You may have noticed that streaming services are becoming more and more popular and that you hardly hear anything about cable TV (or even satellite) anymore. This is because many more people are abandoning their cable subscriptions in favor of streaming subscriptions. The reason is that there are so many advantages of streaming over cable services.
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The Advantages of Streaming Over Cable Services
Lower Prices
The majority of cable services’ basic plans offer a price less than $100 per month— but that’s usually just the introductory price. Usually, customers pay a set price a month for a year (maybe even two), but then there are tremendous price increases afterward.
Some streaming services even offer “bundle deals” so that you get more for your money. Examples include Amazon Prime Video, with it being free to Amazon Prime customers while it’s $8.99 a month for non-Prime members; and Disney Plus, Hulu, and ESPN+ being combined for a total price of $13.99 per month as opposed to paying nearly $22/month for each service individually.
On-Demand TV
Another reason that streaming is becoming more popular than cable is that you can stream your favorite TV shows and movies whenever you want. For example, a movie you may want to watch comes on cable during the time you’re at work, but if that movie is available on Hulu or Prime video, then you can watch it whenever it’s most convenient for you. However, DVR (digital video recorder) has fixed this minor inconvenience by allowing customers to record shows. Still, streaming beats the hassle of having to set your DVR to record the movie for later viewing.
Original TV Shows and Movies are Available
Several streaming platforms have TV shows and movies that are unique to that platform. This means that these originals can’t be found on cable— but they also can’t be found on any other streaming platform. Examples of streaming platforms with original content include:
- Amazon Prime Video
- Apple TV Plus (starting at $4.99/month)
- HBO Max (starting at $9.99/month)
- Hulu (starting at $6.99/month)
- Netflix (starting at $9.99/month)
However, this can also be seen as one of the disadvantages of streaming because cable TV gives you more popular shows, both old and new. But then again, this is where live streaming TV platforms come in.
Some Services Offer Live TV
If you’re considering getting rid of your cable, but you don’t want to miss out on any current shows— or even reruns of older shows— then live streaming services are the way to go. These platforms allow you to stream live TV as if you never got rid of cable. Some of the most popular live TV streaming services include:
- Fubo TV (starting at $69.99/month)
- Hulu + Live TV (starting at $69.99/month)
- Philo (starting at $25/month)
- Sling TV (starting at $35/month)
- YouTube TV (starting at $64.99/month)
Overall, YouTube TV is the best option for price and content as you get more than 85 channels. Fubo TV gives you more channels (95+), but the majority of these channels are sports (soccer) channels. Hulu + Live TV doesn’t give you as many live channel options as YouTube TV, and although Philo and Sling TV are the least expensive, they both offer a limited amount of content.
There are Multiple Ways to Access
Most would probably assume that a smart TV is needed to access these streaming services unless you’re fine with watching them on your phone or laptop. Fortunately, this isn’t always the case. So you don’t have to go out and buy the latest smart TV, but there may be another device you’ll have to purchase.
Many people already own streaming devices, such as the Roku or Amazon Fire Stick/ Fire Cube— and they know that these devices allow them to stream TV. However, not all streaming services are available on these devices, meaning that the devices have to be jailbroken in order to access more content. This will allow you to download more streaming apps on a Fire Stick, including Kodi, which allows you to add on, even more, shows and movies.
The Disadvantages of Streaming Over Cable Services
The biggest disadvantage when it comes to streaming over cable is the internet and the issues that come with it. If the internet connection becomes spotty, then so will the streaming— not to mention, the privacy concerns that come with accessing the internet.
Although there are a few downsides to streaming, there are many more reasons to choose it over cable, which is why more and more people are choosing to cut the cord. There’s a lot more variety and flexibility, and you don’t have to spend as much as you do on cable.