Sunday, March 5, 2023

Private Cloud Storage

Yes, I know that the purpose here is focused on streaming, or is supposed to be. However, security is also something of great interest to me. I hope that it is of interest to you as well.

Part of increased security is a change in the way of thinking of things. Keeping security in the forefront of thinking is how you become more secure. And when it comes to saving money, you can do more than learning tips and tricks about streaming. You can keep your data, and your money, safe and secure.

One of the tools that many people use today is cloud storage. That can be tricky to do and stay secure.

[YouTube]

If security helps you in your everyday life, not just your Streaming Life, then it gets better.

Saturday, March 4, 2023

Cord cutting grew last year. Again.

Twelve years ago, I was a rarity. I was a cord cutter, and there weren't as many of us.

Today, there are so many more cord cutters, and the numbers of others joining us in the world of cord cutting continues to increase.

A report from TVTech says that traditional pay TV services lost a lot of subscribers in 2022, more than they lost the previous year.

The top pay-TV providers now account for about 70.2 million subscribers—with the top seven cable companies having about 37.8 million video subscribers, other traditional pay-TV services having 24.1 million subscribers, and the top publicly reporting Internet-delivered (vMVPD) pay-TV services having 8.3 million subscribers.

That number represents a steep drop from LRG’s estimate of 76.1 video subscriptions in 2021. Although cord cutting has gradually increased year over year for the past decade, LRG reported that the trend eased up between 2020 and 2021 when pay TV providers lost 4,690,000 net video subscribers in 2021, compared to a pro forma net loss of about 4,870,000 in 2020. That blip was probably best represented by the fact that more TV was being consumed during the lockdowns imposed by the global pandemic.

You and I are part of a growing field. My Streaming Life, and yours, are the way that more and more people are going.

Friday, March 3, 2023

Google TV changes

Roku is my favorite streaming device. It's my favorite partly because of how reliable the devices are, and partly because I really like the interface.

However, there are good things about other platforms, including Google TV. But, the other platforms' interfaces aren't as good in my opinion. Google TV has a cluttered appearance, for instance.

That is changing, however. Google TV is changing its interface. Google says the changes should make it better:

So to improve your search journey and help narrow down your options, we’re launching four new content pages on Google TV in the U.S. These new pages, located right below the apps row on the For you tab, give you easy access to the best of Movies, Shows, Family and Spanish-language entertainment, without jumping app to app.

Is it an improvement? Well, I'll be looking it over and sharing my thoughts of it. I've been using Amazon Fire TV more lately, for a couple of reasons. But Google TV will get some focus now.

I'm always in favor of things getting better. However, sometimes "better" isn't better. But I'll give this a shot. If it is better, then my Streaming Life will be better. And I'm always in favor of that.

Thursday, March 2, 2023

Regional Sports Network crisis could be good news for baseball fans

The unstable world of regional sports networks (RSNs) may have an upside for baseball fans.

How could there be any good news? Well, like often is the case, in unexpected ways.

The troubles that the various regional sports networks are facing these days could wind up with a lot of content no longer having a home. However, for some sports, there may be ways for them to respond in ways that are beneficial to streamers.

Major League Baseball could offer in-market games for 17 teams that would be impacted if Bally Sports Networks shut down, according to Cord Cutters News:

Now the MLB has added three executives to its local media departments as it prepares to take over local broadcasts for 17 teams. These executives, Kendall Burgess, Doug Johnson, and Greg Pannell, all have experience working as executives at RSNs.

"These new hires are an important step in our preparation to address the changing landscape of MLB game distribution in light of the increasing challenges and pressure facing regional sports networks," MLB chief revenue officer Noah Garden said in a statement.

The MLB is still hoping to find a partner to broadcast its games on traditional TV services but is also preparing for the reality that it may not happen this year. So the MLB is creating plans to offer streaming only versions of in-market games, likely through its MLB.TV service.

Being a baseball fan, and one that is eager to watch in-market games for my team (Atlanta Braves), this is a good opportunity. I hate the idea of many sports teams not having an outlet if the RSNs shut down. However, I like the idea of my favorite baseball team having an outlet they haven't had before. It will make my Streaming Life better.

Wednesday, March 1, 2023

Dish and Sling TV data breach

Recently, there was an outage affecting Dish Network and Sling TV. It wasn't a short outage either.

At the time, it was described as a "cybersecurity incident" but there were no details about it. Now, more details are coming out. And it's not good.

On Tuesday, Dish confirmed "certain data" was obtained from its IT systems during the cybersecurity breach. So far, it's unclear what data was taken, according to Cord Cutters News:

On February 27, we became aware that certain data was extracted from our IT systems as part of this incident. It’s possible the investigation will reveal that the extracted data includes personal information. The forensic investigation and assessment of the impact of this incident is ongoing. The security of our customers’ data is important to us, and if we learn that information was compromised, we’ll take the appropriate steps and let any impacted customers know

Just what this means, we don't know. Was financial or other personal data obtained? They haven't said, but this is in no way good news.

I don't currently have an active subscription to Sling TV, but as they do have payment information on file, there is the possibility of compromise. One thing I don't have to worry about is if my password was compromised. I use a different password for Sling TV than I use for other services. This is why.

If someone has my Sling TV credentials, since it's only for Sling TV -- that is, since I do not use that same password on any other account anywhere -- then those credentials cannot be used anywhere else.

If they did get passwords, and if someone is using the same password for Sling TV that they use on a financial account, that financial account is now in danger of compromise.

That's one of the reasons I'm so big on security. It is a big deal. It's also a change to the traditional way of thinking. I use a password manager -- BitWarden is my current choice -- to keep up with all those passwords. It was a bit of a change to my thinking and a change to my processes, but it keeps my Streaming Life more secure.