De-Googling your phone

Along my journey in My Streaming Life, I have found things unrelated to streaming that have surprised me. And, along the journey, I was reminded of things that I knew, but that weren't commonly realized.

One of the main things relates to privacy. It came about in a round-about way. I was looking to build a streaming device based on a Raspberry Pt device, and became reacquainted with Linux. That led me to considering more privacy, as Linux is a very secure and private operating system.

That eventually led to me consider privacy when it came to my cell phone. I spent a few months testing various devices and operating systems for phones. Which means you don't have to settle for iOS or Google's implementation of Android.

That last phrase seems odd, since Android is a Google project. However, the very basic Android operating system is open source and secure. It's the extra things that Google didn't make open source that complicate things.

Security expert Naomi Brockwell has a good video -- about a year old -- that covers de-Googling a phone.

[YouTube]

It's an interest study, and I used it when I tested privacy phones. I thought sharing it might be something worthwhile.

Newsmax free service ending

Newsmax isn't shutting down, but it will cost to watch the service soon.

There has been a carrier dispute with DirecTV, which includes U-Verse and DirecTV Stream, which has resulted in the conservative news channel being removed from those platforms.

DirecTV has added a new conservative news service, The First, to the lineups of those three platforms, softening the blow to conservative viewers.

Now, days after the dispute resulted in the loss of the service, Newsmax is ending its free streams, taking everything behind a paywall:

It should be noted that while the free version has been readily avaialable for Newsmax customers without said pay-TV partners the pay services have been paying Newsmax retransmision fees for the right to have the news feed built into its official channel guide along side other cable news channels like CNN, Fox News and MSNBC. The free feed may well have made the fees paid feel like too high a demand since they were unlikely to drive subscribers who were specifically looking for Newsmax.

Newsmax says that its service is the 4th highest-rated cable news channel in U.S. and a top 16 cable channel though according to Variety Newsmax TV is tied for No 72. Indie Wire had a similar story that placed Newsmax as the number 52 most popular channel in cable channel according to Nielson ratings. And just to fend off any accusation of “libberal Bias” Indie Wire acknowleged Fox News as the top cable channel as far as prime time viewers and Nielson Ratings.

Is this the break that The First was looking for? Or will this actually benefit Newsmax in the long run? How will DirecTV come out of this?

I have no idea. And it doesn't really impact me as I never watched Newsmax free service, nor use the DirecTV platforms. However, this may be of interest to some of you. In that respect, I hope you end up with a better Streaming Life as a result.

Bye bye Bally Sports?

A report came out this week indicating that Bally Sports was in serious financial trouble. The company is preparing to file for bankruptcy, according to the report. That would include the Bally Regional Sports Networks (RSNs).

The company called Diamond Sports Group LLC, which runs Sincalirs sports channels, is reportedly $8.6 billion in debt. Sinclair is hoping to strike a deal to help them keep the channels operating thanks to bankruptcy.

In total, Sinclair owes $55 billion in sports-media rights, according to Bloomberg. A bankruptcy could put payments to the NBA and NHL at risk. It is being reported that Sinclair will skip a $140 million interest payment due in mid-February, starting a 30-day grace period for the company.

Sinclair is facing the perfect storm of paying a very high price for the old Fox Sports RSNs just as cord cutting was exploding. Now payouts from cable networks are reportedly drying up as companies are refusing to pay the high price Sinclair wants for its Bally Sports RSNs.

This is not good news. Well, it certainly seems like it's not. Perhaps the long term effect of losing Bally Sports RSNs will be positive, but that remains to be seen. I was going to try the Bally Sports streaming package during baseball season, if the Braves are available that way. Now, I'm not sure how I'll get the Braves back into my Streaming Life.

Choosing a live streaming service

Many people who cut the cord want to keep cable, or the familiarity of cable. This isn't something that I care about, as when I cut the cord, there were no live streaming services that mimicked cable.

However, there are several such services available today. As a result, several will choose to use a service to ease their entry into streaming. So, how to choose which one?

Antenna Man Tyler has some thoughts:

[YouTube]

Tyler offers lots of good advice on streaming, with a focus on over the air antenna. He is the Antenna Man, after all. He offers good advice on ways to improve your Streaming Life.

Comcast and Charter struggles

One of the things about the recent re-acquisition of Cord Cutters News by Luke Bouma is his passion and knowledge about cord cutting was lost. Even though those running things did a good job (for a while) it wasn't the same in certain aspects.

Recently, Mr. Bouma ran an article where he talked about the things he saw as a big thread to Comcast and Charter (Xfinity and Spectrum) in 2023. The biggest challenge is inflation:

The number one reason new cord cutters cancel cable TV has always been to save money. With inflation making almost everything more expensive, especially many of the everyday necessities like food, gas, and utilities, more expensive cable TV has become a luxury many cannot afford anymore.

Now, many cable companies, including Comcast, have announced price hikes for 2023.

As inflation continues to grow, it has left many Americans looking at their cable TV bills and asking if they are really worth it. For many of them, the answer recently has been no and more are likely to say no.

I find that a big interesting, as inflation has really taken off in the past two years, after politicians supported by Comcast and Charter have taken office. I don't like to get political here, but you can't deny the facts. Inflation has taken off since the White House changed parties and that party controlled those two branches of the government. Those companies are well known supporters of that party. And now it's biting them in the ass. I take no pleasure in it, because it's impacting me as well.

Another interesting thing is that Comcast and Charter are joining together to launch Xumo branded venture.

Mr. Bouma has other reasons for the challenges in 2023, and you can read more there. The insight and analysis offered by Cord Cutters News is a good resource for those with more than a passing interest in their Streaming Life.