[Sul-Matuul]

Yeah i think the paywall doesn't help. It stops a lot of people from just putting it on to see how it is, and maybe some will like it? But locking it away means people are already on the attack against it even before they see it.
Sadly a lot of TV is that way now and it'll only get worse with everyone and their mother having a pay-per-view or streaming service. TV shows will be so spread out you'll either miss a lot of have to pay through the nose to see things...and they wonder why piracy is on the increase.....

[Rellimie]

I wonder how viewership would change if CBS took Discovery from being behind a paywall. That seems to be a drawback to the series itself. Admittedly I dislike paying to watch a show that has always been well "free" but I find the series good enough to warrant paying for it.

That doesn't mean that other individuals would share my sentiments. Some may not be able to afford the expense. But CBS has all but stated that Star Trek is their "cash cow" for All Access. Hence the development for additional Star Trek series that will be exclusive to the service as well.

Just a thought.

Isn't any show not on one of the 4 major networks behind a paywall though?

I really think shows like Star Trek, that are very niche, need to be on a streaming service. I do not believe they survive with the budgets they need relying on traditional ratings.

[Three of Seven]

I really think shows like Star Trek, that are very niche, need to be on a streaming service. I do not believe they survive with the budgets they need relying on traditional ratings.

I don't think that would actually help, if everyone had this mentality, and big companies had their own streaming services, you would end up with higher levels of piracy. You would have people who can afford these services having no issues, but people struggling with money, missing out, thus they end up pirating something they also want to watch. If Discovery wasn't on Netflix, I would not be watching it, I'm not paying for another streaming service, I don't have the money to throw around like that.

Also, I would argue that Discovery is not that niche, they have tried to make the show far more accessible to a wider audience, by trying out different methods of storytelling, like the Game of Thrones like scenes, or the Battlestar Galactica type. Discovery has thrown out a massive net to try and pull in as many people as it can.

But yeah, if I didn't have Netflix already, wouldn't be watching. Steaming services aren't the same as conventional television, you have to pay for each one separately, and they soon add up, a lot more than paying for cable.

[Rellimie]

I don't think that would actually help, if everyone had this mentality, and big companies had their own streaming services, you would end up with higher levels of piracy. You would have people who can afford these services having no issues, but people struggling with money, missing out, thus they end up pirating something they also want to watch. If Discovery wasn't on Netflix, I would not be watching it, I'm not paying for another streaming service, I don't have the money to throw around like that.

Also, I would argue that Discovery is not that niche, they have tried to make the show far more accessible to a wider audience, by trying out different methods of storytelling, like the Game of Thrones like scenes, or the Battlestar Galactica type. Discovery has thrown out a massive net to try and pull in as many people as it can.

But yeah, if I didn't have Netflix already, wouldn't be watching. Steaming services aren't the same as conventional television, you have to pay for each one separately, and they soon add up, a lot more than paying for cable.

Netflix is a paywall.
Battlestar Galactica, SyFy...Pay wall
The Walking Dead, AMC...pay wall
Game of Thrones, HBO...Pay wall
The Expanse, SyFy/Amazon...Pay wall
New Star Wars TV series, Disney Streaming Service...pay wall

It seems no one has a problem with these other shows that are behind a pay wall

I think the real issue is it's behind a pay wall they don't have. If it was on Netflix or Amazon, they probably wouldn't care.

As far as cost goes...

My Comcast Cable bill was $260/month

My streaming services bill

12/mo Netflix
11/mo Hulu
7/mo CBS AA
15/mo HBO
0/mo Amazon Prime (I don't count this because I purchase Prime for the shipping long before they had Video)

Internet 90/mo

Total - 135/mo

[Three of Seven]

Netflix is a paywall.

It seems no one has a problem with these other shows that are behind a pay wall

I think the real issue is it's behind a pay wall they don't have. If it was on Netflix or Amazon, they probably wouldn't care.

Netflix is a paywall yes, but if it was on Amazon or anything else, I wouldn't be watching it, too expensive to have so many subscriptions.

But looking at your costing, TV is crazy expensive in the US which must be why individual steaming services seem like a good option there. It's not such a good option for the UK, assuming we had all available streaming platforms, which we don't.

[Rellimie]

Netflix is a paywall yes, but if it was on Amazon or anything else, I wouldn't be watching it, too expensive to have so many subscriptions.

