With more and more consumers cutting the cord and ditching their cable providers, these companies have to make up the lost revenue somehow. That apparently means increasing costs elsewhere, like your broadband. [More]
cutting the cord
Why Aren’t More Cord-Cutters Flocking To Live-TV Streaming Services?
By 4.28.17 — Updated: 5.9.17
Millions of Americans have canceled their cable TV subscriptions in the last decade, choosing instead to get their video entertainment over the internet. A growing number of services have popped up in recent years that offer cable-like live-TV streaming for this audience: Sling TV, DirecTV Now, PlayStation Vue, YouTube TV, with Hulu planning to launch a competitor soon, and Comcast reportedly looking to get into the fray. Yet, despite the multiple options and the large potential market of cord-cutters and cord-nevers, these platforms have yet to win over the masses. [More]
Report: 25% Of Americans Won’t Have A Traditional TV Subscription By 2018
By 4.24.17 — Updated: 5.10.17
TV viewers have been snipping the cord and freeing themselves from traditional TV subscriptions offered by satellite and cable companies for years, so it may come as no surprise that the flood of customers fleeing to streaming video shows no signs of easing. [More]
You Can Now Buy HBO, Cinemax Through Amazon Prime
By 12.1.16
In Amazon’s continuing effort to be everything and anything for its customers, the e-commerce giant announced today that it will be offering streaming HBO and Cinemax subscriptions to its Prime members. [More]
Your Cable Company Will Probably Give You Free HBO For A Few Months, But Good Luck Getting The “New Customer” Rate
By 8.15.16
For years, we here at Consumerist HQ have heard anecdotal claims that negotiating for a better rate from your cable provider is no longer as simple as it used to be. The discounts weren’t as deep, people would say, the offers were on the weak side, and in the wake of bad PR, companies have seemed more willing to call customers’ bluff and let them cancel service painlessly. Of course, anecdotes do not equal data, so we wanted to know: is this actually a thing? [More]
HBO Now Accounted For Almost 1% Of Internet Video Traffic On Sunday Night
By 4.15.15
HBO’s standalone streaming service HBO Now is only a week old but a look at traffic numbers for its first big-event night give hope that it might be finding traction with consumers. [More]
The HBO Now Announcement Shows Why Net Neutrality Is So Important
By 3.9.15
This afternoon, HBO announced the details of its HBO Now streaming service that will finally allow consumers without cable TV to access the premium pay-TV network without having to be burdened with a cable bill for channels they don’t watch. But the fact that HBO has opted to go with Apple as its launch partner and not Comcast or any of the major pay-TV carriers is a reminder of just how important net neutrality is. [More]
Dish Says Sony’s Streaming Service Will Be Real Substitute For Cable
By 2.24.15
Just a few weeks ago, Dish launched its Sling TV streaming service which some hailed as a cord-cutter’s dream, but which is honestly more targeted at people who want only the most basic cable TV access without having to deal with cable companies. Dish’s founder (and soon-to-return CEO) recognizes Sling’s limits and says that Sony’s forthcoming streaming service is likely to be the real marketplace disruptor. [More]
Sling TV Chooses Epix For Its First Premium Movie Package
By 2.16.15
Dish’s Sling TV streaming service is currently a pretty bare-bones operation, with only about a dozen channels and very little in the way of on-demand content. Today the service announced its first partnership with a premium pay-TV movie network. And no, it’s not HBO, Showtime, or even Starz. [More]
Should You Ditch Cable? This Calculator Will Tell You
By 1.12.15
We’ve been posting about cord-cutting, or ditching pay cable TV in favor of paid and free streaming video sites, for years now. However, products announced in the last year can better simulate the content available through cable. Sports, premium cable channels, and other things that were once cable-only are now available to cord-cutters. Yet making the switch doesn’t always make financial sense. [More]
Sony’s Streaming TV Service Will Offer 75 Channels, Start Testing This Month, But For How Much?
By 11.13.14
Sony has finally provided some concrete details on its much anticipated streaming TV service, including a name, an expected launch window, and some info about its channel lineup, but the company still isn’t saying how much it’s going to charge. [More]
How Much Would You Pay For A Standalone HBO Go?
By 10.23.14
Last week, HBO confirmed plans to launch a standalone online service that doesn’t require you to have a separate basic pay-TV package. Beyond that, the company has provided few details, leaving both consumers and cable companies wondering what the service will actually be — and how much it will cost. [More]
Cable Company Caps Data Usage, Tells Customers They Should Watch On-Demand Movies Instead Of Netflix
By 2.5.13
A number of cable companies and Internet service providers have soft data usage caps of around 250 GB, where customers who cross that threshold repeatedly will receive warnings. Some are more strict, like the small cable provider in Pennsylvania who charges $1/GB over that 250 GB limit, and who wants you to cut back on the Netflix. [More]
Majority Of U.S. Households Either Don’t Have Or Don’t Use Landline Phones
By 12.27.12
There are kids and teens out there that have never used anything other than a wireless phone (though these youngsters only seem to text). And many of us who can still remember their first cellphone call — “I’m calling… from the street!” — can’t remember the last time we used a landline at home. [More]
Cutting Only Part Of The Cord Could End Up Costing You More (At First)
By 11.13.12
A growing number of people are ditching cable and going Internet-only for their video entertainment. But cutting that cable cord could actually end up costing more for some customers — at least for the first six months to a year. [More]
Report: Hulu Thinks Maybe You Shouldn't Cut Your Cable Cord Just Yet
By 4.30.12
Hulu is one of the many streaming services that have led a growing number of cable and satellite subscribers to cancel their subscriptions and get most of their TV entertainment via the Internet. But a new report claims that Hulu is now looking to appease cable companies by eventually making the service available only to those who are also paying for cable. [More]
Time Warner Cable Has No Idea What It Is Supposed To Charge You
By 12.28.11
Consumerist reader Stephen is a Time Warner Cable customer who is considering ditching cable TV and opting instead to use services like Hulu and Netflix for his video-based entertainment. So one would think that a simple chat with TWC would inform him of exactly how much his bill would be if he dropped cable and switch to internet-only. One would think that, but one would be mistaken. [More]
Fewer Cable Customers Fleeing Comcast
By 11.2.11
Like many cable providers, former Worst Company In America title-holder Comcast is feeling the pain from customers who are choosing non-cable options for video content. But according to the latest numbers from Kabletown, the stream of defectors has slowed down a bit. [More]
