First is the bandwidth requirement. If you are just running the TV shows on Joost, you might get a reasonable viewing experience, but if you are doing anything else you need a high capacity bandwidth pipe (more $$). TV Links works better, but the pictures are usually very pixelated so if there is something that has to be read on screen you can forget it (watch the first offering of The Sopranos for example).

Remember that you can get all the major networks with a pair of rabbit ears in most parts of the country. Internet based TV is going to become more pervasive and supported by the networks, as it allows them to increase their ad revenue and better target their demographics (I work for a IT company that supplies broadcasters, and we are seeing more requests for Internet TV and streaming radio every day).

I cancelled my cable because they kept removing channels and increasing the cost. The benefits are more than the $60/month. I’m reading more of my books, journals, and articles that I kept meaning to read, I’m going out and exploring the area more (by bike to save gas $), and my wife and I are talking more.

It looks like you get some premium channels as well, and to replace that functionality you’ll need to get something like a Netflix account. Of course you might say that you don’t get enough value out of the premium channels. We have to assume make use of the premium or you’d get rid of them. Unsubscribing from them would cut your cable bill down to around $50-$60.

If you don’t use the DVR functionality, why not ditch that extra service and bring your final cost down to around $40 a month. That’s the real cost of the basic cable service. Everything else is just the extras that you choose to add to enhance your TV experience and/or give you extra content you can’t get elsewhere.

Now you need to ask yourself what that $40 buys you. For me it buys me being able to watch shows (with good reception) in real time (not after I look like an idiot at the water cooler at work). It also buys me reasonable quality on big screen from a distance, which is far from the experience I have huddled around my laptop. I did buy a month of MLB.TV to watch my Red Sox from California. The quality doesn’t come close what I had on TV. I now have to choose whether my laptop is my TV or my computer now. Before I could look up Kevin Youkilis’ OPS via ESPN.com, while watching the game. Now, if I want to do that I’m watching the game on a postage stamp. Usually I just say it’s not worth it for me know the stats and continue to watch the pixelated full-screen feed. It’s servicable, but you wouldn’t want to get all your content that way.