbTV is like an additional data stream along the audio/video/subtitle stream of the TV station itself, which tells the compatible TV with access to the internet that there's more content there. Since HbbTV is a standard, TV stations don't need to bother with apps for various TV operating systems. They can also implement payed VOD easily. I would really hate to have an extra box sitting next to my TV.

[@mature111ster]

Imagine how fewer cable subscriptions there will be when older generations die off in 50 years

[@raderator]

Our cable company does not require a box rental. We use Rokus, PCs and phones along with their app.

[@nissanpacific9793]

It's strange staying the night in a hotel and turning on the television... I default to Cartoon Network for Adult Swim

[@CommodoreFan64]

I feel ya, earlier this summer visited my aunt and Uncle who have a 4 story beach house, and they still have cable, and I did the same thing since I had forgotten to pack my laptop, and I don't care much to watch videos/TV for long periods on my phone, as I'm so use to my ROKU boxes with tons of free content on demand, PSVue for sports/some cable like channels, Netflix for their content, and WWE for wrestling.

[@653j521]

Commodorefan64 You are staying in a beach house and spending long periods of time on your phone? (Edit: wanting to spend a lot of time on your phone but being forced by cruel tech to spend it on cable.) Okay.... You must be a barrel of laughs to have as a guest.

[@CommodoreFan64]

@@653j521 if you bothered to follow the comments thread you would have noticed I said I don't like being on my phone for long periods of time, and the original post mentioned adult swim which comes on at night, so everyone else was already in bed and I just could not sleep that night, and didn't have my Chromebook for some KZbin, so I defaulted to adult swim for a few hours before finally falling asleep. It has nothing to do with me being a bad guest as you put it. Have a nice day Mr. Assumptions.

[@mattwolf7698]

Rick and Morty and a few animes are the only thing that I watch on traditional TV anymore.

[@xaenon]

Stuck in medical facility for 4 months thanks to nightmarish bureaucratic and medical polices . Absolutely nothing to do all day but watch TV. Was ready to slit my wrists fa'sure.

[@DengMam]

These days, in the EU, it’s virtually impossible to find a new TV without a CI+ slot... well not these days as already 15 years ago, it was impossible.

[@glennlooper4840]

No practical way without renting a box? I pay $5 a month for a cable card. Rather than a box fee plus dvr fee which would be about 6 times as much. I then put that card in a TiVo box i own (see eBay for used inexpensive ones). Run an ir blaster, hdmi cable, and cat6 through the wall using keystone plates and you can have a clean install with no equipment besides the tv mounted on the wall.

[@kalijasin]

You still paying though.

[@lanceeverett5108]

Cut the cable cord people. No one TV show is worth seeing immediately after it is released at the cost of have to pay for cable. Same for movies (as in not worth going into the theater unless you like that kind of thing). Just use online sources and Cable TV will either die on the vine or get smart and figure out what's up.

[@uss_04]

PCMR doesnt need cable boxes, but their parents still do...

[@Wardell43]

I'm 66. I use my antenna and ROKU. Ditch the cable bill.

[@jomichael1060]

My parents are in their late sixties & still believe that they need a box when they have a smart TV lol old habits never die

[@BillAnt]

After a couple of more generation these old technologies will be just a fading memory. My teens only stream on their phones, and sometimes ChromeCast it to their TV. I myself ditched cable in favor of over the air local channels and ATTWatchTV streaming service on my phone. I think it's a wonderful time nowadays for consumers having plenty of choices. I bet the cable companies never thought that one day they'll be struggling... stick the cable up their ass! hee-hee

[@downwiththatsortofthing624]

@@BillAnt my teens only stream on their phones, and sometimes ChromeCast it to their TV" Then they (and you) are fools! The bit-rate of streamed video from your phone will give noticeably poor results vs almost any other type of media. Either that or you all have sight issues!

[@BillAnt]

Downwith thatsortofthing < Please no need for personal insults ... honestly I can't tell the difference between streaming and cable at all. They are pushing around 30fps which is about the same as regular broadcast TV. Course it also depends on quality of the streaming service and bandwidth. I'm not here to argue with you about which one is better, as long as it looks sharp and it doesn't flicker, well that's good enough for them.

