[mythtv-users] Zap2it Subscription

[Jack Trout]

Well in some cases the cable companies can do this with just your
viewing habits from your set-top boxes, and those that use directtv
like devices that require you to have it connected to the telephone
line 24/hours a day must realize they arent using the dialup modem to
download your guide data to your box, Most privacy statments do say
they will not give out personally identifiable data, and being that
data-direct interface software is open source, I doubt people would
allow it to use the microsoft route of assigning your computer an
identifiable fingerprint, generally they use it just like ratings, and
also for the software suggestion part, like tivo which records or
suggests shows based on your viewing habits, (a myth module is in dev
with this same feature) and even without identifying info it is data
worth culling for research purposes (which of course they can sell) to
recover the cost of bandwidth, bandwidth is cheaper than it used to
be, but it still isnt free, I think there should be an option where if
they did want the info you also have the option to opt out and pay
amount X or submit to providing the info without identifiable
information, if they do want an email account last time I checked
hotmail accounts are free :-D


On Tue, 2 Nov 2004 13:48:43 -0800 (PST), Joe Votour <joevph at yahoo.com> wrote:
> Myself, I'd rather pay $1 or $2 per month for the
> guide info than tell them what I'm recording.  (But if
> they tried to make it higher than that, I'd stop using
> their services all together).
> 
> It's not that I feel I'm doing anything wrong or
> taboo, I just don't feel that they have a need for
> that sort of information.  Nor would I want it being
> sold to the highest bidder who would then find a way
> to correlate it to my address (postal or e-mail), and
> then flood my mailboxes with junk mail.
> 
> -- Joe
> 
> 
> 
> --- Andrew Plumb <aplumb at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> > On Tue, 2 Nov 2004 09:36:50 -0600, John Dickson
> > <jman at neonramp.com> wrote:
> > [deletia]
> > > Ultimately I believe they will be charging. I
> > think the pricing model for services that are
> > offered from Tivo and the like will be similar to
> > what one might expexct for home use. Protecting this
> > service from use at the small business level may be
> > their biggest challenge.
> > [rest deletia]
> >
> > Interesting info; thanks for the details, John.
> >
> > I wonder if, in the interests of keeping access to
> > the Zap2It service
> > free for the MythTV personal-use community, there
> > might some
> > opportunity for an opt-inable uploading of scheduled
> > recordings in
> > exchange for accounts which don't expire.  Not every
> > exchange of
> > services need be in monetary form, as we all witness
> > daily in the open
> > source software community.
> >
> > The MythTV development+user community provides a
> > dynamic base set of
> > data on which to test preference algorithms and the
> > like.  Naturally,
> > the data they gather will be heavily skewed toward
> > tech/sci-fi
> > material, but it's something versus nothing. :-)
> >
> > Thoughts?
> >
> > Andrew.
> >
> > --
> >
> > If you don't know what to do, do something.
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