Cable/Satellite TV Billed As A Utility?

Wondering if it would be possible and practical for consumers
to be billed for cable/satellite TV service in the same way we
are billed for run-of-the-mill utilities like, water, electricity, ect?

Instead of getting a fixed price bill every month regardless of
how much TV we actually watch, what if those consumers who
watched more TV paid more while those who watched less, paid
less?

Andy P. Jung...

I think cable networks that air commercials should either:
A. Provide free service to cable/satellite providers just like over the air
local TV stations. It would also give cable/satellite providers more
incentive to carry them. Imagine getting all the possible cable networks in
operation and paying much less than you are currently paying.
or
B. Go without censorship at the least after prime time hours to make basic
cable more worth the value. Some Cable networks are doing it like Comedy
Central with the airing of "South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut" without
censorship.

Steven L....

Sure. That's existed for many years. It's called, "pay per view." You

Ed Stasiak...

Thou I'm thinking of a system where consumers are billed
by how many _minutes_ their TV is on, regardless of what
channel/program they may be watching.

With PPV, you pay $X for a specific program and if you're
unable to watch that program at that time or if you decide to
watch something else, you're still going to get billed for that
PPV program.

shawn...

So there's an incentive to watch less TV? Somehow I don't think the
advertisers would be happy. Plus with so many shows airing outside of
the USA that would just lead to more people downloading shows from the
Internet that were recorded from US stations or foreign stations.
Canada seems to air most US shows in the same season as the USA, with
the UK following some months later.

can pay to watch just a particular program--or pay to watch 24 hours
worth of a particular channel.