[@ulfmusskacken]

In germany we call these card thingys CI+ modules and every single TV has a slot for them.

[@customheat]

I recall learning at one point that cable providers where not allowed to charge per TV due to FCC Regulations, however making you have to rent a box to decrypt the signal basically is that.

[@tiberiu_nicolae]

Television killed itself. Overdramatic shows, dumbed down idiotic narration. Loud interminable annoying ads. Poor quality programming. Biased news. Cable companies with poor custommer support and fraudulent business practices... My humble TV doesn't even have an antenna. I just use it for video games and Netflix.

[@certifiedpeedealer4933]

at least British TV is somewhat good

[@paulareece9295]

In the UK you just need a tv to watch digital channels as TV's come with digital tuners, if you want to get more channels (like international channels) than you can get a used Sky box which runs off satellite and have the 200+ free channels

[@Roxor128]

I've got a better idea: A single box which uses software-defined radio to decode anything it picks up from whatever antenna you plug into it and which you can add support for decrypting content (like these idiots seem to insist on doing) by just loading a file containing the decryption key onto an SD card and slotting that into the box's SD slot. Watch anything broadcast in your area for which someone has written a decoding routine. Maybe the open-source hardware community could design it?

[@dace0204]

There is an option in Europe some providers offers Conditional Access Module (CA Module) that uses build in slots in modern TV sets.

[@theinquisitor18]

Because: Money!!!

[@Jeff-xy7fv]

In other words, GREED!!!

[@theinquisitor18]

@Cuzeg Spiked lmao!

[@theinquisitor18]

@@Jeff-xy7fv Right?!

[@thepincushionman7063]

Money is corruption.

[@Catmomila]

Gotta love capitalism

[@verios44]

Dunp cable, get a digitkal attenna, save the miney and buy a cruise vacation, or that 1080TI you wanted.

[@cpufreak101]

verios44 problem with that is you only get local channels, which can greatly limit your selection to local news stations, PBS, and that one channel that just does reruns of old shows

[@TheAnonymousLemur]

If my rent didn't come with cable, I wouldn't be paying for it.

[@OolTube02]

We have the cable card over here in Germany. Well, it's for satellite TV but the principle is the same. It goes in the TV set.

[@federicoaguirre4773]

I think that IPTV should be the answer for those want to watch tv in a legal way without a set top box.

[@mtg7975]

Legal? lol

[@certifiedpeedealer4933]

@@mtg7975 he means subscription iptv

[@okaro6595]

In Finland such systems were abandoned years ago when we switched to digital. You insert your card do the TV or a DVR you bought. You typically need to pay a rent for the card though. However, if free cable is enough for you you do not pay anything. (Well you pay a few euros as part of the general utility bill).

[@Tall_Order]

I got recent News on my Spectrum Cable bill. Apparently they are doing away with analog cable completely and want everyone to buy the digital boxes. So yeah if you got multiple tvs, they're going to charge you for multiple boxes... I have got to find a way to get this family off cable. I don't even watch it myself. But Boomers....

[@Tall_Order]

One solution at least my brother plans to do is plug his tablet into his TV and use the spectrum app, but that pretty much turns your TV into a relay monitor for the tablet. My mother has a old tube TV with coax so shes gonna get fucked by this.

[@cpufreak101]

We have spectrum and got affected by this. However my stepfather was the only one left in the house that still watched Cable TV (even my mom started to just stream everything from her phone and PC) so we just make him pay the box rental fee lol

[@Tall_Order]

Yesterday i remembered i had a Roku Streaming Stick so i checked the Roku store and they had the Spectrum app. So if I grab a few more roku sticks or boxes and put one on each TV (plus get my mother a HDTV) we probably wont need any digital boxes. Of course that uses wifi rather than a thick cable so there will be buffering issues. It's worth it though. But you would think since Spectrum supplies modems for free they would supply digital boxes for free too but they only give you 1. And its only free for 1 year. lol

[@cpufreak101]

Tall Order wait they give you your internet modem free?

[@Tall_Order]

I believe so. They also do free service on it (replace and repair). They've never charged me for that stuff.

