For years, integrators and cable/satellite companies have had a frustrating, one-way relationship. Dealers spend countless hours designing and installing super-cool A/V systems and then present the customer on a proverbial silver platter to the cable/satellite company to connect their sometimes clunky set-top boxes.
And while the cable company is sitting back collecting monthly subscription and component rental fees, which have grown 185 percent over the past 20 years according to the FCC, the integrator is working for free and has to support the system, even though the cable box and service is the most-common cause of truck rolls.
But those days can be over, according to one integrator. Using the TiVo BOLT, Audio Interiors in New York City is successfully maintaining more control over its clients' systems vs. the wild card of cable TV.
“Some integrators think a TiVo device is nothing but a DVR that is a hassle to set up,” comments Larry Abrams of Audio Interiors in New York City. “But is far from that. It is truly a device that allows you to offer 4K TV to your clients that fits the custom integration business model perfectly.”
Abrams says the situation with cable TV became even more frustrating for clients recently when Time Warner Cable started turning off their subscribers' set-top boxes at 4 a.m. in order to save on the exhaustive phantom power draw of the devices. That decision meant Audio Interiors got swamped with calls from distressed customers whose TVs suddenly did not work at 5 a.m. The situation forced Audio Interiors to have to go to many clients' homes and install timers on the cable boxes. Cable companies like Comcast are trying to resolve the situation by turning to apps, but the FCC is skeptical, according to a CNET report.
Using the BOLT, the company can control its installations end to end, increase profit, futureproof their systems, and improve customer satisfaction. The device combines 4K content, linear TV, recorded content, apps and OTT content, including Netflix, Hulu, HBOGo, Amazon Prime, and more.
Abrams will be a guest panelist next Wednesday, May 4 at 2 p.m. EDT for the FREE CE Pro webinar entitled “How to Make Money Selling and Installing 4K Cable TV in Clients' Homes.” During the one-hour webcast, he will outline the business plan that Audio Interiors uses to keep a portion of the money slated for the cable company.
The webinar will also include a side-by-side cost comparison between cable TV installation/rental fees vs. a TiVo BOLT subscription fee as well as an analysis comparing the operating costs for a set-top box vs. an on-site DVR. Other portions of the webinar will address:.
- How using break-out boxes vs. smart TVs enables you to “future-ready” a full 4K HDR-capable solution in the home.
- A look at what having a single unified entertainment system (UES) means to clients vs. having multiple subsystems with different interfaces and remotes.
- How an on-site device can reduce service calls compared to cable company STBs.
Click here for more information and to register for the free webinar.
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