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Harlan Huckleby
09-11-2018, 07:10 PM
I'm sick of paying so much for cable when I am mainly using it now for a few sports events.

If you get Sling TV, which allows access to ESPN channels, does that then give you permission to use the watchESPN app, or do you have to stream all through the Sling app? (Some sort of ESPN app is needed to access the ESPN archives. If sling is just live TV, that is pretty weak.)

Guess I'll just watch Packer games live over broadcast TV, which is good enough.

Harlan Huckleby
09-11-2018, 11:22 PM
Hey TCM channel is at last offering streaming (of a sort), and at a damn reasonable price.
https://www.filmstruck.com/

That will easily and fully scratch my movie itch. Plus the occasional movie from library.

Harlan Huckleby
09-11-2018, 11:40 PM
Upon further review, Sling TV is overpriced garbage service. Absolutely no access to archived content. Uhhh, when wrestling tournaments are carried by ESPN, no way to get to all that content. No way to get college football games on BTN.

Maybe I'm giving up college football, and most of football. You need to spend close to $100 per month on TV services to see the 3 or so games (max) every week that I'm interested in. I blame Trump.

Cable TV (or satelite) is the only way to go for a heavy duty sports fan. The quality and availability is miles ahead of streaming and worth paying for if that is your passion.

Nice chatting with ya. Good talk.

https://i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/019/304/old.jpg

call_me_ishmael
09-12-2018, 12:02 AM
We use Direct TV Now (35 dollar package) and have been pretty happy with it. I kick it up to the 55 dollar package for football season to get BTN. Their deals with the free Apple TV make it a great price.

Harlan Huckleby
09-12-2018, 12:15 AM
That ain't bad.

Harlan Huckleby
09-12-2018, 01:01 PM
Direct TV tells me I need a clear, unobstructed view of southern sky. No such luck, large building in wrong place. Maybe I'll talk to the warden.

call_me_ishmael
09-12-2018, 01:17 PM
Direct TV Now is there streaming solution. It is decent enough but the key part is the free Apple TV every 3-4 months. I have acquired 6-7 free Apple TVs over the past two years.

Harlan Huckleby
09-12-2018, 04:13 PM
Direct TV Now is there streaming solution. It is decent enough but the key part is the free Apple TV every 3-4 months. I have acquired 6-7 free Apple TVs over the past two years.

Well, fuck me hard. I wonder why the nice man from DTV didn't mention this. I looked at the website for their streaming and am happy to see that they include some cloud DVR service. Nice, very nice.
I see that DTV is owned by AT&T, so I'm wondering if the TV service can't be sold over Spectrum internet service. That would make sense. We can't get AT&T in my cellblock, which might explain why the nice man didn't suggest.
I'm not particularly interested in appleTV, I like my Roku stick just fine. But whatev. DirectTV looks like better deal than Spectrum, but still not real cheap for sports channels. But better is gooder.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-13-2018, 09:30 AM
Anyone has any experience with the Youtube TV?

Harlan Huckleby
09-13-2018, 03:13 PM
Anyone has any experience with the Youtube TV?

Oh, baby, that looks like a really sweet deal. I'm gonna take a trial membership. And you should too. It has unlimited cloud storage DVR. Covers both BTN and ESPN 1 & 2. But I notice it doesn't say "ESPN 3", which probably means you can't access their archives. That matters to me, as I watch a million hours of archive video following the ncaa college wrestling tournament. mmmmmmm ... men in tights!

Harlan Huckleby
09-13-2018, 05:49 PM
Mother fucker. I am unable to install the Youtube TV app on Roku. Spectrum has their own streaming service, "Spectrum TV Stream." That service ONLY runs over spectrum internet service. Spectrum in turn is using their near monopoly on internet service in my area and blocking TV streaming for their competitors, Direct TV and Youtube TV. Fucking aye. I am 99% sure this is what is going on.

For Crissake. I'm moving to Russia.