[@javaman2883]

I dropped cable in 2009. I found I was paying $113 per month, and we only watched 11 channels out of the 100+ we paid for. I tried to get a lower price, but the only way to get the channels we wanted (including Discovery Networks) was to pay for the basic tier, the plus tier, and the digital tier. I later found out that 1/3 to 1/2 of the typical cable bill pays for the sports channels. Given that less than 30% of people watch the sports channels at least once per week, that's a lot of expense people pay for no reason.

[@BillAnt]

I have dropped cable (tv and web) about four years ago too, and went totally wireless... currently with 4G LTE I'm getting about 100Mbps down / 50Mbps up consistently using 300+ gigs a month for a mere $45 bucks/month (through SimpleMobile) by streaming ATTwatchTV ($15/mo for around 30 of the most popular live TV channels including Discovery and ID;) up to 20 hours/day. I stream TV on my phone while on the go, and ChromeCast it to my large screen TV when at home. So it's absolutely possible to save over those vampire cable companies. ;D I used to pay around $150 for cable TV and web. And when I say "around" meaning it started out at $150 but it just kept going up every so often (#1 reason I ditched them!). So far for the past four years I've been paying $60 total for all my TV/web needs), for which I get exactly what I was using before with the added bonus of being totally mobile (TV/web travels with me just about anywhere I go:).

[@MrJay197409]

I have said this for years if digital tuner can be built into tv so can a cable box converter. Of course Cable companies would rather sale or rent you a box.

[@kerajit]

I actually work for a company that produces software for the stb. I thing that there were a successor it is called CI (common interface) and still a lot of TVs has them. But the market is moving towards cardless CAS (Conditional Access System), since it is cheaper than a box with card. CAS vendors like Conax, Verimatrix, Irdeto etc. also certify boxes and software since they guarantee security of the content. Besides, cardless stb-s need to be individualized in the factory. Long story short, yeah, probably while there is paid linear TV experience, we will have STBs in our homes (and thank god for that, since that is my job).

[@jorgereynoso5629]

Silicon Dust I think is finally making some headway with the US cable monopoly... They were able to get their app approved to decode DRM protected channels... love their tuner . HDHomeRunPrime.

[@alphya0496]

I must say that here in Japan cable cards is what became the norm. You need a card and it's more like an ID for your TV and you can buy any channel from any provider without needing a full contact plan with them because almost all companies home move on the same Gov Owned cable structure and "rent it" to provide their services. It's the same with common people House internet connections.

[@cpufreak101]

Erick Wright but also don't forget, Japan is generally quite ahead on innovation curves, and in the US the cable infrastructure isn't government owned, every cable company has to run their own lines, which is also why many people only have one option for internet and TV

[@benitollan]

You need somewhere to go store your cables...

[@ErtugrulOzdemir-mf1gl]

lmfao

[@AlFasGD]

@@ErtugrulOzdemir-mf1gl what are you doing here, aren't you dead?

[@RazvanBalica]

In Europe we use CI+ NagraVision cards. All TVs have slots for these and they work wonderful.

[@XenoTravis]

I used to have software on my computer 12 years ago that let me watch cable TV. it came with a remote that would even move the mouse.

[@adaboy4z]

I sold my old Dell laptop that had a tv tuner with an cable/antenna connection. I should have kept it just for that reason!!

[@XenoTravis]

@@adaboy4z Yeah I wish those were in all computers but I'd assume they would take up a lot of space.

[@cpufreak101]

I got a PC like that second hand from my great aunt, even had recording functionality. However it's effectively useless now as it'll only work with an analog signal, which the cable provider stopped sending out

[@F3nya]

Here in Estonia 2 of the 3 major cable providers still offer a cablecard (not sure if it's the same standard you were talking about in the video, but it's a dvb-c standard and it looks just like what you showed in the video) and all tvs sold here still have a slot for it and come with a built in tuner. also the tv built in guide and dvr works with that cablecard too.

[@FrancisLitanofficialJAPINOY]

DVB-C J.83A/C ? , but in North America, they used 256 QAM and DVB-C J.83B.

