Skinny bundles: Can a la carte pricing be around the corner? Verizon says NO.

A 2014 Nielson survey showed that the average US TV household watches just 17 channels but pays for 189.  While the size of program packages has expanded significantly over the years and prices have risen greater than 2x the rate of inflation, the average number of watched channels as changed very little.*  

Not surprisingly, cable customers, for decades, have advocated for a la carte pricing.  It never came. But, change came in another way and it has forced video providers to offer more pricing options.

It began with over-the-top programming that allowed consumers to view shows anytime, anyplace.  Cord-cutting, cord-skimming, and cord-avoiding shifted some bargaining power to consumers.  While they still don't have a la carte pricing, slimmed down product bundles, like Verizon's Custom HD for $55/month, might be a "step in the right direction" (Tami Erwin, Verizon Fios President on a recent CNBC interview).

Will this make some of us happy for now?  Verizon and the other MVPDs certainly hope so!  The rest of us aren't so sure.


*Today, if a TV bundle is $90/month, the price per watched channel is more than $5/month.