I guess for me it comes down to a few things, with convenience probably being the biggest reason. It’s a hell of a lot easier to navigate a torrent page and just click on what I want. The listings from the cable provider aren’t always accurate, plus it’s a bit of a slog to wade through them day after day (slow processing and menus within menus within menus). It also doesn’t help that it will only show what’s coming on over the next 6 days or so.

My HTPC is my main PC so I’m on it 99% of the time (typing this on a 60″ HDTV right now in fact) and since it has all of my record keeping and links for tracking/downloading shows, there is no constant flipping back and forth between the two separate inputs. The cable box pretty much spends the majority of it’s time powered off and I only really use it when I want to channel surf or watch a specialty channel like Discovery or History, usually because I have nothing better to do (so out of boredom basically).

With torrents, all of the advertisements have been removed. Thusly this convenience is another good reason to prefer it over the “legal” content I’m paying for. Yes, the remote for my cable box can jump forward in 15 second increments, but I almost always go too far and have to jump back which the cable box does in 6 second increments. It’s a PITA really.

Would I pay for a similar service if one were provided by my cable company or by whomever did it best no matter where they ran their business from in the world? I’ve been saying YES over and over for what feels like forever! I use both public and private torrent sites and have happily donated on numerous occasions to the ones I felt were deserving. Cleanliness, ease of use, and professionalism are the key points here.

The excuse from anti-pirate types is always that they can’t compete with free, but this is a load of bull IMHO. Give the people what they want at a reasonable price and they’ll be all over it, I guarantee you that. The service I’m getting right now from torrent sites, maybe even improved upon (there is always room), all while being 100% legal? Now that’s what I’m talking about! As things are right now, well I just don’t know how much longer I can resist cutting the cord. If only those in the industry could put their egos and desire for revenge aside for a moment, they would see the potential in putting away their ancient and outdated ways of doing business. If only…