User Profile

Bismark

  • Location: gahanna, Ohio

Bismark's Recent Comments

  1. I too would like to add my comments to this forum. I am an ex-Time Warner customer and am I glad to be rid of them, assuming they actually send me the refund they owe me based on when I stopped being a customer.

    The only area I am disappointed in is the state of the DVR software that WOW uses. It is clearly 5-6 years old and lacks some basic DVR features offered by the rest of the industry. Here are a couple of areas needing improvement:

    1. The program search function only works on one day and only allow the first letter of the search to be input. For example if I want to find Good Eats, I have to select the day I want to search, pick “G” and then scrool through all the programs that start with “G” for that day. I can then do it for the next day and so forth.

    Every other DVR I have ever used searches the entire schedule for a program and allows you to enter a more complete spelling of the name.

    2. On fast forward, when one pushes the play button, current DVR’s back space proportional to the forward speed to account for the reaction time of the user. You then see the program from the point you actually wanted to see it, i.e. just after the commercial you just skipped.

    3. Record “new” programs on their subsequent play. I.e. if there is a conflict for a “new” program and that same program is broadcast later that day or week, the DVR records it.

    These are just a few of the deficiencies of the WOW DVR.

    Improving the DVR is just a matter of investing in current software. Point in fact, the WOW DVR box is exactly the same box that Time Warner uses.

    In I Love Feedback posted March 1, 2010 at 2:50 pm

  2. I understand that technology changes take time and money, but there is something WOW could do now to prepare for changes to the DVR and Digital interface capabilities.

    As a new customer, I find it difficult to find programs in the WOW lineup. As near as I can tell, as WOW gets new channels, they just add them after the last one. Many other cable companies have reorganized their offerings based on the subject matter. That is, put all sports, home improvements, HD, On-Demand, etc. together. If I am looking for some sports programming, I should be able to just go up and down the menu and select what I want, ESPN, FOX, GOLF and so forth. Another example is the local HD broadcast channels. Why shouldn’t channel 4 HD be 204 in Columbus, as well as channel 10, be 210?

    If WOW plans on a channel numbering reorganization, the sooner the better. The new numbering scheme should be designed with the future in mind with spaces for new programming in each category of offerings.

    The current digital interfaces would easily accommodate revised numbering. If WOW were to make such a lineup change, it would be much better to do it with the existing menus so that when WOW introduces new menus with improved HD and DVR functionality, the WOW customers would already know where the channels are.

    A major cost would be the cost of publicizing the changes. The sooner this is done, the less disruption to the customer base. Many long time customers will take some time to find their favorite channels, but again, many people have subject matter interests, and this may immediately be appreciated. This will require printing of new channel lineup cards and including an announcement in bills for a couple of months before the cutover, but it would give the WOW subscriber a much better channel selection experience.

    Last, just a nit: the installers have a great channel lineup card to hand out, but does not seem to be available on the WOW web site as a .PDF. What is on the web site is a many page lineup which is not suitable to print out and keep near the remote. Could someone please post these cards as .PDF’s on the WOW web site?

    Keep up the good work. This is a unique forum for the cable industry. All the large impersonal corporate cable companies would never engage in this kind of conversation and we should all appreciate it.

    In I Love Feedback posted March 11, 2010 at 11:20 pm

  3. Ok, I couldn’t find a better place to put this, so here goes:

    In the past few weeks the FOOD Channel had been advertising the COOKING Channel that will start the end of May. Will WOW be carrying it?

    Just asking.

    In How Programming Decisions Are Made posted May 10, 2010 at 10:41 pm

  4. As we are now in December, I find that the premium for 3D is a few hundred dollars and the technology seems to work. Since I buy televisions and keep them for a long time, I buy really good ones and will probably buy a 3D set.

    Many of the major TV providers are now supporting broadcast 3D, ESPN seems to be rolling out content. I called WOW technical and she told me they have no definitive 3D plans. I wonder if anyone from WOW could comment further on the future of 3D and WOW. Perhaps, 3D may be supported by the upcoming DVR replacement.

    In 3D Pundits-Gotta love 'em posted December 17, 2010 at 12:00 pm

  5. I have a Samsung 3D tv and really like it. I wonder when WOW will start distributing ESPN 3D and other 3D sources.

    In 3D comes to WOW! VOD posted December 1, 2011 at 4:18 am