Is streaming going to be the new cable

[Smugpugmug]

Not sure how old you are, but I’m mid 40s () and we still have cable.

I'm in my 20s and so are my friends. None of us have cable and prefer streaming instead.

 

[disneychrista]

Yes! It's annoying that I can download the ESPN app, but I can only watch ESPN+ content and not 'regular' ESPN content, because we haven't got cable.

But ESPN is a pay channel, not like ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC that would be free OTA if one could get them. So having to pay for that content through an app makes sense to me.

 

[wenrob]

I think buying a car is also one. The last time I bought a car I wrote a personal check for the down payment. I think it was OK because I had a decent credit score. But otherwise they might have required a cashier's check. I've been through enough car buying to know that almost no dealer would take a credit card for a car sale. One salesman said that the margins they have on cars are so low that even if someone had enough of a credit limit to buy a car they'd lose money. But he said I was perfectly welcome to buy items where they had bigger margins with a credit card, including dealer installed accessories, floor mats, wheel locks, etc.

I had a checking account that had free money orders and cashier's checks. A few times I went to a branch and got those to pay utility bills just for the heck of it, although I had a checkbook and personal checks.

Interesting. We’ve bought two vehicles in the last four years with very high down payments (like high enough that they didn’t offer gap insurance and it was beyond the amount their credit card systems would allow) and they both took my debit card. I brought my checkbook just in case and even offered to go get a cashier’s check but they preferred the debit card. Same when I paid in full for two sets of braces. No one wanted to fuss with a check. On the flip when having my house painted and the landscaping redone they wanted cash or check. Which I get, they’re small businesses and exactly why I keep a checkbook on hand. On average I maybe pull out my checkbook or debit card about four times a year and I’d say 90% of the time I don’t use a physical credit card, I “tap” my watch or phone.

As to the original topic, if not for Hockey we’d be all streaming. My kids including the grown one out of the house stream everything. Even the stuff I DVR from cable I tend to watch on Hulu because the picture/sound is way better and it’s just easier. If/when we’re able to get local coverage on a streaming service I’ll kick cable to the curb without a second thought.

 

[barkley]

I've been through enough car buying to know that almost no dealer would take a credit card for a car sale

some dealerships will let you do up to a certain amount of the purchase on a card. when we purchased our most recent (pre-pandemic) i wanted to pay cash but the way i prefer to do it is via a credit card so i get cash rewards. dealership was willing to do up to some dollar amount via a credit card so we paid that portion on it/rest in cash. 'recreational vehicle' dealerships seem to have no issue taking a credit card-i got a nice chunk of reward dollars when we purchased an off-road vehicle.

 

[Princesca]

It already is for most of our peer group. It's getting so expensive, though. Streaming used to be the way to save money, but now, unless you rotate services, it's not hard at all to get up to cable bill prices with just a handful of channels.

 

[SandyinMonterey]

I think streaming is more popular than cable now. We've wanted to cut cable for a long time but when you add up all the streaming services and compare that to what we're already paying for cable.....sometimes it's higher. And our cable is a bundle for our internet. If we drop cable and continue for the internet, our internet more than doubles.

 

[kymom99]

My husband would never mess with all those different straining services. Also I have to watch baseball. So DIRECTV it is for now. Will be cable we move. I do have Hulu and Netflix for certain shows but I cancel them when I’m not using them.

 

[bcla]

I think streaming is more popular than cable now. We've wanted to cut cable for a long time but when you add up all the streaming services and compare that to what we're already paying for cable.....sometimes it's higher. And our cable is a bundle for our internet. If we drop cable and continue for the internet, our internet more than doubles.

I technically have cable TV service, but I ditched the cable box and basically only use it to access various streaming services for the content using my Comcast login/password.

 

[Kirby]

It's a shame though because nothing has really stepped up to take the place of satellite tv for rural subscribers. Cellular internet and streaming has been told it is the replacement but the infrastructure still does not exist to provide reliable 25+ Mbps to all the rural customers.

I used to be considered rural until the city came to me. Now I'm in a hole surrounded by new, large subdivisions being built where only Suddenlink or satellite is available. We been told that there are just not enough households in our area available. We hoping to have more options one day.

 

[bcla]

I honestly don't see any difference between what I can stream, DVD or Blu-Ray.

There may not be that much difference to notice immediately for 720/1080/4K, but when compared to DVD it's generally pretty apparent on most HD TVs. There is upscaling with most DVD players though where it tries to interpolate things like shapes, but that has its limits and may come with certain artifacts.

 

[NotUrsula]

Interesting. We’ve bought two vehicles in the last four years with very high down payments (like high enough that they didn’t offer gap insurance and it was beyond the amount their credit card systems would allow) and they both took my debit card. I brought my checkbook just in case and even offered to go get a cashier’s check but they preferred the debit card. Same when I paid in full for two sets of braces. No one wanted to fuss with a check. [snip]

Many banks, including mine, impose a single-transaction & daily dollar limit on debit cards; mine is $500. (My understanding is that this is to minimize losses from fraud, as debit cards, unlike credit cards, do not have purchase protection.) However, my bank's limit does not apply when the merchant electronically submits a check; no clue why.

 

[GAN]

Cable and Satellite TV are walking dead.

DirecTV last launched a satellite in 2019 and have announced they have no plans to launch anymore, ever. Their service will end in 10-15 years as the satellites reach the end of their useful life.

