What is the reason for bundles of networks versus ala carte?
OK, probably not technical, but I'm looking for community understanding on this topic. From the very beginning of all cable services in the 80's, there have been bundles where some number of networks are pre-packaged together for some monthly amount. But there's only so much TV we can watch and often just a small selection of channels that we actually want. I might want 4 specific stations, and I'm very willing to pay for them. But they are only offered in bundles of 40+. Or worse, there might be 3 of those in one package of 40 and the other one in some other package of 20. Why has this industry never adopted an ala carte model where we only pay for what we use? Why don't networks insist on having their offering de-bundled so that we can pay for their services without having to lump them into a collection with others that we don't care about? Just in the name of survival, with streaming services and mobile apps providing more option for personalized programming, why hasn't Cox changed their model? Why do they prefer 100% of $0, when they can get some% of their pre-defined bundle pricing? If we ask Cox for a custom bundle of some number of specific channels, might they agree to sell us just what we want? Or are the pre-decided packages absolutely the only way to do business with Cox TV? Is there actually some technical reason why the boxes need to have access to specific ranges or numbers of channels? (I doubt it but need to ask) Do networks have a hand in determining the tiers in which they are bundled? Why are HBO and Showtime (and maybe a few others) the only examples of premium channels for individual activation? Why can't they All be sold with the same model? For the reason discussed here, we dropped Cox TV years ago. We pay for internet service, nothing more. But I'm happy to pay for what we consume. I want to give Cox my money for what I want. I do not want to give them More money for things I do not want - if we add a station, we'll pay the advertised price. That's the common model everywhere except for cable TV. Addiction being what it is, I'm sure that with this model we would probably get many stations. Or that we would want to pay for specific Live events. It's possible that we would want something like 20 stations, matching one of their bundles, but they would be the stations that WE want, not the ones that Cox wants to bundle themselves. Thanks for thoughts or solid information.