Optimum Select??

Optimum Select??
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JohnILM @ 17th Sep 05:15PM:
Optimum Select??

This is what they are wasting their time and resources on?? Come on guys.

»www.itvt.com/story/5660/cablevis···m-select
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anon @ 17th Sep 06:00PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

u may think its waste of time but its a big money maker
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kickass69 @ 17th Sep 06:13PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Of course, anything to shove more 'interactive' ads in our faces so they can get a cut off of who presses select on their remotes to inquire more about this bs. Get new/updated boxes with more memory and update the 80s/early 90s IPG instead.

"Cablevision claims to have conducted extensive consumer research for the development of Optimum Select. According to the company, the research showed that consumers want more from their TV experience, but are skeptical about interactive TV "due to the fact that it has been discussed for many years but never truly realized." "

Right...this is just what consumers really wants...a way to outdo HSN and QVC at what they do. Only difference is we won't be able to turn it off.

" In addition, Cablevision says it will next year launch an Optimum Select Commerce feature that will allow viewers to make purchases directly through the TV."

Just what we've come to expect instead of real interactive tv aka interactive polls, quizzes, and so on depending on what we're watching.
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JohnILM @ 17th Sep 08:26PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

A big money maker for me??? Nope. Hence a waste of time.

And how many times have you clicked the C button to use the "shortcuts to ppv" menu? More wasted time. And when you work at the snail's pace of CV, time wasted is serious business.
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majortom1029 @ 17th Sep 08:42PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

You guys find it a waste of time but i am sure the advertisers are paying cablevision big bucks to do it.

Its just like those home shopping network channels. Those are a waste but still taking up space.
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JohnILM @ 17th Sep 09:51PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by majortom1029 :

You guys find it a waste of time but i am sure the advertisers are paying cablevision big bucks to do it.

Its just like those home shopping network channels. Those are a waste but still taking up space.

I am sure CV is making big bucks from it. That does nothing for me. They are making big money from us with their charges. Now I am not saying I want the service for nothing. I am more than happy to pay as long as I feel they are providing (and updating) their services accordingly.
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Jmartz @ 17th Sep 09:59PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

The shopping channels pay for carriage and also share profits with the cable companies.
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MxxCon @ 17th Sep 10:44PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

but i gotta say it's a nicely produced commercial.
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sharksfan3 @ 18th Sep 02:05PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Good thing I use a cableCARD... on second thought, TiVO likes to shove ads down my throat too. With that I say to you guys, welcome to the party!
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anon @ 18th Sep 08:33PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

some of those shopping networks are "must carries" so they don't pay to be carried by the cable company.
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mbernste @ 19th Sep 06:02AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by adman :

u may think its waste of time but its a big money maker

Anything that makes them money and takes the pressure off of raising our rates works for me!
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Tradewind @ 19th Sep 08:50AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by mbernste :

said by adman :

u may think its waste of time but its a big money maker

Anything that makes them money and takes the pressure off of raising our rates works for me!

here, here
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JohnILM @ 19th Sep 05:58PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by mbernste :

said by adman :

u may think its waste of time but its a big money maker

Anything that makes them money and takes the pressure off of raising our rates works for me!

Unfortunately they don't stop raising rates.... and in fact, they'll probably use it as justification for raising rates.
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anon @ 21st Sep 11:51PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

kinda like your wasting time here bashing cablevision for being innovative :-p

sorry but a publicly traded company like cablevision answers to investors and not JohnILM. u are just one of 3 million of their subscribers. they will do what's in their best interest and as other people pointed out if it makes money it may keep rates in place which DOES effect u.

said by JohnILM :

A big money maker for me??? Nope. Hence a waste of time.

And how many times have you clicked the C button to use the "shortcuts to ppv" menu? More wasted time. And when you work at the snail's pace of CV, time wasted is serious business.

JohnILM @ 21st Sep 11:55PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by litterman :

kinda like your wasting time here bashing cablevision for being innovative :-p

sorry but a publicly traded company like cablevision answers to investors and not JohnILM. u are just one of 3 million of their subscribers. they will do what's in their best interest and as other people pointed out if it makes money it may keep rates in place which DOES effect u.

