With PlayStation Vue on PS4, The Xbox One Might Be in More Trouble

Sony is launching a cloud television streaming service called PlayStation Vue, and when it does it’ll be just one more thing the PS4 might have over Microsoft’s Xbox One console.

At its core, PlayStation Vue is an easy way to get content without having to sign up for a contract with a big cable company like Comcast or Verizon. The service is live television and on-demand streaming rolled into one. The live streaming works just as users might expect it to. Users simply flip to a channel they want to watch and a video feed from that channel shows up just like it would if they had a cable subscription.

[mhunterjr]

Not so fast. You still need the cable company to provide the Internet service & they aren't very happy to see people using the web to access TV. The Supreme Court thinks cable companies should be able to throttle or charge people extra $ for using streaming services. They also think that ISPs should be able to charge content providers for speedy connection to consumers. This undoubtedly is an attempt to raise the cost of cord cutting. And the Republican Party (who now controls congress) is opposed to net nuetrality legislation. Sony has a long way to go before this becomes a viable alternative to cable/satellite boxes in the eyes of the masses. I hope they can pull it off, but I don't see it happening soon.

[neocores]

If u ready it tells you sony does not need permission from cable companys lol .

[mhunterjr]

Who said anything about permission? I don't think you understand buddy.

PlayStation Vue requires internet access... The cable companies are for most Americans, the internet service providers. Stay with me now...

The ISPs don't like when you cut the cable cord, because they make less money. And as streaming services get more popular, it forces then to upgrade their infrastructure. You still with me?

So the cable companies lobbied the government to pass laws that will help them combat the competition from streaming services. These laws allow them to charge the streamers (PlayStation Vue, YouTube, Netflix, etc) for access to consumers.it also allows them to charge consumers based on HOW they use their internet. For example, comcast could make you spend extra money if you want to be able access PlayStation Vue.

Do you get it now. The cable companies have the power to make these services too expensive to be viable.it isn't about permission, it's about power.

[mikeslemonade]

My cable bill is $120 a month with the internet, tv, and phone. This will be a fraction of the cost. The cable companies are over charging just like how phone companies are these days, so this is a option is a good value to some people.

It wouldn't be an option for me because I watch sports and the only feasible way to watch sports is live TV from a conventional cable box.

[mixolydian_id]

I pay 45£ a month on BT Youview, Broad band 60 Mb/s Down and 15 Mb/s Up. House Phone. £3 a month on XBL.

And an account on Netflix paid my my other-halves brother.

I don't-want and likely-won't invest in a PS4 but the prospect of flipping the industry on it's arse is quiet intriguing.

They can do what they like... if it's more expensive... doesn't matter, if the service is solid and functions as cable does, then it's no different to it's competition.

Also, having the cable run through the pass-through is an awesome idea.
Snapping TV to the side of the screen is something I hadn't realised would be so useful. Damn near every game lobby I've been watching recorded TV I had missed from other nights of the week.

Having to access an app might drag out the process? My XB is set to boot up to TV (It's a shared device and my other half isn't a gamer, so needs to boot to TV to simplify her experience)

[IGiveHugs2NakedWomen]

@mhunterjr

Interesting comment.

But how would your ISP know if you're watching programs and movies from a PlayStation 4 or a laptop? How would your ISP even know that you're watching television programming and not playing an MMO like Final Fantasy 14? Even if your ISP were able to figure out what you're doing while your Playstation 4 is connected to the internet, (i'm pretty sure they can't) there are still privacy laws that prevent ISP's from acting on that information.

Your comment is interesting, but i'm pretty sure that Sony's legal team already had "privacy" covered before they decided to launch these services.

[TI_21]

@IGH2NW That's quite simple. They aren't going to look what you are doing. They'll simply throttle any connection from the service provider(Sony)'s servers.

[Christopher]

***But how would your ISP know if you're watching programs and movies from a PlayStation 4 or a laptop? How would your ISP even know that you're watching television programming and not playing an MMO like Final Fantasy 14?***

Different ports for different data. Also, all they need to do is recognize the source of the data you're receiving and throttle that. It doesn't need to be throttled on your end, it will be throttled on the end that is sending the data. That's what Verizon did with Netflix.

[mhunterjr]

@mikeslemonade

What you don't seem to understand is that cable companies want to indirectly raise the cost by charging content providers a premium on access to their customers. This will force those content providers to pass those added costs onto consumers...

Instead of lowering cable prices to be more competitive, they want to force the competition to raise their prices.

@nakedwomen

They'll cut it off at the source. they'll charge the content provider (Netflix,Hulu,PS Vue, etc) extra for speedy access to customers. And those who don't comply won't have the ability to offer a good streaming service.

At the user end, they'll continue to cap/throttle those who use the most data. Anyone who primarily streams the TV content they watch is going to be an easy target since those HQ and HD streams are so data intensive.

[MysticStrummer]

"the only feasible way to watch sports is live TV from a conventional cable box."

I watch live sports through the internet all the time.

[ramiuk1]

i already have tivo in uk,so this is no use to me.
infact most people have tv so its kinda pointless surely?

[TheLEGENDofTydo]

Well there is also this thing as being "grandfathered" in. My ISP cannot raise the price on my plan so i'm all good.

[Cha0tik]

You are right about this but when you go against the Cable company and threaten to switch to the competition that usually pushes the cable company to back off because once they realize that you could switch to the competition without ever getting cable from the competition and receive no issues at all that's when they realize they are losing money from the customer as a whole they realize they fucked up. They have yet to make it a requirement to have some sort of cable plan with your internet. Till then that law is irreverent. Why do I say that? because I'm one of the people with ONLY high speed internet and a Netflix account. Cable companies aren't entirely stupid. They know there is competition and they know with that competition they can lose customers by fighting shit like Netflix.