But looking at your costing, TV is crazy expensive in the US which must be why individual steaming services seem like a good option there. It's not such a good option for the UK, assuming we had all available streaming platforms, which we don't.

That must be the disconnect when discussing the streaming versus broadcast network. Yes, US tv services are insane in the US it’s almost always cheaper to buy several streaming services and High speed internet than to buy the tv/internet bundle from a provider.

[JByb04]

It also depends on your cable / internet provider.

I have Google Fiber for the Internet and pay 70.00 a month for 1000mbps. I didn't want cable, so I went with YouTubeTV, which is 43.00 a month. Which means my total internet / cable bill is 113.00 a month.

Comcast is horrible in terms of pricing. I had them when I was in Florida. I'm glad I had options when I moved to KC.

[Sul-Matuul]

UK TV pricing is slightly different as you must pay a licence for any TV but at least you are guaranteed a set number of channels included and several are commercial free which is awesome.
Plus you can get a fair stack of Freeview digital or Freesat channels for no cost other than the box to decode them.
Sure you can get Sky or other services too but there's actually a fair bit of TV available for almost zero cost already, not too shabby really.

But all these subscription services are starting to stack up now I find. You can't watch Star Trek, GoT, Westworld etc all in one place so you need to have 2-3 different monthly subs to cover all the shows you might like from the bigger networks. Thankfully though they are usually the kind where you can cancel any time though, so it's not so bad when there's nothing you want to see.

[JByb04]

Agreed

I usually cancel All Access after the season ends. I don't watch any of the other content on it.

Of course I have a feeling they will eventually want to have at least one Trek series running through the year to prevent just that.

[Saelanna]

Plus you had the worst fake baby in the history of modern television. My daughter has dolls that look more realistic (and yes I know it was a Klingon baby and therefore not real, but they could have made a bit more effort!).

[Rellimie]

It also depends on your cable / internet provider.

I have Google Fiber for the Internet and pay 70.00 a month for 1000mbps. I didn't want cable, so I went with YouTubeTV, which is 43.00 a month. Which means my total internet / cable bill is 113.00 a month.

Comcast is horrible in terms of pricing. I had them when I was in Florida. I'm glad I had options when I moved to KC.

I would love to have Fiber in my home. Right now I'm paying 90/month for 300Mbps and no cap. It's the only broadband available in my area.

- - - Updated - - -

Agreed

I usually cancel All Access after the season ends. I don't watch any of the other content on it.

Of course I have a feeling they will eventually want to have at least one Trek series running through the year to prevent just that.

My wife watches The Good Fight (which is actually not a bad show) and NCIS New Orleans....I'm looking forward to the new Twilight Zone myself

[Strathkin]

I liked how the Former Emperor was somehow recruited into Section 31.

Somehow I think she might like that role even better; and 'for the badge, I've heard of them, just never actually seen one'...

PRICELESS!

[rsciw]

Netflix is a paywall yes, but if it was on Amazon or anything else, I wouldn't be watching it, too expensive to have so many subscriptions.

But looking at your costing, TV is crazy expensive in the US which must be why individual steaming services seem like a good option there. It's not such a good option for the UK, assuming we had all available streaming platforms, which we don't.

Not just expensive, from what I understand regular TV channels throw in commercials every 3 to 4 minutes or something, which is rather ridiculous, and I'd pay for a sub as well to circumvent that (correct me if I'm wrong someone, please). Over here at least you get some commercial free ones (same in Germany), and here those with commercials only have them around every 15 minutes for a duration close to 5 minutes.

The one thing that bugs me though is the sort of secondary layer of a subscription, or additional sub to an existing one (or whatever the naming / phrase is), e.g. you can get Amazon Prime which includes Prime Video, but if you want to watch various Starz shows, hey, pay extra for Starz Channels. Fortunately for me Black Sails is in regular prime video in UK, but my friend in Germany had to pay the Starz extra sub to see it.

[Sul-Matuul]

The one thing that bugs me though is the sort of secondary layer of a subscription, or additional sub to an existing one (or whatever the naming / phrase is), e.g. you can get Amazon Prime which includes Prime Video, but if you want to watch various Starz shows, hey, pay extra for Starz Channels. Fortunately for me Black Sails is in regular prime video in UK, but my friend in Germany had to pay the Starz extra sub to see it.

Yeah that sort of thing is a pain in the arse. Amazon Prime generally is not worth the cost if you just want only the free next day postage, or only the streaming service.
But when you consider one a bonus to the other it becomes more palatable.