You must be a stock holder. When does it ever keep rates in place??? News12, Shortcut Menu, Optimum Select --- all things that Cablevision will push to justify raising rates.
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majortom1029 @ 22nd Sep 07:50AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

First off ALOT of people love news12. Maybe nobody on these boards but I know a couple of people who moved back from fios just because of news12.

So dont bring news 12 into this. Also he said if optimum select makes cablevision money it WILL keep rates in place not raise them.

Also cablevision raises rates due to the channel holders raising their rates. Blame all the media companies for that.
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JohnILM @ 22nd Sep 04:40PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by majortom1029 :

First off ALOT of people love news12. Maybe nobody on these boards but I know a couple of people who moved back from fios just because of news12.

Were any of them under 65? I josh, I josh.

said by majortom1029 :

So dont bring news 12 into this. Also he said if optimum select makes cablevision money it WILL keep rates in place not raise them.

It WILL? Does caps make this definite? Where is the press release that says this? Seriously, I am not being crass, I want to see it.

said by majortom1029 :

Also cablevision raises rates due to the channel holders raising their rates. Blame all the media companies for that.

Again, like I've said, I really don't care about the prices... as long as I see an attempt to improve. I am a CV customer and if I didn't like their services, I am lucky to have options ... I could always leave. That wasn't the point of this. I'll put it this way to be more fair to poor ol' Cablevision. I wonder how much time and resources they wasted coming up with revolutions like Optimum Select and Shortcuts?
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anon @ 23rd Sep 01:15AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

ur angry posts make it seem optimum select came to your house and took your kids.

why so much hate for a feature and how would you know how much resources was devoted to this project? revenue from a 65 year old is as good as revenue from a 20 year old angry punk.
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TheWiseGuy @ 23rd Sep 09:40AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by JohnILM :

Again, like I've said, I really don't care about the prices... as long as I see an attempt to improve. I am a CV customer and if I didn't like their services, I am lucky to have options ... I could always leave. That wasn't the point of this. I'll put it this way to be more fair to poor ol' Cablevision. I wonder how much time and resources they wasted coming up with revolutions like Optimum Select and Shortcuts?

Unfortunately it really is not your concern as a subscriber but would be a concern if you were a shareholder. Your concern as a user is are they giving you the service you need at a price that is acceptable. You have already admitted that is the case, as you have options and have not left.

Their primary responsibility is to the shareholders, that means they must figure out how to balance price and features for users to maximize their income while competing with Verizon. Of course this does mean they must do things to keep subscribers. They do publish 10Qs and 10Ks that explain their revenue and expenses so it is pretty easy to analyze their operations versus other companies.

said by JohnILM :

I wonder how much time and resources they wasted coming up with revolutions like Optimum Select and Shortcuts?

To start with any money they put into Select they probably expect to recoup with ads, ie the whole purpose was for it to enhance the ability of advertisers to actually sell to people making ads more valuable.

I really have not spent a lot of time analyzing their books but given a revenue of around $3 Billion dollars per year for video alone, they don't need to get a large percentage of subscribers to like a feature like Shortcuts for it to benefit them by keeping subscribers in their competition with Verizon.

If it has not become obvious to you, both CV and Verizon would prefer to not get into a price war but to compete based on the features of their service. Again it does not take a high percentage of users to like a service for it to be valuable to either company./Edit: part of competing on services versus price, is in areas where FIOS is starting to be offered, CV to keep from losing customers, seems to offer OV to those with iO and OOL for a slight reduction in price. This is their attempt to add features/service while trying to maintain revenue. End Edit/

To analyze the decisions you really have to look thoroughly at their business and what they are trying to accomplish. Look at their 10Qs, 10Ks and analyst reports. I have not done this but the little I have read indicates at least on the core cable business they are considered one of the better operations. Now before someone responds by comparing their cable boxes with say Comcast, I am not talking about evaluating their services offered from a subscriber basis, I am talking about what a Shareholder might look at in evaluating the company.
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ironwalker @ 23rd Sep 10:52PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

I do not use any of cablevisions interactive channles, there to slow or don't work at all.
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JohnILM @ 23rd Sep 11:33PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by ironwalker :

I do not use any of cablevisions interactive channles, there to slow or don't work at all.