Barely useful comparison of the three services:
https://geekazine.com/podcast/youtube-tv-vs-directv-now-vs-spectrum-cable-tv-the-throwdown/

Harlan Huckleby
09-13-2018, 06:39 PM
False alarm. Spectrum is not blocking competitors. Not moving to Russia. USA.! USA! USA!

Google TV only works over the very newest ROKU hardware. So I went ahead and dropped $50 for a new stick. (I eschewed the $30 model 'cause it doesn't take advantage of double band WIFI)

Playing around with Google TV using web app and android app. Seems fucking awesome. They do have BTN. The DVR is cool. I always hated that I couldn't watch TV on my mobile devices inside the old Charter world.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-14-2018, 05:43 AM
False alarm. Spectrum is not blocking competitors. Not moving to Russia. USA.! USA! USA!

Google TV only works over the very newest ROKU hardware. So I went ahead and dropped $50 for a new stick. (I eschewed the $30 model 'cause it doesn't take advantage of double band WIFI)

Playing around with Google TV using web app and android app. Seems fucking awesome. They do have BTN. The DVR is cool. I always hated that I couldn't watch TV on my mobile devices inside the old Charter world.

Thanks for the info, Harlan. Your post inspired me to be less lazy and I did a little research. YouTube tv looks fine and dandy, but it’s not compatible with the PS4. I’d rather spend 50 bucks on a couple of lap dances than a Roku.

I wonder if PlayStation Vue is any good. There “core” package includes the NFL network. 40 bucks a month for two months then 50, I think. Well, they’re also offering a free trial or trail, so I might give it a try.

I’m also wondering if OTA tv is less time-lagged than streamed TV. It sure sucks that people at Lambeau saw the A-Rod-Cobby game winner before I did.

Harlan Huckleby
09-14-2018, 06:30 AM
Excellent point on old news. Traveling to the future a few seconds is trivial if you can get some serious speed. Going back in time to flaunt what you know is impossible. Even a worm hole won't help.

I can't stop calling YouTube TV "google TV". neurological issues.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-14-2018, 12:48 PM
Excellent point on old news. Traveling to the future a few seconds is trivial if you can get some serious speed. Going back in time to flaunt what you know is impossible. Even a worm hole won't help.

I can't stop calling YouTube TV "google TV". neurological issues.

Too many mind-numbing paradoxes for backward time travel to work, eh? Regardless, I wish "live" TV would actually be live, and not time lagged. Granted, everything we see is in the past, as it takes time for the mind to perceive what we thought we perceived, but still, being lagged 5 seconds or the such is mind-numbing, especially while watching football.

Btw, Youtube TV, google Tv, doesn't matter. Same thing. It's like calling music from itunes Apple music. Fuck corporate America, I'm telling ya.

Harlan Huckleby
09-14-2018, 01:43 PM
Too many mind-numbing paradoxes for backward time travel to work, eh?

Ya, there's the causality thing. But I don't think it is possible mathematically either. We SEE back in time regularly - no biggy - the light from the stars is very old news. If you tune your old antenna tv to a non-station, about 10% of the noise you see on your screen is cosmic background radiation coming from the beginning of the universe (a skosh later than the Big Bang when radiation could escape.)

If future super smart civilizations developed backwards time travel, we'd be seeing them show up now and then. Wait, Woodbuck, are you from the future?

Most importantly, Youtube TV is rocking my world. Unlimited cloud space to save recordings. Really nice interface. You choose your favorite sports teams and it records all their games. (With irritating problem - can't easily extend recording time with this version.) I see they have TCM channel, wasn't expect that from those anal horders. The reviews I've seen seem positive for both Youtube and your Playstation Vue. Spectrum/Charter DVR sucked so intensely that I am thrilled to enter 2018.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-14-2018, 03:01 PM
Ya, there's the causality thing. But I don't think it is possible mathematically either. We SEE back in time regularly - no biggy - the light from the stars is very old news. If you tune your old antenna tv to a non-station, about 10% of the noise you see on your screen is cosmic background radiation coming from the beginning of the universe (a skosh later than the Big Bang when radiation could escape.)

