I'm Paying $$ to Have Ads Run DURING my Shows

News release

The 'Calm' Act has been voted into Federal Law and will go into effect Thursday. This means broadcasters will be required to not raise your television volume when they air commercials. This law was passed Oct. 3 of 2010, so it apparently must be brought back up to vote or it expires.
www.abovetopsecret.com...

I can only speak for myself but I know that I am one that would like 60 seconds in the ring with the suit and tie that actually believes it a useful tool for selling product and not annoying the hell out of the viewer!

It would seem like an easy enough fix for broadcasters, but solving the volume problem required advances in technology..
"The people who were creating the commercials learned how to exploit the meters and fly below the radar," Lund said. The result: blaring ads.

Okay so it seems we will finally get some relief, hopefully my hearing hasn't been damaged before hand.

Now, Let's have a look at what kind of daily punishment I am actually paying for:

Let's address these irritating mini-commercials that are running DURING my show, covering a quarter, at times seemingly half, of my screen!


I just love watching an intimate scene on a TNT movie then have the whole moment ruined because what's-her-lips from 'The Closer' prances onto the lower part of my screen, covering some of the good bits in the process.
It's bad enough I just sat through 60 seconds of commercials that I just saw before on the last two commercial breaks.

**********

I'm paying about $200 bucks a month for this? (the whole cable package).
Average 60 minute TV show is 36% ads
Prime time and late night are 50%!

Okay, when you download a free app for you phone, or ipad, you will most likely have some sort of ad running at the top or bottom of the screen. You can have those removed usually by actually purchasing the app.

So why am I paying for someone to intrude on my favorite show by popping up an add of somebody jumping around at the bottom of the screen? Sometimes accompanied with a brief sound!
I can understand if, like in the old days, when television was free (by antenna), an add would run between shows to pay for broadcasting. But now I'm paying for TV AND to be interrupted with ads running between AND during the shows?

I can also understand a small ad to the side of a free video I'm interested in watching on-line, but to run a full screen, 30 second, kill me now, ad to run before I can check out a 20 second how-to tip...really??..

How many don't stick around to watch it, and just say 'screw it, not worth it'?

TV's New Space Invaders- Pop-up Ads

It appears that every time somebody develops the technology to automatically remove ads from recorded shows, they get sued. So, I'm not seeing us with an enabling function on our cable boxes anytime in the near future.
I believe with your PC wirelessly added to your TV via something like a wireless BlueRay player, you could record shows there and use some of the available software to automatically remove ads.
Commercial Skipping

reply to post by Lonewulph


I agree with you, I think the very worst is the adds on the screen during the show, it ruins what you are watching. Why by HDTV and all the extras and have that.

Also the volume thing, have to keep the remote in hand to mute commercials so we can talk. Very annoying!

Another thing I don't get...surely they must know if an add is annoying enough you will feel anger and never want to buy that product. An annoying commercial has never sold me anything!

great read
crazy when one thinks about this

When the idea of cable TV started to roll years ago, their selling point to the consumer was that since you were paying for the service, there would be no commercials. That didn't last very long.

Originally posted by butcherguy
When the idea of cable TV started to roll years ago, their selling point to the consumer was that since you were paying for the service, there would be no commercials. That didn't last very long.

then they removed broadcast tv to force the cable upon us
or was it to remove ability of "off the grid" broadcasting and receiving

reply to post by Lonewulph



People have always been complaining about ads but it has never bothered them

I think a protest is in order, you should cancel your cable and download your shows from pirate bay.

That is the only thing they will care about, if it affects their profit margin then they will take notice!

.

I agree completely! How many times have you been in the middle of a movie (scary ones especially), and out of the corner of the TV comes this little figure.........it's distracting, to say the least.

I also remember the days when cable first started, there were to be no commercials. And remember, it wasn't so expensive then either.

Same goes for the internet. I remember when there were no ads there, either. When I click on a video online, and see that I have to sit through a 1:01 minute commercial, I just go on to something else.

I stopped getting satellite telly 10 years ago, as I was paying for a service they sold to me as advertisement free - advertisements were only for free to air, and I'm paying for subscription tv.

They started putting in adverts between shows... ugh I can live with that I guess.
They started putting in adverts between segments in movies. Take my money, no please take it...

I still have the satellite dish. haha.. wish I knew what good I could put it to.. or shall I store it away for when tshtf and I can start WinoRadio using the only salvaged Foxtell satellite dish from 1999.

Mind you I don't pay a cent for tv now, and nor do I put up with insufferable advertisements for fast food, fast hard ons and fast floozies at 4am.

