The remaining uses for cable TV (and recommended streaming alternatives)
There’s complaints by some about the cost of streaming services supposedly rivaling that of cable television. However, it’s clear that there isn’t a massive shift back to paying Comcast monthly for television service anytime soon. That said, I don’t expect traditional cable TV to completely vanish, just as vinyl records and fax machines have (improbably) stuck around.
But what uses are there for cable TV at this point? At this point, cable TV’s main uses seem to be:
Sports
Live news
Over-the-air local TV
General “catch-all” TV viewing
I look at each of these uses for cable below, as well as what streaming alternatives exist. Prices listed are monthly rates, and are as of this writing (including any announced upcoming price hikes). And again, I live in the United States, so that's my basis for this post.
I should note along with the services below, adding a free add-supported service like Pluto TV or Tubi is an option. Pluto TV in particular provides a cable TV-like experience (complete with dozens of "channels") with ads, all for free.
Sports
Sports is probably cable TV’s most popular use at this point, and cable’s one trump card in avoiding seeing an even more massive wave of cancellations. While NFL football can be enjoyed on over-the-air TV, most sports leagues have stampeded to cable, and often exclusively for local teams’ games. Sports and over-the-air local TV are often the main source of disputes between cable companies, sports league contracts, and cable channel owners, as the recent Disney/Spectrum spat shows.
While cord-cutting is slowly eroding this, billion-dollar sports TV contracts are still commonplace. Thus, cable’s grip on sports coverage seems unlikely to change in the near future.
Streaming options for sports
Unfortunately, the lucrative nature of sports TV contracts means there are few ways to save money if you’re a hardcore sports fan. Throw in as well the confusing nature of blackouts, regional sports channels, and whatnot. Overall, sports are pretty much the definition of a “cash grab” (or “ripoff”) as far as TV is concerned, so sports fans don’t have many options regarding inexpensive options.
A TV antenna provides over-the-air sports broadcasts for free, and covers most football games (and the Super Bowl). If you’re a casual football fan (and don’t need something like NFL Red Zone), this is the cheapest sports option available. But if an antenna’s not an option, or you need more than just the broadcast networks, I list some other options below.
Casual sports fans: on-demand streaming services
While not ESPN, the services below might work for casual sports fans:
Peacock ($6 / $12). Carries NBC sports coverage, including the Olympics and “Sunday Night Football.” The $6 tier comes with ads for on-demand content; the $12 tier is ad-free (save sports, of course) and offers streaming of your local NBC station.
Paramount+ ($6 / $12). Similar to Peacock, Paramount+ carries CBS sports coverage, including NFL football games. The $6 tier comes with ads on on-demand content; the $12 tier is ad-free, comes with Showtime, and offers streaming of your local CBS station.
ESPN+ ($11). ESPN+ doesn’t stream ESPN proper, but does carry plenty of secondary sports coverage, including college football, out-of-market NHL hockey games, some simulcasts of “Monday Night Football,” and simulcasts of any ABC sports coverage.
Max ($20 / $26). Max will start offering sports coverage of TNT and TBS sports broadcasts, including NHL games and “March Madness” college basketball playoffs. However, this comes as an add-on option of $10 on top of the regular Max rate ($10 with ads, $16 without). The extra charge doesn’t start until early 2024 (in time for March Madness).
All of the above services together total $43 (with ads) or $61 (without ads).
Hardcore sports fans: cable-replacement streaming services
Another option, though pricey, is getting a cable replacement streaming service. You’ll get all of the usual cable channels, from ESPN to Cartoon Network; you just won’t be paying Comcast for the privilege. It also avoids some of a traditional cable plan’s nonsensical fees (such as Comcast’s “high definition TV fee”). The options include:
Sling TV Orange ($40). Sling TV is the cheapest way to get the “Big 3” of cable sports programming: ESPN, TNT, and TBS. You’ll still need a TV antenna or other option for over-the-air TV, however.
YouTube TV ($73+), Fubo ($75+), or Hulu Live ($77+). All of these carry sports coverage, though the exact features vary. For instance, Hulu Live offers Disney+ and Hulu with the subscription.
Live news
Live news has been a longtime cable mainstay. However, it’s hard to justify paying for cable just for CNN or MSNBC. If you need news, there’s plenty of other options, anyway: broadcast and streaming TV, your local newspaper, NPR, the Google News/Apple News apps, and other online sources.
An antenna also lets you enjoy watching local TV news, as well as the evening newscasts on NBC, CBS, and ABC, for free.
Streaming options for news
For TV news, options include:
NBC, CBS, and ABC all offer free 24 hour streaming of live news through dedicated internet apps. They’re also available on free ad-supported services like Pluto TV, or as included features in Hulu (ABC), Peacock (NBC), or Paramount+ (CBS). And of course, they all have their own websites (ABC, CBS, NBC) and YouTube channels (ABC, CBS, NBC).