If future super smart civilizations developed backwards time travel, we'd be seeing them show up now and then. Wait, Woodbuck, are you from the future?

Most importantly, Youtube TV is rocking my world. Unlimited cloud space to save recordings. Really nice interface. You choose your favorite sports teams and it records all their games. (With irritating problem - can't easily extend recording time with this version.) I see they have TCM channel, wasn't expect that from those anal horders. The reviews I've seen seem positive for both Youtube and your Playstation Vue. Spectrum/Charter DVR sucked so intensely that I am thrilled to enter 2018.

Before going to bed, I like to watch youtube clips about the cosmos, so I kinda understand what ya talking about. In my wretched existence, I like to be reminded that we are but, and I'm paraphrasing Dr. Strange here, insignificant matters in an indifferent universe.

Glad you're enjoying the Youtube TV, Harlan. Glad you started this thread. Inspired me to do a little research. Just discovered that I'm eligible for the NFL Sunday Ticket streaming at NFLSUNDAYTICKET.TV, or so it appears, without needing a dish. About 74 bucks a months for 4 months. Not cheap, but not bad since I wouldn't have to pay extra for shits I wouldn't watch. One week free, so gonna sign up to test it.

call_me_ishmael
09-14-2018, 04:09 PM
Mother fucker. I am unable to install the Youtube TV app on Roku. Spectrum has their own streaming service, "Spectrum TV Stream." That service ONLY runs over spectrum internet service. Spectrum in turn is using their near monopoly on internet service in my area and blocking TV streaming for their competitors, Direct TV and Youtube TV. Fucking aye. I am 99% sure this is what is going on.

For Crissake. I'm moving to Russia.

Barely useful comparison of the three services:
https://geekazine.com/podcast/youtube-tv-vs-directv-now-vs-spectrum-cable-tv-the-throwdown/

That would be a violation of net neutrality so I am almost certain they're not blocking other vendors. I have charter and stream DTV so no issues here.

call_me_ishmael
09-14-2018, 04:10 PM
I am telling you people. Forget the Roku, get DTV Now and get the far superior Apple TV for free.

Harlan Huckleby
09-14-2018, 05:07 PM
the NFL Sunday Ticket streaming at NFLSUNDAYTICKET.TV, or so it appears, without needing a dish. About 74 bucks a months for 4 months. Not cheap, but not bad since I wouldn't have to pay extra for shits I wouldn't watch. One week free, so gonna sign up to test it.

I was just talking to my brother, he got that package. I was surprised, he doesn't have that much time to watch football. But he says he loves it - especially the NFL Red Zone, highlights from around the league. Is that an exclusive of NFL ST?

Harlan Huckleby
09-14-2018, 05:10 PM
I am telling you people. Forget the Roku, get DTV Now and get the far superior Apple TV for free.

You might be right that Apple TV is better than ROKU, but I just never had any problem with ROKU, it doesn't lack any features or quality I want. And I'll be watching a lot on tablets, not multiple TV sets.

I saw one one reviewer kinda trash DTV for their channels and limited cloud DVR. But this shit changes from month to month, I suspect all the services are converging on similar quality. I really am thrilled by Youtube - so far.

Harlan Huckleby
09-14-2018, 09:00 PM
Uhhh, Ishmael, I gotta push back a little bit more against AppleTV. It is not nearly as well supported as Roku. In fact, my two current streaming priorities - Great Courses Online & Flowrestling - have only Roku apps, nothing for Apple TV. So not an option for me.

There must be some reason you like it - the free boxes you get to setup all the TVs in your house?

I suppose that can matter. But Roku is not that expensive now. They are easy to use and do a good job. Does the Apple TV make your coffee in the morning?

call_me_ishmael
09-14-2018, 09:06 PM
Yeah exactly I have an Apple TV on all 5 TVs now and it’s freat. Previously with cable we only could have it on one TV without the price skyrocketing due to multiple box leases. This new world
Of streaming is a huge money saver for us.

mraynrand
09-15-2018, 09:22 AM
https://www.wsj.com/articles/cord-cutters-beware-streaming-tv-prices-are-marching-higher-1536943821

Zool
09-15-2018, 11:17 AM
Uhhh, Ishmael, I gotta push back a little bit more against AppleTV. It is not nearly as well supported as Roku. In fact, my two current streaming priorities - Great Courses Online & Flowrestling - have only Roku apps, nothing for Apple TV. So not an option for me.