To think, in 1999 I couldn't compress small clips of video down small enough to be usable, or clear enough resolution wise to be enjoyable.
Now every show and it's offshoot has episodes under 200mb and if yo're blind as a bat like me, you don't notice the pimples are missing from that guys nose.

god who'd get up at 7am...

Originally posted by butcherguy
When the idea of cable TV started to roll years ago, their selling point to the consumer was that since you were paying for the service, there would be no commercials. That didn't last very long.

Yes! That had everything to do with me deciding to actually pay for TV. I remember people making a joke of it...'ha! paying for something I can get for free with an antenna!'

That's why all I listen to is XM radio, now I've noticed an increase in DJ's coming on between music on certain channels...

Originally posted by Char-Lee
Another thing I don't get...surely they must know if an add is annoying enough you will feel anger and never want to buy that product. An annoying commercial has never sold me anything!

They are very thorough with their market research, there is a billion dollar industry loaded with experts built up around targeting consumers. It doesn't seem like it works, but they know from their data that it does.

Originally posted by polarwarrior

Originally posted by Char-Lee
Another thing I don't get...surely they must know if an add is annoying enough you will feel anger and never want to buy that product. An annoying commercial has never sold me anything!

They are very thorough with their market research, there is a billion dollar industry loaded with experts built up around targeting consumers. It doesn't seem like it works, but they know from their data that it does.

So their research has proven that by showing obnoxiously loud commercials, and annoying popup ads during one's favorite show, actually improves sales of a particular product, or successfully promotes an upcoming scheduled program?

Where do they get their data? I simply cannot find one person who appreciates these aggressive advertising techniques.

reply to post by winofiend


So who do you get your service from now?

reply to post by Lonewulph


I hate advertisments. This is why i never watch TV anymore. I hate the ads at the start of Dvds. I even hate the up coming movie advertisements. I hate advertsining full stop. Advertising is made by Morons amnd encourages people to become as stupid.

Originally posted by Char-Lee
reply to post by Lonewulph

 

I agree with you, I think the very worst is the adds on the screen during the show, it ruins what you are watching. Why by HDTV and all the extras and have that.

Also the volume thing, have to keep the remote in hand to mute commercials so we can talk. Very annoying!

Another thing I don't get...surely they must know if an add is annoying enough you will feel anger and never want to buy that product. An annoying commercial has never sold me anything!

edit on 13-12-2012 by Char-Lee because: (no reason given)

Fortunately the ad volume will be regulated here in the US as of today. But like you, I simply cannot understand how or why they would think that, by interrupting my show with promotions of another show (or product) that I could care less about, I would like to watch that show or buy that product.
It only succeeds in pissing me off, and if nothing else, vowing to never watch that show, or buy that product, ever again!!

reply to post by AthlonSavage

I don't blame you, do you get all of your news from online resources then? Do get a daily paper? At least in the paper the ads are not nearly as intrusive as on tv or Internet ?

reply to post by Lonewulph

I don't blame you, do you get all of your news from online resources then?

Yes.

Newspapers arnt as bad but i have no use for them in this internet age.

Originally posted by AthlonSavage

reply to post by Lonewulph

 

I don't blame you, do you get all of your news from online resources then?

Yes.
Newspapers arnt as bad but i have no use for them in this internet age.

I see, how sad it is that we must choose a lesser evil because these broadcasters actually believe that this approach to reaching the consumer is actually profitable, when in reality, it appears that irritated people are actually moving away from television as a primary source of entertainment and information because of those tactics.
I'm saying that without doing the research, ...but does one actually need to do research to come to such a simple conclusion? Dont broadcasters see the writing on the wall?.. that consumers will move to the path of least resistance? That long term abusive behavior toward consumers will mean your eventual collapse?

Originally posted by Lonewulph
reply to post by winofiend

 

So who do you get your service from now?

Oh, mostly from the internet, or free to air digital which does have adverts but so did tellies in 1980. I can live with that.. lol

It's EZ to find TV around .it if you like tv though and can't for some reason get it locally.

That is part of the reason why I don't watch t.v. anymore, I just catch all my shows online now. It is much more convenient for me that way, and I only pay $15 for internet.

There is a very popular software that I use that blocks ads on websites including Youtube ads, it is called Adblock Plus. I use it as a plugin for Chrome. Just wanted to make you aware of it.

reply to post by TheIllusiveMan


Noted thanks. But how in the world are you paying only $15 for internet? Is it broadband or dsl or...?