Exactly ... they are, for all extensive purposes, useless. (IMHO)

I wouldn't exactly say I am angry ... I am frustrated. Sure their "responsibilities" are to their shareholders... but at the expense of us little ol' subscribers? Where would CV and their shareholders be without subscribers? How would shareholders feel if subscribers saw through the smoke and mirrors that innovations like Shortcuts and Select were just means to milk more money from the subscribers and by chance became upset/angry/frustrated with aged technology and decided to jump ship to test the waters. Even if they don't like it and return, that's missed revenue in between. Also as a subscriber who is relatively happy (at least enough to not leave) ... the fact that others are displeased enough to actually leave make me worry because all that lost revenue will be passed on to me (not shareholders) by means of higher rates.

I mean, honestly, how often has anyone actually clicked the C button after say 3 days of knowing about it? Again, I am serious, because I never click it and I see absolutely no worth in it, but I know that I don't speak for anyone but myself. Do people actually use it? Am I missing something?
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TheWiseGuy @ 24th Sep 08:07AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by JohnILM :

I mean, honestly, how often has anyone actually clicked the C button after say 3 days of knowing about it? Again, I am serious, because I never click it and I see absolutely no worth in it, but I know that I don't speak for anyone but myself. Do people actually use it? Am I missing something?

Sure, I looked to see the forecast quickly without leaving the show I was watching.

Don't assume what you want is anything close to what other people want. Don't assume they are not services the different groups of people they have subscribing will use just because YOU think the feature is lame.

I can assure you, that there are many different types of people who want different things and that this forum tends to have a specific type of individual, one who is much much more sophisticated when it comes to technology then the average user but at times has no clue as to what most people want in the service only what they want in the service.
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steevo @ 29th Sep 10:00AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Yea my family is using the button to check the weather.
Suggestion for Cablevision, add High School, College and Pro Sports scores to the tab. Anyone who wants real news will change the channel the news 12 one liners are all hokey nonsense.
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mws192 @ 21st Oct 11:08AM:
Re: Optimum Select??

New York — New York -- Cablevision Systems has signed deals with at least four marketers -- Unilever, Gillette, Benjamin Moore and department store chain Century 21 -- for its interactive TV service that lets digital-cable viewers click their remotes to get more information or product samples during a 30-second local ad spot.

The Optimum Select service, announced last month, lets viewers click an on-screen overlay in interactive-enabled ads whereupon the linear channel is "squeezed back" to the upper right-hand corner. Customers are then presented with additional information and can take an action, such as requesting a coupon. The feature, developed in-house by the operator, is available to Cablevision's 2.9 million New York-area digital-cable subscribers.......

......Meanwhile, Cablevision also is progressing on addressable advertising, which lets local advertisers deliver up to five different spots segmented based on a variety of demographic criteria. The MSO plans to expand the capability to all 2.9 million digital subscribers by mid-2010, Kline said. Cablevision is using technology from New York-based Visible World to dynamically deliver different ads to about 500,000 subs in Brooklyn and The Bronx.

In addition, Cablevision now provides same-day ad insertion into video-on-demand programming. Barry Frey, executive vice president of Cablevision's Advanced Platforms group, said the MSO has offered the capability for about six months, using a homegrown ad-insertion platform. Cablevision has not disclosed which VOD partners are taking advantage of that feature.

Later this year Cablevision plans to introduce Optimum Select Content Saving, which will let viewers "bookmark" VOD content for later viewing. In early 2010, according to the operator, it will launch Optimum Select Commerce to let consumers make purchases directly from TV ads.

»www.multichannel.com/article/365···ters.php
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limegrass69 @ 21st Oct 12:18PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Right...
So that we are clear...
We are paying $7.00 a month for a box in our house so that then they can jam ads down our throat?
Seems like they should be paying us for our demographic and viewing data.
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majortom1029 @ 21st Oct 12:24PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by limegrass69 :

Right...
So that we are clear...
We are paying $7.00 a month for a box in our house so that then they can jam ads down our throat?
Seems like they should be paying us for our demographic and viewing data.

I do not think your taking the whole picture into account. Look at cablevisions whole service compaired to other cable companies. I dont mind these marketing services if it helps cablevision keep up their level of service .

Plus its not effecting you since if you dont like it dont press the select button when the ad comes up.
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limegrass69 @ 21st Oct 02:39PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by majortom1029 :

I do not think your taking the whole picture into account. Look at cablevisions whole service compaired to other cable companies. I dont mind these marketing services if it helps cablevision keep up their level of service .

Plus its not effecting you since if you dont like it dont press the select button when the ad comes up.