[@RexAQuinton]

My personal favorite part is that it doesnt have to be a big clunky box. the cable box's that I installed in hotels or at times customers houses/rv's were just about the same size as a wallet. they allowed for full functionality of 2 way signal and again, no bigger than a wallet. But im sure the literally 20 year old box's that the customer didnt get a say in is exactly what they want. OOHH fun fact, if enough people cut the cord on cable then these "you must have one of these providers to access this completely unrelated content" scams that are still fully legal for some reason would instantly die out because they would have to adapt or go the way of the dinosaurs. We as a society get ripped off because we let ourselves be ripped off for 30 years already and just view it as "normal practices".

[@RexAQuinton]

How can we have 10 dollar a month services that give me access over the internet to almost everything offered on all cable providers, but the cable companies are able to somehow justify a literal 10x price hike, less support, more outdated equipment/methods of delivery, and still convince us to ignore next months price hike

[@RexAQuinton]

Could you try a complete thought? Perhaps just start with some context that makes the first 3 words, that somehow ask a question, make sense. . .

[@RobinFlysHigh]

@@RexAQuinton She was responding to what you said

[@raymondleggs5508]

A lot of people have older Flat-sreen tv's lol that have Analogue tuners. The LCD tv's from 2005-2009 were built like tanks and cost quite a lot 80% of them still work better thsn the new cheaper ones which have mediocre picture compared to them.

[@fifthgeneration3371]

I don't understand why cord cutting isn't viable now. The best service hands down is KZbin TV. Has a ton of channels, and local channels for only $40 a month. Yes I know you still need internet but you don't need to bundle anything or pay rental fees. If you don't need internet and just basic cable, go to Walmart and pick up a $20 HD Antenna. Works just fine. there are plenty of options out there now with most people hanging on to live TV for sports and other live events

[@marcossffilho9089]

I love the "Remember This?" at 1:05 when it's actually what most Brazilian houses are buying today since we're still moving from analog to digital.

[@Maxxarcade]

They should just start removing the tuners from new TV's and make them a few bucks cheaper. Anyone who has cable and/or some form of set top box has no use for the tuner anyway. And for that matter, just get rid of all the extra processing crap that causes input lag and start selling them as large monitors instead.

[@RexorProxer]

The more important question is when do you upload a new video ?

[@RobinFlysHigh]

People who want truly free tv still need the tuner

[@timkallstrom]

I'm a Spectrum tech. I tell my customers to just get one cable box so you get the app included for free. You can stream live TV and on demand. Plus get access to TV everywhere apps.

[@RailfanSrikrishna]

recently i bought an smart tv and just wondered why do we still need separate device for cable connection when tvs have there own processor and ram

[@arkadyutisarkar6630]

Why the heck do we need cable connection at all ? 😝😂

[@clayton5586]

Check out the hdhomerun. Uses a TV card and I can run 3 tuners off it. You can setup a digital DVR as well. Supports drm where I'm located.

[@christophernugent8492]

Also, I just want to put it here that Hulu offers many TV channels for streaming via their premium service.

[@notosure2148]

Don't forget those old cable boxes they're still pushing use a ridiculous amount of watts are super inefficient, and are usually left on 24 hours a day. They have the technology to make cheaper, lower power, more efficient cable boxes, but refuse to swap them out for those crappy old ones.

[@SkyLinMegas]

Ditched those greedy bastards back in 09 ... Haven't had cable since ... Never looked back

[@SenileOtaku]

We found there wasn't really anything on CableTV that we *really* needed to see; all too often we were just switching on the TV and seeing if there was anything vaguely interesting on at the moment. We were watching a lot more Netflix and (at least for me) Crunchyroll, and other than something like Dr. Who (which was only on for a few weeks each year anyway) didn't have any other shows we were avidly watching. So out went the cable boxes. As for those channels that insist on me having a cable subscription to watch their streams that ALREADY CONTAIN COMMERCIALS; I have a large queue of things to watch on Crunchyroll, Netflix, Hulu, plus DVDs of older shows. I'll never catch up on *those* queues, so if they want to make it difficult (and expensive) for me, I have more than enough content to watch without them.

