Funny thing with monopolies...once someone corners the market...some new technology pops up and topples the apple cart
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DirecTV Now Price Increase
- Thread starter Scott Greczkowski
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As others have stated, these new $50 and $70 DTV Now packages are just not a very good deal relative to YouTube TV, PS Vue, Hulu Live or Sling TV. If they would have made HBO an optional $15 add-on and priced the packages at $35 and $55, they might get a few more subscribers. But I kinda think AT&T doesn't care that much any more how well DTV Now fares.
These streaming "cable TV" services seem to get a whole lot of attention among cord-cutters but most of us instead simply subscribe to one or more on-demand services -- I currently have Netflix, Hulu ad-free, and Prime Video -- and supplement that with free options like YouTube, OTA TV, etc. I don't personally miss cable channels, but then I don't watch a lot of sports, which to me seems to be the main reason to still subscribe to cable TV.
On the one hand, I think it's a good thing that these services like DTV Now and PS Vue exist, as they provide consumers with additional options. But I tend to think that most people who would keep a cable TV package year-round are probably just better off, overall, bundling TV service in with their broadband from the same provider, especially if they're willing to commit to a contract. If your TV needs are modest, or you're flexible about which channels you get, how your DVR works, having to jump into different apps for different channels, etc., then you can probably save a little money by going the streaming route. But it seems like the industry has made these streaming alternatives just inconvenient enough that the majority of folks wouldn't switch over to them.
These streaming "cable TV" services seem to get a whole lot of attention among cord-cutters but most of us instead simply subscribe to one or more on-demand services -- I currently have Netflix, Hulu ad-free, and Prime Video -- and supplement that with free options like YouTube, OTA TV, etc. I don't personally miss cable channels, but then I don't watch a lot of sports, which to me seems to be the main reason to still subscribe to cable TV.
On the one hand, I think it's a good thing that these services like DTV Now and PS Vue exist, as they provide consumers with additional options. But I tend to think that most people who would keep a cable TV package year-round are probably just better off, overall, bundling TV service in with their broadband from the same provider, especially if they're willing to commit to a contract. If your TV needs are modest, or you're flexible about which channels you get, how your DVR works, having to jump into different apps for different channels, etc., then you can probably save a little money by going the streaming route. But it seems like the industry has made these streaming alternatives just inconvenient enough that the majority of folks wouldn't switch over to them.
I wonder how much of the inconvenience the OTT live streaming services impose is due to contract limitations with the channels they carry.
Bundling with my cable co. was what I did for years, and I'd call in every year to negotiate a discounted price with a willingness to commit to a contract. But Cox really screwed the pooch in my case the last time I called (three years ago), when for the first time I was prepared to cut the cord and go with Playstation Vue. Cox's discount offer (percentage-wise) was worse than any of the previous years, and I refused to pay more than $200/mo. for my current bundle (that was my "red line"). I really tried to work with them, as cutting the cord was the last thing I wanted to do at the time. But nope. They just really didn't care ... until I actually dropped TV and phone.
I've since found I prefer the convenience of YouTube TV. I'm at the $35/mo price, and probably continue to save at least $70/mo. for TV/phone (Ooma)/Internet, as Cox's prices continue to climb each and every year. (That's more than "a little money," at least to me.) But even if money wasn't an issue, say I won the lottery, I would stick with YouTube TV precisely because I prefer the convenience of having all my TV/video coming through one device (no switching inputs), unlimited cloud DVR means I don't need to manage my storage, and I can watch anywhere in my house without having an installer come hardwire additional boxes everywhere.
Everybody's needs and preferences and definition of "inconvenience" are different. But a lot of times, people simply find any kind of change inconvenient.
Yeah, YouTube TV has one of the nicest feature sets, it seems, given that you have unlimited cloud DVR storage and 9 months before stuff auto-deletes. And now only CBS-owned networks prevent you from FFing through ads in recordings.
So if the channel line-up suits you, YTTV is a very good deal at $40/mo. But a lot of cable/satellite TV viewers would look at the YTTV line-up and not like the fact that it doesn't include HGTV or Discovery or Nickelodeon or Hallmark or Food Network or PBS or some other channel. But then others would look at YTTV and be fine with it since it includes the big 4 broadcast networks and all their sports channels.
That's what I mean when I say that these streaming TV services aren't for everybody. All of them seem to have some sort of trade-offs versus traditional, more expensive cable or satellite services. But given their lower prices, that has to be expected. It's just a matter of your particular preferences and whether the trade-offs make sense for you. And, as you say, whether you're willing to make any kind of change at all.
I'm not sure the phrase "unlimited DVR" belongs in the same sentence as "auto-deletes". It reeks of the wireless providers offering "unlimited" usage with the fine print that the bandwidth may be "limited" after some ceiling is crashed into.
