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Extra Channels: Worth It?

Extra Channels: Worth It?

A Discussion on whether it is a good idea to have Extra Viewing Channels available to you regardless of cost.

I have long wondered if renting Cable / DirectTV is really worth the investment?

On one hand there is plenty of educational stuff that can enlighten you, but on the other hand in order for that to happen you have to give it your time. This means that you have to be in one place long enough to watch it. Now with my work that is not much of a problem since I can get it done in one place, BUT then again what is being shown on the tube might be distracting enough that I do not work efficiently?

The positive is having access to News and Reviews when you want it. I know I for one can come up with a lot more ideas for the Community if I have outside info. Where I live you cannot even get the local stations properly and so you feel cut off from it all at times. However, you have to pay for this service and when you think of it in terms of how much you spend in a year to see cable you begin to wonder if that money could not have gone into something else? So at the end of the day are those Extra Channels really worth it?

It Worth Channels Extra

For me, having no cable service means having more control over what comes into my home. Commercials in the USA have become so foul and obscene, they are really pornographic - even on the so-called children's channels. I don't want that in my home.

On the other hand, as you stated JB, sometimes I feel cut off from current events. I have to access the web to get my headlines, but at least I can control the content. Yes, on some websites there are ads of a questionable nature, and even my email provider has ads from Victoria's Secret that I find are pornographic. However, in the long run, I think my time is better spent away from cable than with it. I don't have time to watch TV.

Extra Channels: Worth It? Sports & Fashion Music Movies

Those are good points. If your channels are kept only on History or Discovery or CNN then I do not see how you can go wrong save for the occasional commercial, but mostly I find the commercials on those Channels to be rather mundane and without any extraordinary marketing - this is the aspect of control. However, if one is likely to lose control or cannot control themselves then I definitely agree that Extra Channels is definitely not the way to go.

Concerning the time factor you are absolutely right, and I did make that point as well - you have to take time to watch these shows, and if one after the other passes you soon find yourself spending a lot of time sitting and watching. However, I think this is where the self-control element comes in again. Time spent watching selective history or the news is well spent. For me I do not totally watch anything, I let it run in the background and occasionally glance from monitor to TV screen just long enough to see what is the update.

It Worth Channels Extra

Sometimes the extra stuff is okay if it is specific to your liking. I mean if you can choose which channels you want rather than if they have them set in different packages and then you are forced to take the channel you want PLUS a whole set of crap.

It Worth Channels Extra

I feel people should have the ability to choose what channels they pay for. Why should people be forced to pay for stations that they, not only don't watch, but also don't agree with? Why should I pay for stations like the Home & Garden channel or the 5-10 shopping channels, the 10-20 24-hour news channels, or any other channel I will never watch?

Edited: haleray on 9th Nov, 2008 - 11:17pm

Extra Channels: Worth It?

I agree with Beowolf and haleray, it's all about the fact that you should have the choice that you're paying for, and not some sort of 'package' that they put together where half the channels you pay for, you have no interest whatsoever in, but have to get them to get the channels that you do want to watch.

I only pay for a minimal package, that doesn't include movies or sport, I don't think I can justify the huge price hike to receive these channels, but normally just for 1 month at Christmas, I pay for movies, but cancel after the month.