[@robk5969]

in most of the world, we dont need to pay, no cable companies, we have "free to air"

[@cashwood]

Robert K the US has it too but it is not very well known

[@vincenzoscardigno4764]

that's what they make you believe, in europe, specifically in italy you pay a fee for shit television and it's not a choice and if you want to see good television you have to pay more contracts to satellite television

[@robk5969]

@@vincenzoscardigno4764 well, i was talking about "most of the world", which excludes the few places that you have to pay fees (so excludes europe)

[@slashtiger1]

This video is *HEAVILY* geared toward the US! In the EU, there are a plethora of TVs with so-called Common Interfaces (kind of similar to CableCard), and the CSPs have modules that fit in these slots. They allow for virtually EVERYTHING (and sometimes even more) a cable box would...! The only thing that _could_ still hold a user to a cable box here, is that these can offer _additional_ applications (i.e. access to features that are not yet available in the modules that the companies provide for non-box viewers). Think of IPTV-only channels, for example. But I bet it is but a question of time, before this will be available within the modules as well.

[@akhil2024]

Omg 200$ bill. That's what people make in a month over here 😂😂

[@Stick_official1]

Akhil V Nair AT&T Pays Me $190

[@robertoaguiar6230]

I feel you bro

[@JmBvhntnt28]

Or...its people like me who didnt yet know of the extistence of the sites you listed here. Think of people who dont have internet. Thank You btw. :)))

[@BillAnt]

@Jamel Best < No problem, this is what the internet is great for, sharing of great info. :) Course no guarantees that those providers won't increase their prices, in fact Philo just did from $16 to $20 so hopefully it won't go any higher. These budget streaming services work great along with over the air TV antenna to to be able to watch a dozen or so local channels too. Philo has an interesting story behind it, from what I've read it used to be streaming service strictly on a collage campus, but due to popular demand they've opened it up for the general public. ATTWatchTV (which happens to contain most of my favorite channels like ID, History, etc.) is a "skinny" version of ATT's more expensive $50-100 DirectTVnow service.

[@honestypayswilde2083]

HERE UA,,, COST BASIC TV 160.00 A MONTH... A MORTAGE PAYMENT... CALLED CHARTER... DON T KNOW HOW TOOO RID OF IT

[@draconk]

In Spain we have IPTV that is offered by ISPs and they work as normal TV channels with schedule and also as netflix style where you can choose what to watch when you want

[@Techguyericd]

I love my TiVo and it uses Cable Card, sure getting comcast to pair a cable card is a pain in the ass, but the TiVo interface is a million times better than the crappy DVR's DirecTV, Dish, and cable offer.

[@CanuckGod]

Which was still one step ahead of Canada, cable companies here are all "set-top box or suck it".

[@thepincushionman7063]

Which is still the most ignorant thing you could waste your time with. That you'll never get back.

[@RobinFlysHigh]

I have Tivo, but it's from the cable company and I honestly dislike it

[@Otokichi786]

I live in an area surrounded by tall trees, which turned analog TV signals into snow. When TV signals went digital, NO TV at all, unless you prefer religious TV channels. Ever since the cable TV salesman came around in the 1970's, that's been the way to see local and cable TV. These days, analog cable TV has been replaced by digital cable, which now requires a "paid monthly" signal decoder box. I've since upgraded to Tier 1 Premium TV to keep the likes of Animal Planet and Turner Classic Movies. A side benefit of the change has been the availability of BBC America, Smithsonian, and Jay Leno's Garage. The DVR has allowed me break the "4 hour barrier" that recordable DVD used to impose, so things are quite different. "Cut the Cord"? If Charter Spectrum's cable TV rates rise to an unacceptable level, I too, will have to endure "buffering while streaming."

[@Serazasel]

This video is only relevant for US/Canadian residents. The rest of the world have already figured out how to deal with this stuff.

[@cpufreak101]

Daniel Sorensen not so much figured out but just doesn't have the same level of corporate greed

[@cpufreak101]

Callum b that is very true, as there's also much less demand for content in German versus English.

[@bigpod]

europe as far as im aware doesnt even use Cable any more they use IPTV at least in my part of Europe

[@dominikkuzila]

bigpodgurc Middle and eastern Europe definitely does, like Slovakia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Bulgaria and Romania. It's because the older generation doesn't know anything else than the traditional cable tv.

