For those suggesting Plex, take a look at Jellyfin. Open source, no need to pay to use it on iOS devices.
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Max Planning to Crack Down on Password Sharing
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Or connect external hard drive to a wifi router or get a nas.
I'm comparing advertised streaming prices vs advertised cable tv prices. While it may be possible to call and ask for a lower price, (1) not everyone knows about it, and (2) discounted prices may not be available to everyone / in all markets.
If we're going to include ways of getting lower prices, then I could do the same for streaming services. For instance, I'm paying $2.99/mo for Disney+ and Hulu (both with ads) from last year's Black Friday special. I got similar offers in prior years too.
I also have Paramount+ and Showtime (no ads) for free courtesy of AmEx. When I went to cancel Paramount+ because I had already redeemed the offer 3 times, they offered me another 2 months free... so I got 5 months of Paramount+ and Showtime for free. And it's not the first time this has happened either.
Then there are the many free Apple TV+ trials I can get and have gotten.
Add it all up and I'm still paying less than you are paying for cable tv.
It's weird. I am not sure if it is me using an Apple TV or simply my wifi but for some reason I have not been effected by the password crackdown by Netflix nor Disney+ while part of my family has. From what I could gather so far it might be related to me not using the built in Apps of my TV itself.
Not complaining haha
I am also surprised MAX still has so many subscribers like I feel like they hardly release any MAX exclusive content anymore and if they do, it takes them like 3+ years to release another 8 episode season between seasons.
Not complaining haha
I am also surprised MAX still has so many subscribers like I feel like they hardly release any MAX exclusive content anymore and if they do, it takes them like 3+ years to release another 8 episode season between seasons.
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Can we please get hbo max in UK, I will never subscribe to SKY TV. I actually bought the season 1 dvd of last of us so I didn't have to sub to SKY.
so much ridiculousness with streaming, it hasn't made life easier its complicated and costs more. things shift between various streaming programs and its hard to keep track, too much saturation. initially Hulu was going to bridge the gap between all the networks and production companies then all the companies and networks want their own and thats cool but im not paying everyone $20+ for their own individual app and subscription. havent had Netflix in over two years dont miss it. max has been the only tolerable one so hopefully they dont get too stuck up their @$$ about this
I only have Max because it's included with my family plan through AT&T. Otherwise, I wouldn't pay for it. They do have some good shows and occasionally good movies. Avenue 5 with Hugh Laurie was good. The Penguin is good. They just released another show called The Franchise. It's a parody of Marvel Studios/DC Studios and the behind the scenes of superhero movie productions. Other than that, I mostly watch DC stuff.
That's the kinda crap they're charging $20+ a month for. One of the least value for money in the industry.
Yeah me too! I get Paramount Plus for free with my Walmart+ membership and free Peacock Premium with my Xfinity account. They both have ads. There's no way I would pony up for a sub with ads on top. Most of this stuff you can watch for free anyway on over the air broadcast.
Ha yeah whoops. I stopped paying attention after the second acquisition. They were just passing around a corpse at that point.
There can be a variety of cable TV plans available for less than the $95/month plan you focused on. For example, Spectrum advertises a plan for $40/month which includes 85+ channels.
Disney+/Hulu/Max bundle (with ads) = $16.99/month
Apple TV+ = $9.99/month
Paramount+ Essential (with ads) = $7.99/month
Peacock Premium (with ads) = $7.99/month
Netflix Standard (with ads) = $6.99/month
Above streaming services = $49.95/month
Whether cable TV is more or less than streaming services will depend on cable packages and streaming services chosen. It's not as simple as saying "cable is more expensive" or "streaming is more expensive."
But it is. For one, I (and a majority of people) would never subscribe to all 7 of those streaming services you listed at once. On average, Americans pay for 2.9 streaming subscriptions every month. I myself currently have 4: Netflix, Disney+, Hulu, and Paramount+, but that will drop to 3 when my last free month to Paramount+ ends this month which would put me back inline with the 2.9 average.
Netflix (with ads) = $6.99/mo
Disney+ and Hulu (both with ads) = $10.99/mo (or $2.99/mo if you get the Black Friday special they run every year)
Total = $17.98/mo
vs $40/mo for that Spectrum cable tv 85+ channels with ads plan you mentioned.
I'm just glad I still get DirecTV Stream with over 110 HD channels, three streams, and DVR for the same price I paid when it started back in December of 2016...$40 a month with taxes and fees. I also get HBO Max for free with my cell service. Can't beat it!
I have AmEx Blue Cash and get similar deals for Max and Paramount+. They also often can be stacked. For example, I linked my AmEx to Sam's Club's Sam's Cash program, which got me $30 back there, plus another $30 from AmEx, when I renewed Max.
How did you manage that? I got the same deal (plus a free Apple TV box and including HBO) when I signed up in January 2017. I was grandfathered into that price until about 2021, when they started increasing it $3 here and $5 there. Eventually in 2023 it reached a price that I was no longer willing to pay, and I dropped it.
I was told during the phone call when I signed up that I would have the introductory rate for life unless I cancelled the service, and I recorded the phone conversation. When they did the first price increase, I called into customer service and let them know about the increase and about the recording I had. The rep did something to my account which does not allow any price increases, ever. My plan would cost $100 more a month today, if it weren't for me being locked in.
But it isn't. It all depends on what TV plan or streaming services people sign up for.
If we treat each of the 85+ channels as its own streaming service, the $40/month "bundle" comes out to less than 50 cents per channel/streaming service.
Or if the three (2.9 average) streaming services people signed up for were Max Ultimate Ad-Free ($20.99/month), Netflix Premium ($22.99/month) and Disney+ Premium ($15.99/month), the total is $59.97 vs $40/month for the Spectrum plan.
Again, it is not as simple as saying "cable is more expensive" or "streaming is more expensive."
I usually jump from streaming network to streaming network. Only one I keep is Max, mostly it for GOT and a few other shows. I never watch any of the other crap that is offered like the reality shows, etc. Only reason I'm keeping Max for now is for the new Dune series. If that bombs, then I'm out.
No one would do that. I don't know that those 85+ channels are, but in all likelihood they are "channels" Paramount owns (i.e. CBS, MTV, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, etc), that Disney owns (ABC, FX Networks, ESPN, National Geographic, etc,), that NBCUniversal owns (i.e. NBC, Syfy, USA Network, etc), and so on.
Each of those channels is not a separate streaming service when I can access the same content by subscribing to their respective streaming services (i.e. Paramount+, Disney+/Hulu, and Peacock).
EDIT...
Taking a look at that 85+ channel line up, I see a lot of those channels (e.g. A&E, BET, CMT, Cooking Channel, Hallmark Channel, Jewelry TV, Lifetime, QVC, QVC2, theGrio, Weather Channel, etc) are not even worth watching. For me, that 85+ channel cable tv plan isn't even worth getting because the list of channels is weak. A lot of the popular channels aren't even on it which means I'd need to get the next higher tier/price cable tv plan if I want to have anything worth watching.
Comparing the least expensive cable tv offering that shows you ads to the most expensive streaming service plans that don't have ads is not an apples to apples comparison.
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