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Sharing cable credentials/log-in

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DCal430

Diamond Member
So what is the thought on sharing cable credentials with other people? The cable co here allows people to watch all kinds of on demand videos with a login, most stuff is available a day after it airs, and with premium channel subscription you have access to almost every season of the biggest shows on HBO, Showtime, and Stars.

I know people share netflix logins, but what about this? Is it much different? Any legal issues? Should it be the companies job to restrict the number of logins? Should the people who get a login help pay for the bill? Is $5 a fair amount.
 
These logins are meant for your use. If you share them it breaks the terms, and is in some sort of grey area for copyright infringement. So far there aren't a lot of restrictions on logins, but if cord cutting gains momentum they will do it.

They are meant to be a side benefit of having cable, not a way to subsidize cable or use daddy's cable subscription to cut the cord. It is the company's job to restrict access because they only have limited use in the way they licence content and they have to pay a lot for access to certain types of content (say ESPN).
 
DCal430 said:
So what is the thought on sharing cable credentials with other people? The cable co here allows people to watch all kinds of on demand videos with a login, most stuff is available a day after it airs, and with premium channel subscription you have access to almost every season of the biggest shows on HBO, Showtime, and Stars.

I know people share netflix logins, but what about this? Is it much different? Any legal issues? Should it be the companies job to restrict the number of logins? Should the people who get a login help pay for the bill? Is $5 a fair amount.
Click to expand...

Its illegal and immoral.

Shit like this is what makes those networks and services so expensive for those of us that don't try to cheat the system. But then again with people like you, its "fuck you I got mine".
 
Is having 4 logins for 4 people who share a house together so different than 4 logins for 4 people who live in different houses?

One is allowed by the TOS and the other isn't.
 
This is one of those things where if you ask then it's because you already know you shouldn't.
 
rudeguy said:
Its illegal and immoral.

Shit like this is what makes those networks and services so expensive for those of us that don't try to cheat the system. But then again with people like you, its "fuck you I got mine".
Click to expand...

Uh, you know how competition works, right?

People who cheat the system are probably doing it because the system is broken. Pricing is too high, among many many other issues. If you can get service tailored to you for free, why wouldn't you. I'm not saying everyone should do it, I'm merely suggesting that this is why others are doing it.

Competition like this should encourage these companies to be better companies. Stop screwing customers, provide better service, lower pricing, people will come back. I would sub to a cable company that treated me with respect and had reasonable pricing. We don't have that in Canada though. In my area it's an effective monopoly by Rogers - aka Satan's asshole. Satan's asshole is not good at providing service that meets my needs. I use Netflix.

Your logic is backwards. You think companies suck because people are leaving. People are leaving because companies suck!
 
cbrunny said:
Uh, you know how competition works, right?

People who cheat the system are probably doing it because the system is broken. Pricing is too high, among many many other issues. If you can get service tailored to you for free, why wouldn't you. I'm not saying everyone should do it, I'm merely suggesting that this is why others are doing it.

Competition like this should encourage these companies to be better companies. Stop screwing customers, provide better service, lower pricing, people will come back. I would sub to a cable company that treated me with respect and had reasonable pricing. We don't have that in Canada though. In my area it's an effective monopoly by Rogers - aka Satan's asshole. Satan's asshole is not good at providing service that meets my needs. I use Netflix.

Your logic is backwards. You think companies suck because people are leaving. People are leaving because companies suck!
Click to expand...

You just ranted on and on about something I did not say.

Did you take your pill today?
 
well if it's shareable then they wouldn't need a login to begin with. One post on the internet and it's for everyone!

Restrict it to 3-5 simultaneously imo. Can't screw the family sharing amongst themselves. We have a Netflix account for our family and my mom at her house uses it occasionally. That's prob against TOS but they restrict it to 3 simultaneous plays anyway. Has not been a problem.

The cable provider here has logins for local news (newsday site) and streaming news but even after my mom cancelled her account a while ago, the login still works. The wifi hotspots with the same login don't though. Seems like they care more about that.
 
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Is it immoral if I use the credentials from my summer house, which is vacant until May, thus the service will never be used until then?
It's service that is being paid for and not used at all unless I were to use the credentials to stream it.

What about 0 simultaneous users on a service? Say if relatives use one set of credentials to stream yet never use them at the same time (one works night shifts or something)?
 
rudeguy said:
Its illegal and immoral.
Click to expand...

It is probably not illegal until you try to accept money for it (aka $5 for your bill as OP suggested). At that point you violate law by illegally distributing content for profit. Up until you accept money it is a grey area legally. Moral is always a grey area.

With that said anyone who is doing this is kidding themselves if they think they are playing by the rules, or that it is morally better than torrents or something.

Uppsala9496 said:
Is it immoral if I use the credentials from my summer house, which is vacant until May, thus the service will never be used until then?
It's service that is being paid for and not used at all unless I were to use the credentials to stream it.
Click to expand...

