"The 1st thing to go is cable, 2nd is the phone, 3rd is the second car, 4th is the house"

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Recession-proof? Maybe not this time
Gambling, smoking, even premium television could suffer in this downturn

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27756228/page/2/

Conventional wisdom also has held that people will smoke and drink alcohol even when budgets are tight. But that assumption is now being tested. Altria Group, whose holdings include cigarette maker Philip Morris USA, recently told The Associated Press that it had started to cut jobs because of economic turmoil.

Even if they are cutting back elsewhere, many have believed that people will continue to think of their cable television as another utility, like water or electricity, and keep paying the bill even when their budgets get tight. But this time around, Flickinger said his research is showing that premium television is one of the first items people are cutting back on in parts of the country that have been hard-hit by layoffs or other labor strife.

“The first thing to go is cable, the second thing to go is the phone, the third thing to go is the second car and then the fourth thing to go is the house,” Flickinger said.

While it’s still early days, there are signs those individual decisions are starting to impact providers. Satellite TV provider Dish Network Inc. recently reported a net loss of 10,000 subscribers in the third quarter ended Sept. 30, and it cited the weak economy as one factor in the loss of business. In a regulatory filing, the company also warned that bad economic conditions could impact consumer demand for pay-TV services going forward.

Those cable providers who have expanded into Internet and phone offerings may be better poised to survive a downturn because they have more diverse sources of revenue.

[lisa58]

1. first for me is clothes - discount clothes, but still clothes...

...cable stays, wine stays (good for the blood).

ebay is mostly gone - amazon is mostly gone - Christmas will be interesting, but not desolate.

gave up smoking (but give me the right situation and I might be in) and not much of a gambler.

[Seen the light]

2. I got rid of cable very quickly a few months ago

Haven't missed it. All of the best shows are available online the next day anyway and you can get live streaming coverage of different sports events on cable if you know where to look. Same with cable news if you're into that sort of thing.

I'd love to get rid of my phone service, but apparently I can't do that if I'm paying for my online service. Anyone know of a way to get rid of landline service and stick with broadband Internet?

[JuniperLea]

7. Verizon let me get rid of the land line...

And keep the DSL. The DSL costs a little more without the package deal, but it's still far less than I was paying for the phone and the DSL.

I'd call back. I don't think they can do that.

[KG]

9. i use cable for my interent - no TV, just roadrunner, and a cell phone.

tho this option isnt available everywhere...

[stlsaxman]

16. yup- cable for internet only... $50 a month and with it i can-

stream c-span (the only good thing on cable tv),make and receive calls on Skype from my own number i paid $60 a year for and calls to regular phones anywhere in the world are pennies a minute. www.skype.com

i was pirating my cable four years ago when i realized all i watched was c-span.

[napi21]

13. I switched to MagicJack the first of September. Tested it for 2 weeks

to make sure I was satisfied, then canceled my landline. I did buy an AT&T Gophone (prepaid cell service) to use as an emergency backup for when the electric power goes out or my cable internet service goes out, but I bought a $100 prepaid card for it and the minutes are good for 1 year without having to do aything. The MagicJack cost $45 and the phone was $4.95 + the $100 card. THAT'S IT! No other phone bills and no long distance charges, best of all NO MORE OF THOSE STUPID ADD ON FEES THAT WERE ALWAYS ON THE PHONE BILL!

The renewal fee for MagicJack is $20 A YEAR!

As long as you have a reliable broadband service, MagicJack works GREAT!

[On the Road]

17. Looks Like BellSouth Doesn't Offer Naked DSL

although I think they're crazy not to. Some other state commissions seem to have tried to make it a requirement, but NC was not among them:

On March 25, 2005, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) ruled 3-2 against utilities commissions in Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, and Louisiana, which wanted to force BellSouth to unbundle their DSL service from their local phone service.

AT&T now provides naked DSL throughout most of the country, and Qwest Communications provides it voluntarily. Verizon Communications also provides it in some areas, although at a higher price than it charges customers who bundle it with regular phone service.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naked_DSL#United_States

[JuniperLea]

3. Quit smoking... check

Got rid of cable... check

Lost the land line... check

Never had a second car... and I need the house for tax purposes.

My work here is done.

[XemaSab]

4. If you're poor

sitting at home and watching TV, even to the tune of 50 bucks a month, is probably less expensive than most other forms of entertainment.

People need escapist hobbies.

[JuniperLea]

8. NetFlix is cheaper than cable...

And you have full control over the movies you get;)

[XemaSab]

11. But that implies INTERNET ACCESS!

:P

[JuniperLea]

14. I can't give up my InterTubes!

:P

[kestrel91316]

15. I haven't had cable since the earthquake. Yep, that's right. Northridge,

1994, when the TV I had then bit the dust post-quake.

Netflix rocks. And when my cheap junk DVD player bit the dust after only a year, now I just watch the DVDs on my computer, and can even download them and watch online.

[DJ13]

5. Altria should be worried, smoking will be a luxury after the price increased so much

10 years ago a carton was $16, now its $40 due to them not fighting state/federal tax increases.

Same with cable, went from 60 important channels to 600 (who can watch that many?!), and the price has escalated from $20 per month up to $100.

Too many companies all went for broke in upping their prices, and now they will see what broke customers will mean to that business model.

[sarcasmo]

6. #1 Cable, #2 Clothes, the second car is already gone and lastly the Internet

[Junkdrawer]

10. And you'll need a $50+ box for over-the-air TV in 3 months...

Great Timing....

[walldude]

18. Oh they are giving rebates for those boxes...

Don't want the masses missing TV :eyes:

[msongs]

12. "...the rich have got their channels in the bedrooms of the poor." - L. Cohen "Tower of Song" nt