I hear what you are saying, but I'm not sure I agree.
Cablevision passes through annual rate increases each year. They claim it has to do with the ever increasing costs of programming. I get that.
It's more than just the "SELECT" button thing. They have placed a device (more or less required at this point) where we are charged $7.00 a month. Cablevision then collects data on where we live and what we watch, then they monetize that information by selling it to advertisers. The advertisers can then specifically target households and insert ads based on the demographic information. A home in a certain zip code may receive a different ad if they watch a lot of ESPN vs. Lifetime or Oxygen.
It's not that I mind the targeted ads, I sort of object to the fact that we are not receiving compensation for giving up that data.
I don't think I would buy the argument that cable rates would be higher but for the fact that they can sell this data.

I get it. We have no privacy any more. The ISPs already sell your clickstream data. I guess this is no different. I just think you should be given the choice as to what data is shared, and perhaps be compensated for giving it up...since the entity who collects it is also getting compensated.
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TheWiseGuy @ 21st Oct 03:26PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Jam Ads down your throat? Networks and Cable companies already jam as many Ads down your throat as they can. What Select service does is allow someone who is actually interested in more information to get the information. If you are not interested all that will be different is that there will be a place to click during the ad. If you do not want more information or do not want someone to know you wanted more information, just don't click.
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TheWiseGuy @ 21st Oct 03:58PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by limegrass69 :

I get it. We have no privacy any more. The ISPs already sell your clickstream data. I guess this is no different. I just think you should be given the choice as to what data is shared, and perhaps be compensated for giving it up...since the entity who collects it is also getting compensated.

There are laws which protect your privacy.

»www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/47/us···00-.html

I don't believe they can sell much besides aggregated data, but I could be wrong.
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limegrass69 @ 21st Oct 04:23PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Here's what concerns me from the press release:

......Meanwhile, Cablevision also is progressing on addressable advertising, which lets local advertisers deliver up to five different spots segmented based on a variety of demographic criteria. The MSO plans to expand the capability to all 2.9 million digital subscribers by mid-2010, Kline said. Cablevision is using technology from New York-based Visible World to dynamically deliver different ads to about 500,000 subs in Brooklyn and The Bronx.

It seems to me that there is more to it that just offering coupons by clicking SELECT on the remote.
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TheWiseGuy @ 21st Oct 05:06PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Yes, though that is not select, that is the addressable advertising.

I can see where you might object, but in truth all they are trying to do is make advertising more efficient. Try and sell you things you might be interested in purchasing. You can Opt out of Mailing list info

»www.optimum.net/Privacy/Sub

If you subscribe to a Covered Service other than voice service, we may furnish mailing-list information to marketing organizations, programmers and other businesses. Mailing-list information includes your name, addresses, and the non-voice services to which you subscribe (for example, basic tier, HBO). The law allows us to disclose this information unless you tell us otherwise. IF YOU DO NOT WANT US TO DISCLOSE MAILING-LIST INFORMATION ABOUT YOU, PLEASE CALL US AT 1-888-425-2089. Please note, your opt-out preferences may not take effect immediately and cannot be applied retroactively.

and should if you are concerned. But does offering these targeted ads reduce your privacy, it might, if they could disclose more info then they already can, but I would think if they can already sell the data then it does not reduce your privacy. If they can not disclose more data all it does is allow them to show you a service or a product either which they think might be of more interest or in a different way to attract you more. I don't pay much attention to ads anyway so I can not get excited about this either way.

EDIT
I would agree that if the Demographic information is collected only from your personal viewing habits and is not based on the demographics for the area in general I would find it a major concern. But demographic information implies to me that it is not specific to the specific watcher, and I hope they are not moving in that direction.

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anon @ 30th Oct 05:00PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

said by JohnILM :

This is what they are wasting their time and resources on?? Come on guys.

»www.itvt.com/story/5660/cablevis···m-select

hii how do you get an optimum card from them
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UnnDunn @ 30th Oct 08:37PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Go to »optimumrewards.com. You must be a triple-play subscriber and cannot be an employee of Cablevision or its subsidiaries.
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anon @ 6th Nov 05:09PM:
Re: Optimum Select??

Everybody!

Take a looky at Shortcuts

They added new features.

Go to the New Search feature and explore the new stuff.

Works like TIVO now.
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