Tech startup TVWIZZ puts channel choice in consumers’ hands
September 7, 2017 | Meghan LeVota
You’ve heard it before: Millennials are killing the cable TV industry.
With millions of young people “cord cutting” in lieu of streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, traditional cable viewership has dropped by more than 40 percent, according to Nielson.
For many, it comes down to price, said Michael Hockey, founder of TVWIZZ, a free, independent TV price comparison website allowing users to customize their cable plans by specifying the channels they actually want to watch.
Michael Hockey
An algorithm lets users select the channels, then the platform matches them with available packages, offering price comparisons from such providers as DirecTV, CenturyLink Stream, DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, Hulu Live, Sling TV, Fubo TV and Dish TV.
The technology, which Hockey launched as TVWIZZ earlier this year after relocating to Kansas City from London, is consumer driven with a goal to offer reduced prices, Hockey said.
“Cable prices are a hot topic at the moment,” he said. “It can be confusing for people to switch providers because they are unsure which TV providers carry their channels.”
TVWIZZ launched during the Labor Day weekend and generated more than 7,000 users in its first week, Hockey said.
“We had to double server capacity on Monday (Labor Day) to cope with the load,” he said.
The technology does not favor one cable company over another, Hockey said. The user-friendly design allows users to filter channels by genre and filter packages by price point or best match, he added.
“Millions of homes in America are starting to question the outdated ways of billing for pay TV, where you pay for 300 channels, but watch 10,” Hockey said. “Cord cutting is growing rapidly and TVWIZZ makes it easier for consumers to pay only for the channels they need.”
As the company grows, Hockey plans to launch similar price comparison services for the Internet, credit cards, insurance and cellular plans within one year. He’s looking forward to scaling the startup and recruiting technology jobs to Kansas City, he said.
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Royals, entrepreneurial stars fielding pitches from Kansas City educators
Children today require more than just a pencil and paper to complete their lesson plan. Thanks to a booming education technology market, teachers’ out-of-pocket spending goes far beyond the occasional pen, pencil or box of tissues nowadays. In 2013, teachers spent $1.6 billion annually to support their classroom. To alleviate the climbing prices of basic…
FCC commissioner Ajit Pai’s six strategic steps to close the digital divide
In his second visit to Kansas City within the last six months, Federal Communications Commission Commissioner Ajit Pai stopped by Think Big Tuesday as part of his fight to close the digital divide. Growing up in a small Kansas town three hours south of the metro, Pai said he’s familiar with the energy and vitality…
New regulations yield opportunity for animal feed tech startup
Editor’s note: This content is sponsored by LaunchKC but independently produced by Startland News. Growing up, Gretchen Henry’s family farmed cotton in Southeast Missouri. Although most are familiar with the white, pillowy substance we find in our clothes, use to wash our face or clean our ears, animals also eat it. Livestock feed features many…
EyeVerify CEO Toby Rush offers an update on hiring plans, global expansion
When your goal is to more than quadruple your company’s user base — from 450 million to 2 billion people — it usually entails a world of change. And such is the case for Kansas City-based EyeVerify, a biometrics startup that recently sold to Alibaba affiliate Ant Financial for more than $100 million. Startland News spoke…