I think that is ok. It would count at remote access, which is the point of the services. Now this one:

Say if relatives use one set of credentials to stream yet never use them at the same time (one works night shifts or something)?
Click to expand...

Is less ok. I bet the terms allow it if they are all under the same residence.
 
cbrunny said:
People who cheat the system are probably doing it because the system is broken.
Click to expand...

Sharing cable access logins is not the way to fix it though. It gets people dependant on entertainment distribution platforms that could disappear in a moment once they change the rules of the game.

The answer to the problem is the one a modern person hates: Sacrifice. If it isn't on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon or some other legit streaming service you don't get it. Period. If everyone did that the system would get redone in a few years. We would have net neutrality because Netflix would contribute more to Congress than any cable company. Sacrifice could fix everything.

That is too much to ask though of an entitled population, me included. So we will dance this dance with the cable companies in and out of the courts for decades.

No one should pretend two wrongs make a right though. The cable companies are wrong, AND the people who break the rules are wrong.
 
Sharing logins violates the terms of service. You could see restrictions placed on your account. I'm sure questions would come up if two or more different IP addresses are consistently accessing one person's service at the same time.

cbrunny said:
Cool stuff gets made when big companies invest their earned cash in further developments.

Time Warner has a 97% margin on Internet: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bruce-kushnick/time-warner-cables-97-pro_b_6591916.html

And sits on profits.
Click to expand...

That's one of the biggest problems facing our economy right now. All these big companies are sitting on piles of money, but they aren't reinvesting it. Innovation creates jobs.

cbrunny said:
I fking hate Rogers.
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Yet they're still the lesser of two evils. Bell is such a shitty company. They even dick around their own employees if they have a problem with their service.
 
poofyhairguy said:
Sharing cable access logins is not the way to fix it though. It gets people dependant on entertainment distribution platforms that could disappear in a moment once they change the rules of the game.

The answer to the problem is the one a modern person hates: Sacrifice. If it isn't on Netflix, Hulu, Amazon or some other legit streaming service you don't get it. Period. If everyone did that the system would get redone in a few years. We would have net neutrality because Netflix would contribute more to Congress than any cable company. Sacrifice could fix everything.

That is too much to ask though of an entitled population, me included. So we will dance this dance with the cable companies in and out of the courts for decades.

No one should pretend two wrongs make a right though. The cable companies are wrong, AND the people who break the rules are wrong.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the intelligent response. Its a nice change in threads like these.

Let me give you guys a little background: I worked for over 4 years at Charter Communications in the call center. I did sales, retention and repair. I took it on myself to find out the answers to questions that customers asked me and most of those regarded price. I talked to the trainers, the network reps, spent way too much time on DSLReports. I didn't just read the talking points from the documents.

The networks are the ones who control pricing. All these ads you hear now where this provider lost that network....how many times did you hear that 10 years ago? Now the networks know they have the providers by the balls and they jack up rates every single year. Of course the networks have to buy rights from the studios and the studios have to pay your favorite actors $1M per episode or whatever it is. None of it is cheap and none of it is getting cheaper.

For years Charter wanted to every single network and show available for streaming. You would have thought they were asking the networks for their first born. Not only were the networks paranoid about piracy, they were afraid they wouldn't get their $2 for each episode like they do OnDemand. The networks are so afraid of computers that they think that anyone can snatch their shitty TV shows out of the internet tubes and put them on Napster. That's how stupid the networks are.

And yes, these companies do have to hoard cash. They buy up other companies all the time, they need to upgrade equipment all the time, they need cash. Cash is always a worry with them.

I get that hating the cable co is the easiest thing to do. But its just not an educated thing to do.
 
DCal430 said:
So what is the thought on sharing cable credentials with other people? The cable co here allows people to watch all kinds of on demand videos with a login, most stuff is available a day after it airs, and with premium channel subscription you have access to almost every season of the biggest shows on HBO, Showtime, and Stars.

I know people share netflix logins, but what about this? Is it much different? Any legal issues? Should it be the companies job to restrict the number of logins? Should the people who get a login help pay for the bill? Is $5 a fair amount.
Click to expand...

Oh, so you're a criminal?

I'm not surprised, you're a scumbag and an idiot in just about every way possible.
 
BoberFett said:
Seriously? 97% margin?

That doesn't even pass the smell test, unless you're a complete idiot. I'm guessing you are.
Click to expand...

Well technically he is right.

Internet margins are huge. The only real cost is the electricity and AC at the head ends. BUT that doesn't take into account equipment, upgrades, tech labor and future upgrades. Internet is the cash cow but that money gets turned around really quick.

Most of these companies are in a constant process of upgrading equipment. I know my Comcast internet is 105 Mb and 2 years ago that would have been impossible with the equipment they had then. I can only assume they are acquiring and testing equipment to bump up speeds again in the near future.
 
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