Mailing List Archive: MythTV: Users

Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative?

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mythtv at guiplot

Aug 6, 2007, 9:17 PM

Post #1 of 8 (1382 views)
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Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative?

Is there any way to get TV listings into a computer? There must be
something out there. I'm not very well informed, but I'm curious why
they didn't just start charging for the service. Are there too many
alternatives in the mainstream (BeyondTV, ATI and MCE have listings
services) for them to compete with?

For my first multimedia system, I made the mistake of buying an ATI
All-in-Wonder(why I bought it). (I NEVER got the software working
right.) Any way, the ATI software included a listings service. I think
it came from TV guide, or an online subsidiary (or parent conglomerate)
or something. It was only available through their client which was
designed to play with the ATI stuff. Beyond TV and MCE include similar
stuff. Any way to get subscriptions to their services? My wife used to
subscribe to TV guide magazine. What a useless piece-O-crap that turned
into. But we paid for it until I started running Myth. I would gladly
pay for an online version if I could get an XML output from it. I can
write something to get it into a format that Myth (and xawtv and TVtime
and...?) can read. I just need a source.

Our Comcast home page links to Zap2it's web site for customers to get
current listings so it looks like they're still in the biz, just not
providing the XML stuff for free; something about abuses. Well, if
that's their beef, just charge for it. The "abusers" can get legal,
Zap2it can make money and we can continue to use our favorite software
with the simple addition of a fee for a valuable service. Nothing wrong
with that! I wonder if the Comcast(s) told them to nix it or else...
Hmmm...

DaveD.

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drescherjm at gmail

Aug 7, 2007, 2:12 AM

Post #2 of 8 (1323 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

On 8/7/07, DaveD <mythtv[at]guiplot.com> wrote:
>
> Is there any way to get TV listings into a computer? There must be
> something out there. I'm not very well informed, but I'm curious why
> they didn't just start charging for the service.

Because TMS does not want to deal directly with individual users and the
customers that they do have (newspapers, cable compaines ...) agreements
with pay thousands of dollars per month to TMS for the listings.

Are there too many
> alternatives in the mainstream (BeyondTV, ATI and MCE have listings
> services) for them to compete with?

Some of these are in the same boat.

Although there really is not that much info the website for the only
alternative is:

http://www.schedulesdirect.org/

John

gull at gull

Aug 7, 2007, 10:16 AM

Post #3 of 8 (1309 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

On Aug 6, 2007, at 9:17 PM, DaveD wrote:

> I'm not very well informed, but I'm curious why
> they didn't just start charging for the service.

We don't know for sure, but I think it's because they're basically a
wholesaler. They sell listings to other businesses. Having to deal
with selling listings to a bunch of individuals would add overhead,
and might reduce their core business by undercutting some of the
companies they sell to.

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beww at beww

Aug 7, 2007, 10:19 AM

Post #4 of 8 (1312 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

On Tuesday 07 August 2007 11:16, David Brodbeck wrote:
> On Aug 6, 2007, at 9:17 PM, DaveD wrote:
> > I'm not very well informed, but I'm curious why
> > they didn't just start charging for the service.
>
> We don't know for sure, but I think it's because they're basically a
> wholesaler. They sell listings to other businesses. Having to deal
> with selling listings to a bunch of individuals would add overhead,
> and might reduce their core business by undercutting some of the
> companies they sell to.

Even worse than trying to collect from thousands of individuals, some states
might decide it is a taxable "service", and start trying to grab a share, at
least with states where TMS has a "presence".

I really don't blame TMS for not wanting to get into that sort of thing.
--
BEWW
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gull at gull

Aug 7, 2007, 10:25 AM

Post #5 of 8 (1294 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

On Aug 7, 2007, at 10:19 AM, Brian Wood wrote:
> Even worse than trying to collect from thousands of individuals,
> some states
> might decide it is a taxable "service", and start trying to grab a
> share, at
> least with states where TMS has a "presence".

Well, yes, sales tax. But they probably already have to deal with
that, even if it's only a matter of getting reseller certificates
from their clients.

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stuart at xnet

Aug 7, 2007, 10:26 AM

Post #6 of 8 (1315 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

David Brodbeck wrote:
> On Aug 6, 2007, at 9:17 PM, DaveD wrote:
>
>> I'm not very well informed, but I'm curious why
>> they didn't just start charging for the service.
>
> We don't know for sure, but I think it's because they're basically a
> wholesaler. They sell listings to other businesses. Having to deal
> with selling listings to a bunch of individuals would add overhead,
> and might reduce their core business by undercutting some of the
> companies they sell to.

More to the point (well, I'm curious if no one else is), why did they
stop? I thought it was because people were selling MythTV boxes with
active zap2it accounts. But, as I recall, some who do this posted where
they contacted zap2it and received zap2it e-mail stating they were not
the reason. Then who was zap2it openly complaining about?

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beww at beww

Aug 7, 2007, 10:33 AM

Post #7 of 8 (1302 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

On Tuesday 07 August 2007 11:25, David Brodbeck wrote:
> On Aug 7, 2007, at 10:19 AM, Brian Wood wrote:
> > Even worse than trying to collect from thousands of individuals,
> > some states
> > might decide it is a taxable "service", and start trying to grab a
> > share, at
> > least with states where TMS has a "presence".
>
> Well, yes, sales tax. But they probably already have to deal with
> that, even if it's only a matter of getting reseller certificates
> from their clients.

Getting tax ID #s from perhaps fewer than 100 customers is a far cry from
collecting, recording and storing funds from perhaps thousands of consumers,
then dealing with many states to send them the money, each state having a
different system, and risking penalties for failure to touch each base in
each state.

--
BEWW
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stuart at xnet

Aug 7, 2007, 3:56 PM

Post #8 of 8 (1302 views)
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Re: Zap2it discontinuance: any alternative? [In reply to]

stuart wrote:
>
> David Brodbeck wrote:
>> On Aug 6, 2007, at 9:17 PM, DaveD wrote:
>>
>>> I'm not very well informed, but I'm curious why
>>> they didn't just start charging for the service.
>> We don't know for sure, but I think it's because they're basically a
>> wholesaler. They sell listings to other businesses. Having to deal
>> with selling listings to a bunch of individuals would add overhead,
>> and might reduce their core business by undercutting some of the
>> companies they sell to.
>
> More to the point (well, I'm curious if no one else is), why did they
> stop? I thought it was because people were selling MythTV boxes with
> active zap2it accounts. But, as I recall, some who do this posted where
> they contacted zap2it and received zap2it e-mail stating they were not
> the reason. Then who was zap2it openly complaining about?

Hey, there's actually something new on the
http://www.schedulesdirect.org/ web site!

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