YouTube TV Gets Cheaper Sports, News, and Entertainment Bundles

[jonnyb098]

To those complaining about the rising cost of YTTV.

Do not compare the price with what you were paying cable TV for when you cut cord.

Compare the price with what cable TV is charging now.

EXACTLY. Most traditional cable companies want you paying around $200/month. We saved a ton by ditching traditional cable and switching to YTTV. And it's actually useful and intelligent unlike most cable systems (Xfinity comes close but is insanely high priced).

They could raise the price of the FULL package to $100 tomorrow and it would still be cheaper for us. They'd have to get close to $130 for us to cancel.

 

[Bigwaff]

I mean, they're charging you for broadcast television - which is free. Sure the ads are annoying, but they're why its free.

Actually, OTA broadcast television is free because it uses public airwaves and free is a regulatory requirement as part of their broadcast license.

 

[Michael Scrip]

The problem with these packages isn't that it's just Cable TV again, it's that people have realised they don't really want 'channels' anymore. They want individual shows.

Exactly.

Also... I wonder how much longer the concept of scheduled TV channels will be a thing?

It seems kinda silly that in order to watch a show you need to be in front of your TV at 8:30pm on a Tuesday... or remember to record it on your DVR.

In the old days there was a giant antenna in your town and it literally broadcast to your home in real-time. And you had to obey their schedule.

But today all these shows are sitting on a server somewhere. Just let us watch them when we want. On our schedule.

 

[jonnyb098]

Exactly.

Also... I wonder how much longer the concept of scheduled TV channels will be a thing?

It seems kinda silly that in order to watch a show you need to be in front of your TV at 8:30pm on a Tuesday... or remember to record it on your DVR.

In the old days there was a giant antenna in your town and it literally broadcast to your home in real-time. And you had to obey their schedule.

But today all these shows are sitting on a server somewhere. Just let us watch them when we want. On our schedule.

Youtube TV automatically records your shows. I tell it my favorite shows, and I can watch any one at any time I choose. It would help if you understood the service before bashing it.

 

[Powerguru]

It has 10+ million subs in the US but ok.

I agree, not everyone is intelligent.

 

[coolfactor]

My favourite companies — which are extremely rare — are those that allow you to buy "credits" that never expire, and then you can apply those credits to individual services as payment, starting and stopping services without any penalty.

The company already has your money from buying the credits, and you have full control over what those credits are applied to.

This monthly "package" model needs to die.

 

[CalMin]

Wait...! There's a cheaper option. Rejoice, for hell hath frozen over, my friends!

 

[pnoozi]

Would still need Peacock Premium for Premier League, would still need Paramount+ for Serie A and Champions League, would still need Apple TV for F1, would still need a subscription to my local MLB team's network as it's not available on YouTube TV.

TNF is free on Twitch.

Sunday football is free with an antenna.

Fox One costs $20 for the month of October so it's not a huge benefit.

So essentially it's 65/mo or $780/year to watch SportsCenter, MNF, College Football/sports, NL playoffs, in-market NBA and NHLmarquee Premier League matches (live) and some European soccer (La Liga, Bundesliga and Eredivisie).

 

[riverguide]

Sports + News Plan - $71.99 per month, or $56.99 per month for new subscribers (3-month discount). Includes everything in the Sports Plan, plus networks like CNBC, Fox News, MSNBC, CNN, CSPAN, Bloomberg, and Fox Business.

As a current subscriber with those two interests , I am hoping for this additional option:

Sports + News Plan Minus - $59.99 per month for new and current subscribers, Includes everything in the Sports + News Plan except Fox News

 

[erikkfi]

Everyone realizes this is going to inevitably rise to the exact same price as cable TV, right?

That's clear, right?

 

[Michael Scrip]

Youtube TV automatically records your shows. I tell it my favorite shows, and I can watch any one at any time I choose. It would help if you understood the service before bashing it.

My point was... why are they still broadcasting shows on a schedule? Why are TV channels and timeslots still a thing?

The schedule made sense when TV was broadcast in real-time. There were only so many hours in the day. And TV shows had certain timeslots on certain channels.

But with the internet and streaming... everything can be available at any time.

You'll see a show advertised like this: "Watch at 8:30pm on Tuesday... or Wednesday on Hulu..."

Why not skip the Tuesday part... and just put it on Hulu?

I guess what's what most people do, huh. They aren't watching live and will just wait until the next day for it to be available on-demand.

So again... why are they broadcasting shows on a schedule in the first place?

To be clear... I'm not bashing Youtube TV as a service. I'm questioning the concept of live TV "channels" and scheduled TV shows.

😎

 

[Elwe]

The problem with these packages isn't that it's just Cable TV again, it's that people have realised they don't really want 'channels' anymore. They want individual shows.

I think that is true for non-news and non-sports programming. But especially for sports, it is very clear a large segment of people primarily want programming for 1) the league, and/or 2 (their team). Which isn't quite the same thing as individual shows, given the spectrum of channels/networks which may host programming from one team or league. If I want to watch every Seahawks game, for example, I need access to at least six different networks/providers/streams (ABC, CBS, NBC, NFL Network, Netflix, and Prime). I may be missing one . . . The only solution other than a bundler (like Youtube TV or cable or whatever) would be a mandate that every single team would have to allow access from every provider. I don't see how that would be legal absent clear mandate from Congress.

