At Scripting News: 6/30/2005, Dave mentions that paying should preclude commercials as part of a general discussion about why movies are in the decline.

It’s not just that. I refuse digital cable because of the ads that are included in the interface itself. There are ads that appear not only in the program guide, but in the channel bar when one chances channels, etc … I refuse to have my UI become a space for ads, especially if I’m paying for the cable service.

The abuse our minds are subjected to is a perfect example of a tragedy of the commons, where every advertiser is trying to maximize their opportunity for eyeballs, as if they were the only one attempting to use the resource. Well, they aren’t. An I am not willing to take that. I’ve significantly toned down my acceptance of advertizing.

I use my Tivo, sure, to skip ads. However, I do watch ads that I enjoy watching. I have even been known to pause the playback in order to show some particular ad to someone.

But I also have almost stopped watching TV at all, supplementing that with Netflix. I prefer to watch a series on DVD than on TV. Which, as an aside, is a conspiracy to destroy independent TV stations that rely on syndicated version of TV shows, all of which are now available on DVD with no commercials.