[@SegaSaturnSubs]

Even worse; Brazil never ever got DVR functionality from cable companies: people stopped recording shows once VCRs were dead, which makes it very obnoxious to watch cable TV as opposed to the US. I'll take the internet instead any day, thank you.

[@weatheronthe8s895]

In my area we get decrypted SD digital cable. It uses a technology called Clear-QAM. All you do is have a newer TV and scan for channels. This is the reason why there is a row for digital channels when scanning for cable channels on a TV. If you want anything not local in HD though you have to get a cable box. You also don’t get any of the channels you have to pay extra for like the movie channels. We do get the locals in HD though just on weird numbers. It’s actually very nice for using with my USB TV tuner to record full quality videos without any processing times or having to use component over HDMI with a capture card because of copy protection on the cable box.

[@nissanpacific9793]

My entire adult life I haven't paid for a digital box let alone "cable TV" 👀 the only bill I pay is the internet and I still can stream all my good shows and movies. The only people I know my age that have digital TV are Sports ball enthusiasts like my brother but he just uses the Xfinity app on his laptop to watch his sportsball

[@ScooterinAB]

SOme people like to watch tv. Not everything is available via streaming.

[@CommodoreFan64]

Scooter Campbell There are services like PSVue(the best if you don't care about Viacom Bullshit), SlingTV, DirectTV Now, KZbinTV, etc.. that offer cable channels via streaming with box like a ROKU, or via a web browser with app logins depending on the service.

[@RobinFlysHigh]

Sports ball lol

[@asphere8]

I work for a small telecom here in Canada. Thankfully, we offer the first STB for free (no rental fees), and most customers only need/want one STB anyway. And the signal is sent over fibre optics to the home rather than copper cable. It's cool!

[@Raspi454]

RGB cable boxes will definitely turn a profit, but they'd have to be addressable, and sync with our case fans.

[@grahamb7947]

not so hard to find a TV with a cable card slot. Just buy one Europe lol. Samsung and Sony TVs stil include Common Interface slots for compatability with providers who still provide CI cards. My personal TV had a CI slot in the box, which can be added to the back of the TV via an expansion port, which by default has a label taped over it to keep the back flat for those who don't need it, while giving the option for those who do, to well, have one.

[@thelemonlama2722]

How many time did linus say ’against’ in this video?

[@DRBlol]

Here in Europe, at least here in The Netherlands we still use cablecards (aka CI+ modules). And here are plenty manufacturers who make does kind of slots for does CI+ modules. I use here in The Netherlands (Ziggo (one of the cable companies out here). But we can also stream pay-view on an app.

[@yasith2426]

Cause how else can Linus contact his parents?

[@musicman8270]

Walk up the stairs from the basement?

[@yasith2426]

@@musicman8270 ha ha! 🙃

[@apollo0117]

But what about HD Home Run Prime, Plex DVR and or tvheadended. The former combo auto pulls muxes from unencrypted epg channels on digital cable. Given its not a easy setup and only took 3 cable techs coming onsite and 5 cable cards for them to realize “we never provisioned your account with channels”

[@animus444k]

I work for an ISP. The reason we prefer using our own set top boxes is simple. Standardization. Its easier to identify and troubleshoot problems when all your hardware is the same instead of treating each case as a separate and unique issue. Why even use set top boxes? Blame the networks.

[@jpulley]

I have a tivo with a Cable Card it allow 8 digital streams to be watched or recorded. The main box serves the smaller tivo mini's which are clients. Works really smoothly.

[@gungan5822]

I bought my cable boxes. I haven't paid rental fees in years.

[@mac4thewin]

I don’t know the whole of it for the uk but our satellite tv from a company called sky requires both a box and a viewing card in the box in order to watch but when u upgrade services to day a new service from them with a new box, they leave the old box with the customer and that’s how I got all my 500gb hard drives 😂 think it same for cable here in the uk as well as they also have a viewing card for there box’s

[@rmgf1005]

"Why Do We Still Need Cable Boxes?" So they can charge you monthly for them!

[@anniemason993]

Not if you buy your own!