[uth11]

A lot of your cable bill goes to pay for channels most people don't want or need, and these companies keep pressing cable and satellite companies to pay more or they black out popular channels.

Cable companies should be able to create internet-only packages and still profit from them.

[mhunterjr]

As much as I hate the cable companies, I don't envy their position. They are getting squeezed by popular channels on one side, then losing customers to streaming services on the other, then those customers put added strain on their internet infrastructure.

If they were smart, they would allow a la carte cable plans. Just allow us to pay a fair price for just the channels we want... that would make people less likely to cut the cord.

In any matter, they need to get on the right side of the net nuetrality conversation, and offer more competitive services instead of stifling competition.

[chaosx]

Bye Bye netflix on the PS4 then .... Sony dont like sharing platforms with competitors... Look at EA access.

[Eonjay]

That makes no sense. What does Netflix have to do with live TV? Also sony alrady offers a video streaming service and it nerve impacted Netflix.

[OCEANGROWNKUSH]

Never gunna happen

[SolidDuck]

I agree with u guys. But the cable companies have to be careful. Cause most people have other options for Internet than just cable. So if they start charging people extra for Internet to use certain services, then people would be canceling both cable TV and cable internet.

[mhunterjr]

There really aren't that many other options. Satellite isn't an option for gamers, and fiber optics roll outs have slowed dramatically, DSL is falling out of favor as well, and really doesn't offer the speeds techy folks have come to expect.

In many areas cable companies have a full fledged monopoly on broadband access.

[krouse93]

This looks great, if you check out the verge article on PlayStation Vue there you can see that there is some serious potential there. I for one would be on this instantly because I don't want to pay for a cable bill and I'd be able to utilize this on my PS4 easily!

[Scatpants]

I cancelled my cable a while back. If this is cheap enough I'll probably sign up. I'm sure this will be making it's way to Vita and Playstation TV eventually as well which will be cool.

[Dark-Funeral]

TV features in console was a crap idea by many people opinions!!!!

How did that changed ?!

[ninsigma]

The difference is all the ms tv stuff was being trumpeted over the games, when all people wanted to see was a gaming console. That isn't the case anymore but you can see that the tv first strategy caused ms a lot of stick while the games first strategy put Sony in the good books.
I think if ms in the beginning had shown off the xbox as a gaming device and then said"oh look what else it can do", it would have gone a lot better for them

[oODEADPOOLOo]

It changed because the primary focus was put on games, T.V is just a secondary avenue. And also ppl didnt like the Kinect being shoe horned in to add to the cost and with little practical use for it with the simultaneous disadvantage of eating more power from the system. That's why MS even stuck with lower specs to include the Kinect and bundle it with the xbox to have a relatively affordable price point.

Also to be noted, MS was only seeking to supplement cable boxes by overlaying its channel menus with a prettier U.I. Sony appears to be even more ambitious and seeking to be another contender in the same space as cable companies. And with no camera included with it the PS has the power to play games first and also offer TV functionality as supplemental entertainment like any of the other side apps like Netflix without taking up anymore power from the system then a regular app.

[Brim]

where are these games they put first the indies?...

[oODEADPOOLOo]

@Brim haha atleast sony is bringing a game category that innovates, lol.

[MysticStrummer]

@Brim - PS4 has more retail games and more indies. PS4 has more games. End of story.

[Christopher]

Only reason I like this more than MS' option is that it cuts the cable cord rather than combining the two. We need more 'non cable' options for watching TV. Cable TV, as it is, needs to die off.

[Kingoftherodeo]

will i have to wait for new content like on netflix? will it cost less than the competition can it match netflix or hulu? how will this impact my data cap yes lots of people who live in the states have data caps some don't even know it. sony seems to be putting all their eggs into the streaming basket from games to tv. sony should stick to what they said their console was about games

[f50liv_imposter1]

this better than netflix as it offers live tv such as nbc sports and fox sports aswell as cbs and could include disney, which own espn, as they are in talks. so this will cost about the same or a bit less than cable

[MeliMel]

Look, im all for an alternative to cable. But i find it funny how everyone is all about TV now. When MS was trying it was no good. Sony now is turning PS4 into cable box and everything is good in the world. No matter how good it is im not using my PS4 to watch TV. My PS4 and XB1 all for gaming. Everything MS was trying to do before the launch of Xbox One is all somehow coming to fruition on PS4.

[Christopher]

The problem was that MS' option wasn't an alternative to cable. It combined the two. What I"m looking for are more options other than cable.

And this isn't all about 'tv' considering I already watch Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon VOD on my console. It's about advancing beyond just the cable box.

[MeliMel]

I just find it funny that PS4 is out to be what MS had visioned for Xbox One. The true all in one console. I dont know if Greatness Awaits or I should Jump In...lol

[Christopher]

@MeiMei: As long as Sony keeps delivering games the way we want and don't take away from that, don't care what else they do. Same with MS. I admit I was and still am very much against digital only consoles. I don't care what they do as far as TV shows, movies, or the like. If I like them, I'll use them. And, right now, I want MS and Sony to do their best to offer things that take away from cable companies. In the U.S. especially, cable companies have way too much power and are not actually competing against one another.

[Spotie]

... what I don't get is how you guys can't see the difference between "Here's our new VIDEO GAME CONSOLE. Check out all the TV stuff it does!" and "Here's our new VIDEO GAME CONSOLE. Look at all the gaming related stuff.... and now, much later, here are some TV-related offerings."

[MeliMel]

Oh I know the difference, just interesting the way things are turning out now. Like I said these are my gaming rigs. I have smartphones, tablets, TVs for all the other stuff.