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Cable industry’s sad attack on cord-cutting to meet a merciful end

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December 11, 2013 at 9:50 a.m. EST

Holesaga.com, the National Cable and Telecommunications Association’s failed attempt to spread the dangers of cord-cutting, will disappear from the Internet this week, according to an association spokesman.

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The end couldn’t come soon enough for Holesaga, which was met by a storm of criticism on the platform where it hoped to be embraced, the Internet.

The fancy Web site debuted this month with quirky and silly interactive videos that attempted to demonstrate the risks of not having cable. In one, a cyclist falls victim to a mutant rabbit because he didn’t have cable, and hadn’t seen the latest rabbit news on CNN.

What’s not mentioned is CNN’s free Web site and robust social media presence, where it passes on news on things such as mutant rabbits. Holesaga’s videos completely ignore the array of options modern consumers have outside cable to get the latest information.

Some sample critiques: “The worst anti-cord cutting campaign of all time.” “Awful, desparate ads.” “Clumsy.” “Some ideas are bad. Others are insane.”

A Holesaga clip on YouTube received little traction, and the campaign’s Twitter account got four followers, two of whom work for the National Cable and Telecommunications Association and a third is the official NCTA account.

To be fair, the group finds itself with a herculean task. Cable companies are notorious for poor customer service, and angst toward these companies oozes from the seams of the Internet. Launching a campaign to tap into social media was setting up shop in enemy territory.

Plus, the merits of cutting ties with cable television are well established. Cable television makes little sense for those who aren’t sports fans. There are still some people and cases for whom cable television and service are useful, but Holesaga wasn’t the way to go about reminding consumers of that.

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