[@spencerwaters5962]

I work for comcast through a 3rd party and they actually offer whats called stream tv that is in beta still at the moment and already has an app on samsung tvs and another app for roku devices. The really cool part is that it does NOT require a set top box in the customer's home and because its considered a 'tv' service, it doesn't count against your monthly data cap for internet. Any content that is streamed through their app, is not counted as 'internet' streaming but instead 'tv' content. The stream app also offers a few hours of dvr amongst other things. The channel lineup isn't identical yet (meaning not all channels are available) but its growing. There are also options from hulu live tv, youtube live tv, playstation live tv, directv live, and a few others on the market already with true live showings. Anyway if you guys want more information about this I would be more than willing to communicate and share links and such where this information is located.

[@paulelunico]

I only have satellite TV because I dont want miss my favorite soccer games live. Which are really hard to find online and in HD. Other than that I dont watch regular tv most of the time. I rather streaming. Btw I only pay $15 a month and sometimes I even think is too expensive for what I use it.

[@greenstorm5568]

Have you tried pluto TV? They got an MLS channel that shows soccergames 24/7. Also, in case of something like a world cup, an ota antenna should get the job done on fox or cbs

[@chili_d]

Interesting how people are changing the subject to being about ditching the cable company It’s not about ditching cable companies, but if boxes are necessary. No. Even the biggest companies are working with content companies/broadcasters to stream without cable company boxes as you mentioned. (roku/Apple TV etc). Be careful what you wish for. Getting rid of the cable company would certainly force the content creators to charge more. Streaming services have razor slim margins and their agreements with cable companies allow them to produce with minimal gain or even a loss. Similar to phones losing their carrier subsides over the last couple of years.

[@The_Nerd_King]

I want cable on the internet (Pluto tv doesn't count). Direct tv now is headed in the right direction! Just make a better deal for us ya greedy basturds! I haven't used cable since I got my apartment, just internet and roku for me. And my grandma had one of those oldschool tv's btw 0:07.

[@Jono0301]

you want IPTV then

[@cba5289]

Here in the Philippines, we have so many cable operators around the country. In our cable subscription, we don't have cable tv box, so it's easy to buy a splitter and split the cable into different TV's on the different part of the house as many times as you like and we just have to pay 1 subscription. I think unless you're a subscriber of a cable company called "Sky Cable", I think they have cable boxes.

[@kahrnivor]

You don't. Apps are quickly making them obsolete.

[@rxibot]

And you're wrong. You're spending how much on that app? Guarantee it's more than what you're spending per Channel. That's the reason why they're giving you the apps in the first place cuz they know that they can charge you more money.

[@CommodoreFan64]

rxibot Sorry, but you are wrong, I use to have DirectTV that cost me $121 a month, now I have Roku Express boxes with PSVue $40 a month because I like sports(also gives me tons of app logins for sports like ESPN, Fox, etc..) Netflix $10.99 a month and WWENetwork 9.99 a month( I like my wrestling), and that's $61 a month, which is 1/2 of what I was paying before, and that's not counting all the free content on ROKU, the free TV I get via OTA, and everything else online like KZbin. And if you don't want to spend a dime beyond your internet cost ROKU boxes have tons of apps with free content like PlutoTV which claims 10 million users, and has apps for Android, IOS, and can be watched via their website, and again Free OTA with a simple antenna. the myth of apps costing more is BULLSHIT!!!

[@kahrnivor]

I work for Spectrum. Pretty sure I know what's up. The app is far cheaper than a TV package with box rentals. There is a plan now that let's you choose your channels.

[@cpufreak101]

kahrnivor when my stepfather, the most anti-tech person I know started watching the News from their webstream instead of over cable, I knew that it was gonna be time for us soon to switch. Now we only just leave a cable box plugged into the living room TV so we can use the cable companies streaming apps

[@insane0042]

When i lived with my roommate in my last apt. we used cable cards and it was great. Not only did it reduce cable cost a lot due to not having to rent a box, or pay for the insurance and other gov. fees that go along with having that box. I could get cable TV on my computer in my room, while still retaining tv in living room and my friend's computer (we had multiple cards we bought). I still have some HD hockey games saved on my HDD.

[@beavis4763]

BitTorrent is the answer.

[@seepranavg]

what about live stuffs?