SKT Sky Network Television Limited.

[Stranger_Danger]

We abandoned Sky a couple of months ago and now watch everything by streaming using Kodi. We've found that our viewing pattern has completely changed. Instead of looking at what is available tonight, we have this vast library of TV and movies to choose from. It varies from programs like NZ: Mystical Islands narrated by Sam Neil which screened on BBC last week to all the old Dad's Army programs.
Now, the problem is finding out what's out there to watch, rather than having to watch what Sky thinks is good for us.

Correct - while I now have thousands of channels to watch, my real question is "What is the point of a channel?"

Far more likely is me picking and choosing the underlying content - I suspect I'll be watching "stuff" rather than a "thing" that shows selected "stuff" at a time that suits them.

The content creators have serious long term questions, and while content creation and funding will change, clearly there will be a demand for content, with big questions over price.

The content aggregators? It is really, really hard to see what future role they have, although I guess with the aging population they could all buy rest homes and have a captive customer base...

[Stumpynuts]

We abandoned Sky a couple of months ago and now watch everything by streaming using Kodi. We've found that our viewing pattern has completely changed. Instead of looking at what is available tonight, we have this vast library of TV and movies to choose from. It varies from programs like NZ: Mystical Islands narrated by Sam Neil which screened on BBC last week to all the old Dad's Army programs.
Now, the problem is finding out what's out there to watch, rather than having to watch what Sky thinks is good for us.

Awesome to see another Kodi user here!
What I find shocking from NZ broadcasters is that they promote a brand new TV series or a new season of a TV show, and it's already screened in the US 6-8mths ago, whereas via streaming is only a couple of hours late waiting for a link to source.

[TideMan]

Awesome to see another Kodi user here!
What I find shocking from NZ broadcasters is that they promote a brand new TV series or a new season of a TV show, and it's already screened in the US 6-8mths ago, whereas via streaming is only a couple of hours late waiting for a link to source.

Kodi operating stand alone on Raspberry Pi 3B.
Our main add-ons are ITV, BBC iplayer, Exodus, and DevilSports.

[LAC]

Kodi operating stand alone on Raspberry Pi 3B.
Our main add-ons are ITV, BBC iplayer, Exodus, and DevilSports.

Is Kodi a legal service? Is it like Netflix where the content creators are being paid to show their content on that platform? I am confused as we seem to be comparing a company's performance in a dying industry to a somewhat illegal industry....
Doesn't seem to make sense to me....can someone explain to a newbie like me, thanks.

To me it just sounds like we are comparing the tobacco industry to the cannabis industry (in NZ that is, where one is illegal)

[Bjauck]

Kodi operating stand alone on Raspberry Pi 3B.
Our main add-ons are ITV, BBC iplayer, Exodus, and DevilSports.

I do not know about the others. However as a NZ resident, I have tried to access the BBC iPlayer - only to be informed by the BBC that I was in the wrong location. I thought that it was only available to those TV licence fee residents of the UK, actually resident in the UK. How much is the fee charged by the BBC for making their service available via Kodi?

[Cricketfan]

Is Kodi a legal service? Is it like Netflix where the content creators are being paid to show their content on that platform? I am confused as we seem to be comparing a company's performance in a dying industry to a somewhat illegal industry....
Doesn't seem to make sense to me....can someone explain to a newbie like me, thanks.

Kodi itself is legal, as it's just software that provides streaming. The content that people stream on there is usually not legally broadcast. Have a read of this for more info: http://wtvpc.com/is-kodi-legal-as-us...-do-questions/

[minimoke]

Is Kodi a legal service? Is it like Netflix where the content creators are being paid to show their content on that platform? I am confused as we seem to be comparing a company's performance in a dying industry to a somewhat illegal industry....
Doesn't seem to make sense to me....can someone explain to a newbie like me, thanks.

To me it just sounds like we are comparing the tobacco industry to the cannabis industry (in NZ that is, where one is illegal)

This is what I likek about the merger with Vodofone. Has does Kodi get to your TV. How does Netflix get to yoru TV. How do Demonoid (oops!) movies get to your TV. How does football cricket matches get to your TV. Nowadays it is all about going via the internet -and thats what Sky is getting into.

Now back to rugby or boxing for example. How does that get to your TV? Via internet right? No, wrong. Its get there firstly by having a camera / broadcast facility on site. And that is what Sky is into.
So own the cameras that capture the images and own the pipe that passes the images and you are looking at a much better business model.

So I'm hopeful (as a holder whose stop loss continues to fail to be hit) that Sky is an evolving company rather than part of a dying industry.

Ans as a further aside think about how copper is now dead and fibre is on the way out. Wireless is the future. So lets see how Vodafone manage that potential opportunity.

[minimoke]

What I find shocking from NZ broadcasters is that they promote a brand new TV series or a new season of a TV show, and it's already screened in the US 6-8mths ago, whereas via streaming is only a couple of hours late waiting for a link to source.

There in lies part of the problem. Its the time it take content to get to consumer. And we end up with a moral ethical dilemma.

For example. A "friend" of mine has just watched the final episodes of Person of Interest. The episodes were downloaded off one of those dodgy sites so it could be said to be pirating.

But in the meantime TVOne (? ) is broadcasting POI about five episodes (or more) behind. So my " Friend" could wait a bit and watch it locally for free. But we know nothing is Free. The content is probably paid by advertising revenue. But my Friend skips ads so doesn't watch them - so for all intents and purposes TVOne is paying for content that my Fiend is not contributing towards so getting it for free. So who is loosing out?

I'll tell you who isn't loosing out and thats Spark - because Spark are my Frinds internet provider and he pays them for the internet pipe and unlimited download at a fast rate.

[Zaphod]

Is Kodi a legal service? Is it like Netflix where the content creators are being paid to show their content on that platform? I am confused as we seem to be comparing a company's performance in a dying industry to a somewhat illegal industry....
Doesn't seem to make sense to me....can someone explain to a newbie like me, thanks.

To me it just sounds like we are comparing the tobacco industry to the cannabis industry (in NZ that is, where one is illegal)

As Cricketfan has stated, Kodi itself is not illegal but the streaming sources without a doubt either are or at least violate licencing agreements.

Typically, these streaming sources are provided by customers legitimately signed up for services (e.g. SOHO) who capture show and stream it to the internet. Various incentives are provided for providing this type of service.

You're right about it not being a fair comparison, but not only that it's also not a viable long term comparison as content creators do deserve to be paid for their work and if revenue falls, so will content production. Even those who have disintermediated their business (e.g. various sporting bodies) that now stream directly to customers instead of using third parties such as Sky are seeing their content provided for free via customers re-streaming through their own broadband services.

But at the end of the day, this is the reality that SkyTV investors currently need to pragmatically evaluate when making decisions about their investment.

[ratkin]

I do not know about the others. However as a NZ resident, I have tried to access the BBC iPlayer - only to be informed by the BBC that I was in the wrong location. I thought that it was only available to those TV licence fee residents of the UK, actually resident in the UK. How much is the fee charged by the BBC for making their service available via Kodi?

BBC do not like these services leeching off them and actively discourage them by occasionally making changes to iplayer.
However it is very easy to watch iplayer in NZ just by using a VPN. Even some of the browser extensions on google chrome will fool iplayer into thinking you are in the UK. Works for ITV and channel 4 as well