Sometimes called over-the-top television (OTT), the market for internet entertainment content is changing rapidly! Broadband Committee member, Mary Ellen Banks, follows these developments in the streaming television space closely. In this installment of her occasional series on the topic, Mary Ellen looks at low or no-cost TV programming options.
Streaming TV programs via the Internet can be a cost-effective way to watch TV. In the past few months, most of the larger media network groups have released new streaming apps. Most of these apps give you the ability to watch not only on a TV with a streaming device, but take it when you are on the go, and watch via your tablet or smartphone. Most of the newer streaming apps such as Disney+, Paramount+, and Discovery+ all have fees that range from around $6-15 per month. If you subscribe to several streaming packages, this can add up quickly.
There are ways to reduce your costs. Several of the newer packages mentioned above have tiered subscriptions so that if you are willing to watch ads, it will substantially reduce the cost. Both NBC’s Peacock+ and CBS’s new Paramount+ offer lower-cost versions with ads, as do several of the others. The lower tiers may also have reduced content. The Peacock App even has a free tier where you will have access to a reduced library of programs but can easily upgrade. The most current cost information about each service is available on their web pages.
Now to the good news – many apps are available that will allow you to stream programming for free. There are a few drawbacks – most are ad-supported and you may have to wait anywhere from a few days to a week or so for the latest episode of your favorites TV series to appear in their catalog of shows.
Pluto TV is one of the better know apps. It has not only an exceptionally large catalog of TV programs but also a growing collection of on-demand movies. Tubi is another app that has over 30 million subscribers. In addition to shows and movies, it offers free news channels and local news (manly Fox affiliates). Crackle is another popular app that in addition to shows and movies offers a lot of original content. Another large player in the field is Amazon’s IMDb TV which offers a great deal of original programming in addition to traditional TV shows. PBS and PBS Kids apps offer many of their programs the same day as these offerings premier over the air. All the major networks (ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC) also offer apps where you can watch recent shows for free.
If you would like further information on what is available for free via streaming, Jared Newman published a review article in Fast Company this month and Tom’s Guide published one last November. These articles describe the content available on each app, as well as the supported streaming devices.
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Featured Image: “365:32 – Television” by .reid. is licensed under CC BY 2.0