OTA Subchannel Streaming: To Stream or not to Stream?

[RedPenguin]

I have seen this topic discussed a little bit here and there occasionally but I haven't seen a big discussion on it.

Why exactly do some subchannel seem to stream while others seem like they could care less?

Originally I thought it was possibly rights issues but some companies like Sinclair do it for their entire subchannel group. Yet EW Scripps only does it with Court TV. Tribune/Nexstar seems like they never wanted to. MeTV does it in Chicago at least.

I'd figure in 2020 and the fact that subchannels are designed for "free access" for the viewer, that virtually every subchannel would want streaming.

I know sometimes ad rights get in the way, but it seems Sinclair fixed that by "blacking out" the ad-breaks and throwing web ads in instead.

So why with everybody having streaming devices and it becoming basically an "Internet World", do so many subchannels seem to not want to do streaming? Also many subchannels can't get in some DMAs, they could be in the entire country within hours via streaming.....

 

[mwdxer1]

Many places you can find most sub channels streaming on several devices. Decades I can only get off my big dish and not available OTA here (OR). I wish they would offer a stream. The Sinclair services like Comet, Charge, etc. They are happy to offer free streaming on STIRR and other sources. But i do feel in time the rest will be available.

 

[Mister B]

Yes, I would even pay a modest monthly fee for a package that includes almost every known sub-channel in one easy place with a guide and cloud DVR. We only have a few of them in English here in El Paso and several have incorrect guide data whether using Tivo, TitanTV or even the PSIP data straight from the station. Most times it is an east/west feed issue or someone can not understand that we are in the Mountain Time Zone although the rest of Texas is Central.

 

[Trip]

It very much depends on what rights are purchased. Rights that include streaming are more expensive (quite a bit more, I believe), so it's a business calculation--do you, as a network, believe you can make back the additional investment on streaming? Each network makes their own judgment on that.

- Trip

 

[mwdxer1]

Yes, I would even pay a modest monthly fee for a package that includes almost every known sub-channel in one easy place with a guide and cloud DVR. We only have a few of them in English here in El Paso and several have incorrect guide data whether using Tivo, TitanTV or even the PSIP data straight from the station. Most times it is an east/west feed issue or someone can not understand that we are in the Mountain Time Zone although the rest of Texas is Central.

Today we got a lot of new OTA channels sent out to our 5 translators. We finally have Antenna TV as well as getting Cozi. We had METV, Comet, and Get TV. But I wish someone would carry Decades. Thanks to 3.0, and the use of 49 KPDX and 32 KRCW (Portland OR), going to 3.0 the 1.0 went to stacking. We are going from 16 OTA offerings to 26! I am happy about that.

 

[ShawnHill1]

Yes, I would even pay a modest monthly fee for a package that includes almost every known sub-channel in one easy place with a guide and cloud DVR. We only have a few of them in English here in El Paso and several have incorrect guide data whether using Tivo, TitanTV or even the PSIP data straight from the station. Most times it is an east/west feed issue or someone can not understand that we are in the Mountain Time Zone although the rest of Texas is Central.

Perhaps the closest thing to that would be Locast, but that's if they're planning to expand there. In nearly every DMA they currently service, they offer all of the available diginets offed by the local stations. That said, Locast still needs a LOT of work--their program guide navigation is atrocious, and even if you make your monthly "donation", you still may get inundated with messages asking you to donate.

 

[mwdxer1]

Perhaps the closest thing to that would be Locast, but that's if they're planning to expand there. In nearly every DMA they currently service, they offer all of the available diginets offed by the local stations. That said, Locast still needs a LOT of work--their program guide navigation is atrocious, and even if you make your monthly "donation", you still may get inundated with messages asking you to donate.

The problem is that Locast is not in every city.

 

[RedPenguin]

My final question is, why is it when a channel does actually stream, it's barely acknowledged?

I've seen many channels like Court TV, Folk TV, Newsmax, and others act like they don't have a stream.

Their ads always seem to be like "Watch us OTA or some cable" but never mention "Watch us online also!".

Sinclair is probably the only one I seen really advertise by airing STIRR ads.

 

[mwdxer1]

My final question is, why is it when a channel does actually stream, it's barely acknowledged?

I've seen many channels like Court TV, Folk TV, Newsmax, and others act like they don't have a stream.

Their ads always seem to be like "Watch us OTA or some cable" but never mention "Watch us online also!".

Sinclair is probably the only one I seen really advertise by airing STIRR ads.

I have no idea, but some may be some 3rd party service. I think within the next few years about everything will be streaming.

 

[Nita]

It very much depends on what rights are purchased. Rights that include streaming are more expensive (quite a bit more, I believe), so it's a business calculation--do you, as a network, believe you can make back the additional investment on streaming? Each network makes their own judgment on that.

- Trip

Nice work!!!

 

[N5XZS]

Just wish the Albuquerque's TV market would get their act together by just get rid of duplicates channels like 3 METV and 3 Movies! and fill in new ones like Decades, Chedder news and BEin Sports extra.

 

[N5XZS]

Oh, I forgot to mention 3 H&I channels as well too.

 

[RedPenguin]

Also is "streaming rights" broken in to categories like are "Live" and "VOD" separate categories?

I ask because ShoutFactory TV recently got the rights to "The Carol Burnett Show/Carol Burnett & Friends".

They put everything up as VOD they claimed but I noticed something strange on their Live vs VOD.

The VOD version & the Live version aired a completly different version of the same episode.

I don't know if this is a fluke or if rights can be strange like that. I do also notice it's more likely to see Live vs VOD for a lot of subchannels/channels.