There must be some reason you like it - the free boxes you get to setup all the TVs in your house?

I suppose that can matter. But Roku is not that expensive now. They are easy to use and do a good job. Does the Apple TV make your coffee in the morning?

If you were already in the Apple eco system, an Apple TV would make a lot of sense. If you live in google/Android eco they wouldn’t. This stuff is all going to be changing very rapidly over the next 2-3 years. If Disney finishes buying Fox and Hulu, that’s going to be another drastic shift in where content is located. The box to deliver the content is going to be homogenized in the next couple years just like what happened to smart phones.

Zool
09-15-2018, 11:18 AM
That being said, sling kinda sucks. HBO, Netflix, and Prime covers 99% of my houses tv watching.

Harlan Huckleby
09-15-2018, 01:28 PM
When I tried to cut the cord a few years back, it really just turned into a temporary break from TV watching. The streaming channels over Roku were a joke. Netflix - pretty lame. It was a drop off the cliff in terms of quality.

Now, I think things have kinda flipped. The picture quality and convenience of a cable TV subscription are worth it to many people, not putting that down. But if cost matters to you at all, you can add much better content to your options today through streaming. A PBS subscription is $5 per month. I wouldn't pay that on top of cable TV, but now that my base TV bill is $40, it is kinda nice to access their large archive of shows, especially for purposes of pacifying a household member. I feel ok splurging on several good services.

The reviews of the major streaming bundlers from just 6 months ago are now completely obsolete I'm discovering. They are patching holes in their offerings/services at breakneck speed. Capitalism is good, even if 3irty1 styled free markets go too far.

3irty1
09-18-2018, 12:54 AM
I'm grateful for the reports from the bleeding edge of this. Seems like a decent model is finally starting to take hold. Right from the beginning of TV the technology of broadcast ensured that the advertisers were the customer rather than the TV watcher. And the expectation of free stuff has kept us in that scheme.

I've done some cord cutting in the past but its really served just to ween me off TV. Now we're the types of parents that try to conceal the existence of screens from the babies so it suits me well. For sports and Game of Thrones I've had to go to someone else's house for years. Add up all the guacamole and beer I've donated for that privilege and its probably no cheaper than whatever you guys do.

Harlan Huckleby
09-18-2018, 02:43 PM
When I told Spectrum I was ending my TV service, the salesman kept arguing with me about my decision.
He wanted to know why?, why?, why? and "cost" was not good enough. It was absolutely strange, I lost my temper several times and told him to just accept my decision. Yet he pressed on. At last, I started laughing and said I admired his ability to function in such a demeaning job. His response: "We try to help people, make sure they are getting the best services. Are you sure...."

Harlan Huckleby
09-18-2018, 02:51 PM
Seems like a decent model is finally starting to take hold.

We never got the promised flying cars and jet packs, but in 2018 we are indeed entering couch potato heaven. My actual internet service jumped from about 10 MBPS to 200 MBPS. Streaming quality is great both technically and in terms of content.

BTW, ESPN is offering a new streaming service for $5 per month. https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/what-is-espn-plus/

I can't figure out if this sucks, but I lean towards yes. They are putting content there that is not on ESPN3 streaming, which people are already paying for with their main bundling subscriptions. ESPN+ for now is carrying minor sports and relatively obscure stuff. But I actually might have to pay for it to feed my wrestling fetish. It just one more new expense.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-19-2018, 09:07 AM
When I told Spectrum I was ending my TV service, the salesman kept arguing with me about my decision.
He wanted to know why?, why?, why? and "cost" was not good enough. It was absolutely strange, I lost my temper several times and told him to just accept my decision. Yet he pressed on. At last, I started laughing and said I admired his ability to function in such a demeaning job. His response: "We try to help people, make sure they are getting the best services. Are you sure...."

