Good Wife Spin-off Would You Pay For It?

On Sunday, Feb. 19, 2017 the new spin-off of "The Good Wife" entitled "The Good Fight" will premiere on CBS's All Access service. Most of the cast--excluding Julianna Margulies--will still be in it.

I'll admit it sounds appealing despite it's reported partial nudity and strong language.



The wife and I were steady viewers of the series but we won't be of this new show. There's no way we want to encourage this stuff CBS is pulling along with a bunch of others. I'm already paying $170 a month for our cable TV/phone/modem service. Since this show's episodes will only be available on CBS's All Access service count us out. They want $5.99 a month ($9.99 w/o the ads).

The direction these corporate entertainment networks are headed shouldn't be encouraged. I already pay a "Broadcast TV Fee" to watch their bundled programs loaded with ads on cable. Now I'm supposed to give them another six buck$-- IT AIN'T GONNA HAPPEN.

So let me break this down. The networks are starting to make only crappy shows available to cable operators. Instead we're supposed to pay extra for any of the good stuff they come up with in the future. This while swallowing up cable franchises across the country. In other words controlling everything from the top to the bottom.

Here's What's Going Down
The over the air programming will get lousier and lousier. Thus forcing us into paying more for anything worth watching. Now imagine the six giants who own just about every cable channel and local stations start doing the same. Suppose each want five or ten buck$ and people cut the cable. Right there would be $30-$60 a month (base price). Already a bunch of worthwhile new shows are only available on Showtime, HBO, HULU, Amazon, Netflix, AT&T and others offering exclusive programming. Many featuring shows not available on cable TV's standard lineup. Both Sony and YouTube are currently looking to get into the act too. Prices for some of these online stand-alones range up to $15 a month.

Keep in mind these prices are teaser rates to get things started. No doubt--after cable TV is driven extinct--rates will likely go much higher. Might want to Forget about the antenna. There's talk these local stations--owned by these same big boys--might shut down their transmitters. Thus removing them from the airwaves in the not too distant future.

Careful What You Wish For
TV viewers always complained why they couldn't buy A La Carte. I'm not sure consumers had in mind paying a dozen providers' bills instead. Especially $5-$15 a month to each for what could be only one show they wanted to watch on any particular provider. This in addition to $30+ just to receive internet access for them in the first place.

It's clear where all of this headed. It started with free TV over antennas. Tons of good shows were provided over the three channels of network TV. Then we moved on. Now having to pay cable for the better programs this same bunch moved to ever increasing satellite channels they created. Channels which they then forced cable operators buy. Now this.

While I can not stop them--I'm not going allow myself to be used by feeding these money grubbers. What others do is on them. Just don't complain a few years down the road when TV cost more then it does now.

Anyone believing consumers came up with this idea of "cutting the cord" bought into the corporate controlled entertainment industry's propaganda hook, line and sinker.