It seems clear to me that AT&T firmly believes that viewers simply can't live without HBO. They don't realize that it has become kind of a two-trick pony much like many of the other cable channels. I remember when everyone insisted that A&E was a to-die-for channel during the Walking Dead run.
HBO is peddling all manner of serials when the top viewed channels are all news channels. What little "Box Office" content they still carry is mostly years old. I'm dumping Netflix next week for the same reason.
For 6 weeks, April 14 through May 19 they may have that have to attitude. That's when the final episodes of Game of Thrones air. After that I think you are correct, people will go bye bye very quickly....
Maybe. Then again, maybe viewers will just wait until they show up elsewhere. It isn't like GoT or Westworld are time-limited in their appeal.
That's why I tagged them as a two-trick pony. Whether GoT, Westword, Real Time or Big Little Lies, the top hits playlist is pretty short and they all require a pretty steep investment in time to follow.
That's one of the advantages of the OTT model. Since I no longer need a cable TV provider to subscribe to HBO, Showtime, Starz, etc., I can alternate among the various services month to month to binge the shows I care about. Right now, I have Starz for American Gods and Counterpart. In a month I'll switch to HBO for GoT, and so on. I also catch up on a few recent theatrical releases, but yes, the dwindling numbers of those means I've become more reliant on renting.
I can't speak for the other "conventional" providers but DISH has always been good about letting me switch from one plex to the next at will.
I dont know if this has been posted here and I missed it, but they have the "full package" channel listings on the DirectvNow site, which I found odd. Its listed under the "other packages" tab.
Stream TV, Watch Live Television Online | DIRECTV NOW
Stream TV, Watch Live Television Online | DIRECTV NOW
The only thing that I found notable was the absence of many channels (about half as many channels in each package) for the same price as satellite. No audio channels, few outdoor channels and one weather channel.
They seem to have carefully avoided many of the channels that you might leave on in the background. Most of the PI channels seem to be gone as well (no C-SPANs or NASA). A unified guide is one of the major missing elements in OTT and AT&T seems to have blown a big opportunity to set themselves apart.
Of course there's no new customer discounts but you have to expect that. This is what happens when you don't have fees and charges to balance out the revenue stream and the OTT fanboys had better not overlook this as it is perhaps coming to many OTT services.
They seem to have carefully avoided many of the channels that you might leave on in the background. Most of the PI channels seem to be gone as well (no C-SPANs or NASA). A unified guide is one of the major missing elements in OTT and AT&T seems to have blown a big opportunity to set themselves apart.
Of course there's no new customer discounts but you have to expect that. This is what happens when you don't have fees and charges to balance out the revenue stream and the OTT fanboys had better not overlook this as it is perhaps coming to many OTT services.
AT&T is in a unique position to attempt to leverage HBO and the final season of Game of Thrones to promote these new packages (while still offering its budget-friendly AT&T Watch service). I think they've seriously miscalculated. The YTTV Facebook group was very active this week with people who are contemplating or making the switch from DTVN. Yes, if Hulu Live, YTTV, Sling, Fubo and PS Vue all suddenly followed suit and dropped half of the most popular channels in their packages while raising prices another $10-$15 on the heels of a $5 increase less than one year ago, it would be the end of live OTT TV as we know it. With that said, it would actually surprise me not to see $5-$10 price increases per year on each of these services, just to keep pace with programming costs and the annual $5-$10/year increases for traditional TV platforms.
IMO, people will likely do one of FOUR things:
1: Grumble, but stay with DTV and pay their new extortion fees.
2: Leave, then move to another provider, maybe also get HBO by itself for $15 and bad mouth DTV at every chance.
3: Stay until GoT new season is over, then leave DTV and bad mouth them every chance.
4: Leave all OTT providers, and go OTA. If GoT or whatever is important, subscribe to just HBO to watch the season, then drop it afterwards and go back to OTA only.
1: Grumble, but stay with DTV and pay their new extortion fees.
2: Leave, then move to another provider, maybe also get HBO by itself for $15 and bad mouth DTV at every chance.
3: Stay until GoT new season is over, then leave DTV and bad mouth them every chance.
4: Leave all OTT providers, and go OTA. If GoT or whatever is important, subscribe to just HBO to watch the season, then drop it afterwards and go back to OTA only.
Option 4 for me. Substitute GOT for Westworld and you've got me pegged. Although, it was Dish I dropped and not Directv.
I agree wholeheartedly.
Someone had to make the first move. DIRECTV NOW is sort of marginalized by AT&T's stupidity but it has a big company behind it so someone will notice and at the very least wonder if now is the time to spring. I wouldn't count any Facebook group as a bellwether for anything and certainly not the YTTV group as a reflection of the insanity going on at AT&T.
I'm guessing that a lot of DIRECTV NOW customers are mostly those that just haven't canceled yet or they think they're cutting a fat hog with a bundle deal.