 

[Westside guy]

Man, if those YouTube TV ads (the pic in this story) don't remind you of the old cable bait-and-switch... nothing will.

Only two or three months at the discounted price? Sheesh, how "generous".

 

[TJFDenver]

Actually, OTA broadcast television is free because it uses public airwaves and free is a regulatory requirement as part of their broadcast license.

$0.00 since 2011 and 4k ATSC 3.0 OTA since 2018 (prior to that ATSC 1.0 OTA was 1080p)

 

[burgman]

Same - I would be very happy to choose the "Entertainment" package and save ~$30 / month, since I don't watch news or sports 🙂

The DIRECTV Entertainment pack looks like a better deal

 

[burgman]

To those complaining about the rising cost of YTTV.

Do not compare the price with what you were paying cable TV for when you cut cord.

Compare the price with what cable TV is charging now.

Actually some kinda got the message, if you bundle mobile and internet it’s a good deal now with multi year price locks. Their old school TV packages are still stupid with the fees. Price of YTTV plus mobile plus internet is more than cable pricing now.

 

[zeus423]

Pay for broadband. Now pay for streaming. Now pay for a cable-like TV package. Umm, no thanks.

 

[M4th]

Just in time for the World Cup? Do they come with over the air channels?

I'm currently subscribed so get all major OTA networks (including PBS), but may choose one of the smaller plans eventually. I do have a fairly good antenna but can't get some of those OTA channels YTTV has.

With the separate and surprisingly low cost of internet (fiber optic) added, it's a better deal for this location.

 

[gbc204]

So we can pay for one of these packages and watch Ad after Ad after Ad OR we can subscribe to other services and pay for no Ads.

I think I will pay for No Ads.......

YouTube T is just cable tv. It doesn't have any ads that wouldn't otherwise be on the TV channels you normally watch. The same as DirecTV except it's just over internet.

 

[gbc204]

"TV should be easy,"
YouTube TV USED to be easy. Now 40 bucks and I got all the channels I wanted, extra for stuff like HBO. Just like the old cable TV system. Just getting more and more complicated.
But I guess if you're willing to put in the time to really drill down on what you watch/want to watch, you can save 10 bucks a month...

 

[jonnyb098]

My point was... why are they still broadcasting shows on a schedule? Why are TV channels and timeslots still a thing?

The schedule made sense when TV was broadcast in real-time. There were only so many hours in the day. And TV shows had certain timeslots on certain channels.

But with the internet and streaming... everything can be available at any time.

You'll see a show advertised like this: "Watch at 8:30pm on Tuesday... or Wednesday on Hulu..."

Why not skip the Tuesday part... and just put it on Hulu?

I guess what's what most people do, huh. They aren't watching live and will just wait until the next day for it to be available on-demand.

So again... why are they broadcasting shows on a schedule in the first place?

To be clear... I'm not bashing Youtube TV as a service. I'm questioning the concept of live TV "channels" and scheduled TV shows.

😎

Why did 150 million people watch the Super Bowl when they could just watch it whenever? Why did Netflix release stranger things at 8PM on NYE? There’s still a human element of time and feeling like people are sharing a moment. Humanity is still a thing! Embrace it!

There are still something like 20+ million Americans who have zero access to high speed internet believe it or not so they will never stream.

All that aside. What you’re complaining about was a normal way of life just 5-10 years ago. Streaming being mainstream is a very new thing in the grand scheme of TV/entertainment.

 

[ugahairydawgs]

My point was... why are they still broadcasting shows on a schedule? Why are TV channels and timeslots still a thing?

The schedule made sense when TV was broadcast in real-time. There were only so many hours in the day. And TV shows had certain timeslots on certain channels.

But with the internet and streaming... everything can be available at any time.

You'll see a show advertised like this: "Watch at 8:30pm on Tuesday... or Wednesday on Hulu..."

Why not skip the Tuesday part... and just put it on Hulu?

I guess what's what most people do, huh. They aren't watching live and will just wait until the next day for it to be available on-demand.

So again... why are they broadcasting shows on a schedule in the first place?

To be clear... I'm not bashing Youtube TV as a service. I'm questioning the concept of live TV "channels" and scheduled TV shows.

😎

Hardly anyone is waiting until the next day to watch live sports on replay.

 

[ryanmp]

Interesting definition of "cheaper".

I know it won't work for everyone but I've managed to cancel Youtube TV and sign-up for other streaming services to get everything I previously watched (+ recorded) on Youtube TV for about half the price.

 

[jntdroid]

This is still cheaper than most cable packages now. And even if it wasn't, let's not forget there's ZERO lock-in - you can stop any time... restart for a month, cancel again, etc etc. So there's still a big flexibility benefit.

 

[azchandler]

The only way to stop these price increases is to stop subscribing. Tell them what you want with your wallet.

I got rid of cable over 10 years ago and have never missed it. I guess some people really like the cable/YT TV format.