Lol. Capitalism is awful.

3irty1
09-19-2018, 11:00 AM
We never got the promised flying cars and jet packs, but in 2018 we are indeed entering couch potato heaven. My actual internet service jumped from about 10 MBPS to 200 MBPS. Streaming quality is great both technically and in terms of content.

BTW, ESPN is offering a new streaming service for $5 per month. https://www.digitaltrends.com/movies/what-is-espn-plus/

I can't figure out if this sucks, but I lean towards yes. They are putting content there that is not on ESPN3 streaming, which people are already paying for with their main bundling subscriptions. ESPN+ for now is carrying minor sports and relatively obscure stuff. But I actually might have to pay for it to feed my wrestling fetish. It just one more new expense.

A la carte ESPN is an expensive redundancy for you now, but this is obviously where we want all TV to go right? Even whole networks a la carte is a bit too blunt of an instrument when it comes to a value-for-value transfer. The best version of this is probably lots of pay-per-view. The behavior of channel flipping is another vestige of broadcast.

3irty1
09-19-2018, 11:04 AM
Lol. Capitalism is awful.

On the one hand its hard to find fault with an economic system based on voluntary transactions. On the other hand, adding violence to something does add a lot of excitement so I see your point.

3irty1
09-19-2018, 11:20 AM
When I told Spectrum I was ending my TV service, the salesman kept arguing with me about my decision.
He wanted to know why?, why?, why? and "cost" was not good enough. It was absolutely strange, I lost my temper several times and told him to just accept my decision. Yet he pressed on. At last, I started laughing and said I admired his ability to function in such a demeaning job. His response: "We try to help people, make sure they are getting the best services. Are you sure...."

I get a kick out of the fact that when you call to cancel they say "Ok, let me transfer you to our retention department." As if this isn't the exact opposite of what you asked for.

I've only had TV service once before here's how I got it. Spectrum reps frequently tried to push me into bundling TV with my internet every time I found myself on the phone with them. At some point I just started lying and saying we don't have a TV. They usually ask why not?, and I usually make up a not-believable rant about how this family only reads books or how I'm amish or something. You know, fight theater with theater. But one time I said the TV broke and we can't afford a new one right now. She put me on hold, came back 5 minutes later and said she could offer me $400 in prepaid Visa cards to buy a TV if I would commit to a TV bundle. So then I had TV for a little while.

mraynrand
09-19-2018, 12:36 PM
lol

Harlan Huckleby
09-19-2018, 09:16 PM
make up a not-believable rant about how this family only reads books or how I'm amish or something. You know, fight theater with theater. But one time I said the TV broke and we can't afford a new one right now. She put me on hold, came back 5 minutes later and said she could offer me $400 in prepaid Visa cards to buy a TV if I would commit to a TV bundle. So then I had TV for a little while.

When you think about it, all the digital service providers are dealing almost exclusively with fixed costs. When you drop the service, that lost revenue comes right out of their profits. If they can keep you by offering half price (without their full price customers knowing it) it makes perfect sense for them to do it.

Your $400 TV swag is impressive. I wonder what would have happened if you asked for a "date" instead. Wouldn't rule it out.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-20-2018, 10:32 AM
On the one hand its hard to find fault with an economic system based on voluntary transactions. On the other hand, adding violence to something does add a lot of excitement so I see your point.

Capitalist forced exploited worker to demean himself to customer. Had customer asked for a "date" with worker at the local motel in exchange for the continuation of subscription, capitalist would be like, "Don't forget to clock out; can't be paying you the minimum-wage to do the monkey business - that's prostitution." A tenet of capitalism is competition. Competition breeds violence. Don't give me the bullshits about competition breeding innovation. Cooperation also breeds innovation...without violence.