PBS’ evening newscast, “PBS News Hour,” is available to watch for free through the PBS app, which also offers free live streaming of your local PBS station. “News Hour” is also available to watch on YouTube, as well as on their own site.
Local TV news apps. Most TV stations stream news for free, either through their website, their own apps, or through third-party services such as NewsOn and Haystack News.
Sling TV Blue ($40) offers MSNBC and CNN, if you really need to see Wolf Blitzer that badly.
Over-the-air local TV stations
Providing over-the-air local TV for people that can’t or won’t use an antenna to receive TV broadcasts is, of course, the reason cable TV was invented in the first place. While on-demand streaming services replace much of the need for your local NBC or Fox affiliate to watch sitcoms or reality shows, some people still want to watch programming live, or syndicated programs such as “Wheel of Fortune.”
An antenna is the cheapest option to receive local TV stations, as it’s free. Otherwise, see the other options below.
Streaming options for over-the-air local TV
On-demand services
Several streaming services tied into the national broadcasters are available. The best options:
Paramount+ ($6 with ads, $12 without ads)(CBS)
Peacock ($6 with ads, $12 without ads)(NBC)
Hulu ($8 with ads, $18 without ads)(ABC, Fox)
PBS / PBS Kids (free, without ads)(PBS, PBS Kids)
The total for the above ranges from $20 (all with ads save PBS) to $42 (all without ads). The more expensive options will let you live stream CBS and NBC; however, all of these offer the networks’ programs on demand, usually the day after they air. You’ll also get much of their cable arms’ programming, from “Yellowstone” to “SpongeBob.”
Cable replacement streaming service
YouTube TV ($73+), Fubo ($75+), or Hulu Live ($77+). All of these carry the major OTA TV networks, plus a few minor ones such as The CW. However, I don’t recommend going this route, unless you really need to watch local broadcast TV that badly, and absolutely have no other options.
General purpose “catch-all” TV viewing
Finally, there’s this option, the general purpose “catch-all” use for cable TV. Someone might not be a fan of a particular franchise (“Star Wars,” Marvel superheroes, “Yellowstone,” etc.), or even a big sports fan. They instead just want a wide variety of TV programming, which is something cable TV historically provided.
Streaming options for general TV viewing
Despite the ongoing “streaming wars,” the most popular streaming options are also the ones that’d be best for this category:
Netflix ($7 (with ads); $15.50 (without ads); $20 (without ads, 4K))
Amazon Prime Video ($9 for just Prime Video, $15 for full Prime service; without ads will cost an extra $3 starting in 2024)
Hulu ($8 with ads; $18 without ads)
Disney+ ($8 with ads; $11 without ads); alternatively, the Disney Bundle (Disney+ and Hulu; $10 with ads, $20 without ads)
Max ($10 with ads; $16 without ads)
These five services are the clear winners of the “streaming wars.” They include: the classic “Big 3” mainstays (Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Hulu); Disney+, the most successful "streaming wars" newcomer (thanks to Disney’s massive popularity); and Max, thanks to HBO’s popularity and longevity, plus the popularity of Warner Bros.’ own massive catalog… or what hasn’t been purged, anyway.
All of these services have large enough catalogs to work as “catch-all” general purpose streaming services; a household would be able to find something in a genre of interest to watch on all of these. That’s likely a reason why they’re still popular, despite everything from Apple TV+ to Peacock coming along—people prefer paying for a few broad services, not multiple niche services. See all the "remember when you only needed Netflix, and maybe Hulu?" comments.
That said, in my opinion, Disney+ and Hulu work better as a “catch-all” when bundled together; the price difference is minimal versus buying only one (an extra $2), and they both make up for each others’ weaknesses.
As for which of these services to choose, I’d say just pick whichever ones interest you the most. Possible options include:
The classic “Big 3”: Netflix ($15.50), Hulu ($8), Amazon Prime Video ($9); total: $32.50. These three still offer plenty of programming on their own; additionally, Hulu is often on sale through various deals, especially on Black Friday.
Netflix and the Disney Bundle: Netflix, Disney Bundle (Disney+, Hulu); total: $17 (both with ads), $25.50 (Netflix without ads, Disney Bundle with ads), $35.50 (both without ads). Netflix is still the default streaming service for most people, so they’ll likely want it no matter what. Meanwhile, Hulu is still a good option for those cancelling cable, given it carries some TV shows a day after airing on traditional TV.
Conclusion
Note you can, of course, pick whatever services you want, or even combine the above categories' services I listed. For instance, I currently pay for the Disney Bundle (Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+) plus Paramount+ as a secondary service. I also get Peacock for free (as another secondary service) via my broadband provider, Comcast. Overall, it's still cheaper than what cable cost, even if I can't casually flip over to see what Andreson Cooper is doing.
What services do you use? Any thoughts on the services, or combinations of services, suggested above?
"Comcast" by JeepersMedia is licensed under CC BY 2.0 (Flickr / cropped from original)