The idea of à la carte entertainment resonates with consumers. No one wants to pay for content they don’t consume. That said, the race to adapt audio and video distribution models to trending consumer behavior is turning into a hot mess. How many streaming services are too many? And will consumers run out of money?
Inconspicuous innovation is a core theme at CES® 2016, and the tools of engagement for multichannel and omnichannel media distribution and marketing will be hiding in plain sight.
2016 will be another transitional year for the television industry. Everyone has a personal story about cord cutting and skinny bundles and the death of television, “You know nobody watches TV anymore … by the way, can you believe what Meredith said to Cali’s girlfriend on Grey’s last night?” And, absolutely everyone has a personal timeline for the advent of à La Carte cable programming. “Consumers want it … it’s going to happen soon.” While behaviors and timelines can be debated, in practice, there are only a few ways to accomplish 4K (UHD) or HD viewing on a big screen TV without a cable set-top box. Here is a quick overview of five streaming TV devices (in no particular order) that are on the front lines of the fight for cable independence.
Perhaps a better title for this article would be "TiVo BOLT – For People Who Love to Be Informed, Enlightened and Entertained by Watching Free Over-the-Air Television or IP-Delivered Traditional Television Content Through a Set-Top Box Rented from a Cable, Satellite or Telco, but Hate the Commercial Advertisements that Subsidize the Content." No matter how you spin this, the TiVo BOLT is a referendum on the state of the commercial television business. After all, you don't really hate TV; you really hate TV commercials. You probably also hate the experience of trying to get all of your content to play on your big-screen TV. This is all about to change.
According to some new rumors, Apple will have to delay the announcement of its "live" Apple TV streaming service until sometime in 2016 for two excellent reasons: 1) Apple is having trouble making content deals, and 2) Apple has no idea how much bandwidth it's going to need to deliver the service.
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