Damn right, capitalism is awful. Capitalism is an abomination.

mraynrand
09-20-2018, 10:47 AM
Capitalist forced exploited worker to demean himself to customer. Had customer asked for a "date" with worker at the local motel in exchange for the continuation of subscription, capitalist would be like, "Don't forget to clock out; can't be paying you the minimum-wage to do the monkey business - that's prostitution." A tenet of capitalism is competition. Competition breeds violence. Don't give me the bullshits about competition breeding innovation. Cooperation also breeds innovation...without violence.

Damn right, capitalism is awful. Capitalism is an abomination.

Shallow. Life in it's distilled Darwinian essence is a struggle for survival that pits competition against cooperation. They are inevitably connected and eternally in conflict. Surely anyone who follows football would recognize this.

Anti-Polar Bear
09-20-2018, 11:54 AM
Shallow. Life in it's distilled Darwinian essence is a struggle for survival that pits competition against cooperation. They are inevitably connected and eternally in conflict. Surely anyone who follows football would recognize this.

For species that cannot control and alter their environments, your statement might be relevant. For humans, not so much. Homo sapiens now rule the earth. Human competition is notorious for fucking up the planet and the people on it. Widespread human cooperation is certainly attainable. What's better, a greed-fucked, competitive system that benefits only a few wankers, or the peaceful, cooperative system in which everyone benefits?

mraynrand
09-20-2018, 12:43 PM
You may be mistaken. Locusts alter their environment and Humans have less power to change our environment than people believe. Also, according to Darwinian theory, humans are just another animal. The difference between humans and termites is only in sophistication of their dwellings.

You sound like a speciesist to me.

Zool
09-20-2018, 02:38 PM
See? If not for the Discover Channel, Rand knows way less about locusts.

mraynrand
09-20-2018, 02:53 PM
See? If not for the Discover Channel, Rand knows way less about locusts.

No no, the locust info is from Exodus, the termite stuff from Discovery Channel. Especially those termites in S. America that signal with green light. That's crazy stuff.

Harlan Huckleby
09-20-2018, 04:01 PM
A la carte ESPN is an expensive redundancy for you now, but this is obviously where we want all TV to go right? Even whole networks a la carte is a bit too blunt of an instrument when it comes to a value-for-value transfer.

Well, I'd buy this argument if ESPN was segmenting their service in some reasonable way. Say, you buy the sports you are interested in.:idea: But now ESPN has just spread my niche interest (men in tights wrasslin) across multiple subscriptions to try and squeeze some marginal dollars out of me.

An ala carte menu that says you can order the steak with broccoli or the pizza with fricassee is not my idea of ala carte.

3irty1
09-20-2018, 07:47 PM
Capitalist forced exploited worker to demean himself to customer.

Worker is there by choice, and employer is employing them by choice. It's a voluntary relationship--this is already not exploitation in any sense of the word that would convey unfairness.


A tenet of capitalism is competition. Competition breeds violence. Don't give me the bullshits about competition breeding innovation. Cooperation also breeds innovation...without violence.

Do you not cooperate with the other employees at your job? Your description of reality has the resolution of a finger painting. When pressed on any detail of the utopia in your head, even that fantasy has people behaving the way you want under threat of force. Does that sound like cooperation to you? The only pedestal to preach this from is a pile of 150 million corpses.

3irty1
09-20-2018, 07:54 PM
Well, I'd buy this argument if ESPN was segmenting their service in some reasonable way. Say, you buy the sports you are interested in.:idea: But now ESPN has just spread my niche interest (men in tights wrasslin) across multiple subscriptions to try and squeeze some marginal dollars out of me.

An ala carte menu that says you can order the steak with broccoli or the pizza with fricassee is not my idea of ala carte.

That's not my idea of ala carte either. I thought what you were describing was an ESPN streaming service that had everything a bundled ESPN channel would have plus more stuff like wrestling. Meaning if you had no bundle, you'd have all the ESPN without any redundancy. Similar to how HBO streaming subscription works. Is this not what they are selling?