Dish Network last put a new satellite into service in 2009. Their service will also end in 10-15 years as the satellites reach the end of their useful life.

It's a shame though because nothing has really stepped up to take the place of satellite tv for rural subscribers. Cellular internet and streaming has been told it is the replacement but the infrastructure still does not exist to provide reliable 25+ Mbps to all the rural customers.

Cable TV will hang on only because internet only customers will subsidise the service.

Streaming will continue to splinter for a few years and will then go through a consolidation period.

Content will continue to get more expensive so prices will continue to rise or ads will become more and more prominent.

It isn't inexpensive, but there is StarLink. Probably not in every rural area right now, but it likely will be sooner than later. They're using the systems in Ukraine to help overcome damaged infrastructure.

 

[kdonnel]

It isn't inexpensive, but there is StarLink. Probably not in every rural area right now, but it likely will be sooner than later. They're using the systems in Ukraine to help overcome damaged infrastructure.

Yeah, StarLink is like many of Elon's promises.

https://www.pcmag.com/news/starlinks-massive-growth-results-in-congestion-slow-speeds-for-some-users

Bernhagen isn’t alone. Hundreds of miles south near Leonard, Texas, John Lawyer has encountered download rates on his Starlink dish that can dive as low as 1Mbps, especially during the evenings.

Speeds "are absolutely getting worse,” he said. Lawyer and his wife could make do with a download rate as slow as 30Mbps. "But we aren’t getting even that with any kind of useable consistency," he added.

StarLink has been allowed to grow past its ability to provide fast reliable service.

 

[GAN]

Yeah, StarLink is like many of Elon's promises.

https://www.pcmag.com/news/starlinks-massive-growth-results-in-congestion-slow-speeds-for-some-users



StarLink has been allowed to grow past its ability to provide fast reliable service.

I hadn't heard, but it isn't like it's something impossible to overcome -clearly, they still have some work to do. Not fair to the existing customers -especially if they aren't being compensated for not getting what was paid for.

On the other hand, one of Elon's other promises is about to split in a 3-for-1 if you're interested! I sold a good bit of Tesla, but held on to a portion so we'll see where that goes.

 

[wenrob]

Many banks, including mine, impose a single-transaction & daily dollar limit on debit cards; mine is $500. (My understanding is that this is to minimize losses from fraud, as debit cards, unlike credit cards, do not have purchase protection.) However, my bank's limit does not apply when the merchant electronically submits a check; no clue why.

My CU before this one did- $300 but my current one does not. When I asked before joining this one (because we got caught out on that $300 at a restaurant meal after Christmas shopping earlier in the day and I was furious) they told me that those limitations are supposed to be self imposed but are automatically applied by a lot of places when you open an account. We chose not to have a limit. For both vehicles they kind of had a heads up because we got pre approved through them. The braces they had no idea and it was a pretty penny. They’ll shut things down if I make $3.35 charge at Walmart though. FWIW we had our account drained once when debit cards were fairly new and tapped for a couple grand a couple years ago when my DH used debit at the gas station. Both times, different credit unions they made it right. I hear all the time how debit cards aren’t protected but that hasn’t been the case for me. These days we use strictly credit cards if at all possible.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

I think it has been for a while. I don't know a single person my age that has cable. All of my friends are subscribed to streaming services and ditched cable a long time ago.

Not a lot of sports fans?

Live sports still requires cable.

(Hulu Live TV, Sling TV, YouTube TV, etc. are cable.)

 

[Smugpugmug]

Not a lot of sports fans?

Live sports still requires cable.

(Hulu Live TV, Sling TV, YouTube TV, etc. are cable.)

Not really. None of my friends or people I know in general are sports fans. My friends have a combination of Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max or watch Youtube videos or Twitch livestreams instead of TV shows.

 

[bcla]

Not a lot of sports fans?

Live sports still requires cable.

(Hulu Live TV, Sling TV, YouTube TV, etc. are cable.)

Not at all. Those are all internet based streaming services. And once one has the account with the services, the sports content can be streamed through websites or apps. NBC sports events can stream through Peacock or NBC Sports. I've watched ABC sports content through the ESPN app. One needs a subscription but doesn't necessarily need a cable or satellite service.

 

[CaptainAmerica]

Not at all. Those are all internet based streaming services. And once one has the account with the services, the sports content can be streamed through websites or apps. NBC sports events can stream through Peacock or NBC Sports. I've watched ABC sports content through the ESPN app. One needs a subscription but doesn't necessarily need a cable or satellite service.

Are you under the impression that a Comcast subscriber can't stream through those same apps?

I've worked in the media and entertainment industry for over a decade. The distinction you're trying to make is not a distinction that anyone cares about. When people say "streaming service," they mean Subscription Video on Demand, or SVOD (pronounced es-vod). That would be stuff like Hulu, Netflix, Disney+. What you're talking about is not SVOD, it's Virtual (or Digital) Multichannel Video Programming Distributors. The distinction between a vMVPD and a traditional MVPD is semantics. When Disney counts how many people have cable subscriptions, it 100% includes those digital multichannel packages like Sling, YouTube TV, and Hulu Live.

 

[happiestpoe]

But ESPN is a pay channel, not like ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC that would be free OTA if one could get them. So having to pay for that content through an app makes sense to me.

I have no problem paying for ESPN programming. But what's strange to me is that even after paying, I can't access ESPN content, only ESPN+ content. I thought paying would have opened up both avenues.