Harlan Huckleby
09-20-2018, 09:07 PM
What you describe is how things worked until very recently. If ESPN is bundled in your package, streaming or otherwise, you got all ESPN content, including stuff that never appears on any TV channel, via stream. (exception is Sling TV, which is crap access.)

This summer, a genius at ESPN came up with an additional streaming-only option, ESPN+, that will carry content unavailable any other way. And of course they have every incentive to move more and more content there that you used to get as part of your bundle.

It isn't the beginning of ala carte, more like ala cartel. (that joke doesn't really work, but I'm still impressed with my cleverness.)

3irty1
09-20-2018, 11:10 PM
So you can get ESPN on cable tv, ESPN streaming, and ESPN+.

ESPN streaming gets you everything from tv plus more stuff
ESPN+ has its own exclusive content but nothing from tv or the other streaming service

The concern is that ESPN is just featherbedding. They could put everything in one service but instead they sell two services while offering little in the way of additional content.

Harlan Huckleby
09-21-2018, 08:02 AM
The concern is that ESPN is just featherbedding. They could put everything in one service but instead they sell two services while offering little in the way of additional content.

Ya, this is the size of it. But in a rare instance of full disclosure, I'll concede it is possible that ESPN+ will inspire ESPN to add content that they weren't otherwise going to bother with. For instance, coverage of college conferences like the Ivy league.

Christ, this is getting tedious. College wrestling has 7 D1 conferences. Each conference has their own streaming provider requiring a subscription. Some individual schools even require separate subscriptions. Madness. Several past attempts to consolidate and bundle the sport have fizzled. (The least bad surviving attempt is flosports, which streams 20 different minor sports, from wrestling to gymnastics to rodeo.) ESPN+ might eventually provide a similar and better service. Or they will just be featherbedding, as you say.

mraynrand
09-21-2018, 08:46 AM
Ya, this is the size of it. But in a rare instance of full disclosure, I'll concede it is possible that ESPN+ will inspire ESPN to add content that they weren't otherwise going to bother with. For instance, coverage of college conferences like the Ivy league.

Christ, this is getting tedious. College wrestling has 7 D1 conferences. Each conference has their own streaming provider requiring a subscription. Some individual schools even require separate subscriptions. Madness. Several past attempts to consolidate and bundle the sport have fizzled. (The least bad surviving attempt is flosports, which streams 20 different minor sports, from wrestling to gymnastics to rodeo.) ESPN+ might eventually provide a similar and better service. Or they will just be featherbedding, as you say.

This is similar to what I was saying about news services. Sometimes you want to read an article from the Sac Bee or the Orange county register or the Des Moines Register or the Washington Post all within 10 minutes. You gonna buy a subscription to all those papers and then the next day 5 different papers? Not a chance. Need some a-la-carte bundlers so that these guys can get paid and we can reasonably buy their products.

mraynrand
09-25-2018, 07:44 PM
I don’t watch TV. I read newspapers.

mraynrand
09-28-2018, 08:31 AM
Saw this exchange:


John Ekdahl


@JohnEkdahl
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“Is this on SlingTV, or on my antenna through Plex, or on Amazon Prime or the native league app... wait maybe it’s blacked out in this app due to my market....”. Arggggh. Just let me pay you money in exchange for watching sports.
7:22 PM - 27 Sep 2018
2 Retweets 14 Likes Fools on the HillReverend Blue MoonGolden Ratio FTWAMQKmannClayton TylerJoelcoleyJason Willoughby ��LegallyBae
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KilroyFSU


@KilroyFSU
11h11 hours ago
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Replying to @JohnEkdahl
Just get YouTubeTV. It's easy and relatively cheap for what you get.
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KilroyFSU


@KilroyFSU
11h11 hours ago
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Replying to @HoosierParlance @JohnEkdahl
Yes. Local networks, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNews, SEC Network, Big Ten Network, FS1, FS2, Fox Sports Florida, Sun Sports, NBC Sports, NBATV, MLBTV, CBS Sports, Golf Network, Olympic Channel, and Tennis Channel. Pretty much has every sports network out there.
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