What you can do to end the Disney-Spectrum dispute

What you can do to end the Disney-Spectrum dispute:

For more tips on how you can impact the decisions of major corporations, follow this Website.

Okay, that was my attempt at humor. I didn't say it was a successful attempt, but it makes the point.

You are a product to those people. Spectrum acts like they're looking out for you. They aren't. You are a target. Or your wallet is. Same with Disney. They both want your money.

Spectrum wants to keep more money, and not give it to Disney. If they pay Disney more, they'll up the bill to their subscribers. And they'll up it more than what Disney gets. Spectrum will make more money if they give in to Disney. Well, more money per customer. They're worried that the overall number of customers could drop, ending up being an overall loss.

Disney meanwhile doesn't care. They're giving discounts to new Hulu+Live TV subscribers, and some Spectrum customers are switching from Spectrum TV to streaming via Hulu+Live TV. In those cases, Disney gets the money anyway.

None of them really care about you. They care about getting your money. It's up to you to figure out the best way to spend your money and how to get the most out of it. My Streaming Life costs more than I would like, so I'm always on the lookout for ways to save money. Most of the time, I don't use a live streaming service such as Hulu+Live TV. I'm finding cheaper ways to watch TV. Perhaps I can help you with that. If not me, perhaps someone can, and you can keep more of your hard-earned money.

Disney discounting Hulu+Live TV

There is a dispute between Disney and Spectrum right now. I'm not impacted, as Spectrum is not my Internet Service Provider. But, a lot of people are impacted.

Right now, Spectrum isn't carrying Disney channels, to include ESPN. That's right, a cable service without ESPN. Spectrum seems to be holding the line, and Disney seems to be holding the line. This could go on a while.

It'll probably end with Disney getting its way, or mostly getting its way, and then Spectrum raising prices to pay for the new Disney agreement. I say probably, because Spectrum may not give in. I wouldn't really be shocked to see Spectrum reach an long term agreement with a streaming service for customers. Right now, they're working with YouTube TV and Fubo TV to help customers get ESPN and other Disney-owned channels.

Maybe Spectrum will decide it's not worth the hassle and get out of the TV business altogether, and focus on broadband Internet.

Disney is doing its thing too. They're offering a discount to Hulu+Live TV for the next three months. It's $50/month for the next three months. Long enough to get you through football season, as it turns out.

The only catch is you must not have been a Hulu customer for the past 30 days. I have a Hulu account, subscribing to standard Hulu ($8/month). Even though I've not used Hulu+Live TV for a long long time, I'm still a current Hulu customer, and not eligible. Bummer. That would be a cheaper way to get ESPN than YouTube TV.

My Streaming Life doesn't normally involve these live streaming services. I only use them during college football season, to get ESPN. This is what's going on now, and I'm going to enjoy the games. But I'm going to enjoy not paying those high prices for a bunch of channels I won't watch.

Watching College Football in 2023: Week 2

It's Week 2, which is the third weekend of college football in 2023. Yes, college math is hard.

There are several Division 1-A/FBS games on tap this weekend. There have been three games so far: one was Thursday night and two were last night. None of those featured ranked teams.

Today, there are a lot of games on the schedule. There are 23 games involving all 25 ranked teams today. Two are match-ups of ranked teams -- #20 Mississippi at #24 Tulane play this afternoon, and #11 Texas at #4 Alabama tonight.

Today's games will be broadcast over several networks. Here are the channels or networks you'll need to watch all the games:

• ABC
• ACC Network
• Big Ten Network
• CBS
• CBS Sports Network
• CW
• ESPN
• ESPN2
• ESPNU
• ESPN+
• Fox
• Fox Sports 1
• Longhorn Network
• NBC
• NFL Network
• Pac 12 Network
• Peacock
• SEC Network

NOTE: Longhorn Network is not broadcasting any games this week.

Between this weekend's games and next Saturday, there are five games involving Division 1-A/FBS teams. Those will air on:

• ACC Network
• CBS Sports Network
• ESPN
• Fox Sports 1

Later in the season, there may even be another network or two that carries games, but these are the ones that are confirmed as the season begins. Here's how to get all the networks:

ABC

• Antenna (free)
• Sling TV (8 markets only) ($45/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Entertainment) ($80/month)

ACC Network

• Sling TV (Orange + Sports Extra) ($51/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Choice) ($114/month)

Big Ten Network

• Sling TV (Blue + Sports Extra) ($51/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Choice) ($114/month)

CBS

• Antenna (free)
• Paramount Plus (Premium) $12/month
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Entertainment) ($80/month)

CBS Sports Network

• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Ultimate) ($139/month)

CW

• Antenna (free)
• Not available streaming.

ESPN, ESPN2

• Sling TV (Orange) ($40/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Entertainment) ($80/month)

ESPN+

• ESPN+ (standalone) ($10/month)
• Disney Bundle ($15/month)

ESPNU

• Sling TV (Orange + Sports Extra) ($51/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro + Fubo Extra) ($83/month)
• DirecTV (Choice) ($114/month)

Fox

• Antenna (free)
• Sling TV (18 markets only) ($45/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Entertainment) ($80/month)

Fox Sports 1

• Sling TV (Blue + Sports Extra) ($51/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Entertainment) ($80/month)

Longhorn Network

• Sling TV (Orange + Sports Extra) ($51/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• DirecTV (Choice) ($114/month)

NBC

• Antenna (free)
• Peacock (Plus) ($12/month)
• Sling TV (11 markets only) ($45/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Entertainment) ($80/month)

NFL Network

• Sling TV (Blue) ($40/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Choice) ($114/month)

Pac 12 Network

• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)

Peacock

• Peacock is its own service, and can be used to watch NBC live programming with the $12/month plan.

SEC Network

• Sling TV (Orange) ($40/month)
• Vidgo (Plus) ($70/month)
• Hulu+Live TV ($70/month, $77/month after October 12, 2023)
• YouTube TV ($73/month)
• Fubo (Pro) ($75/month)
• DirecTV (Choice) ($114/month)

That covers this weekend in college football, and covers all the networks -- so far -- that are carrying college football games in 2023. My Streaming Life revolves around college football during this time of year. I'm not the only one.

LocalBTV

There is another live streaming service with local channels, and it's free. But didn't Aero try that and fail? Didn't Locast try that and fail? So what's the catch?

There is no catch. Not really. It's just ... well, it's not Aero or Locast, and is going about things in a different way.

Is LocalBTV illegal? No, they have agreements with the local channels they carry.

Is it everywhere? No, it's only in a few markets. Aero and Locast were both in select markets, and were expanding when they were shut down. But LocalBTV has agreements with the stations. And LocalBTV isn't opening markets where they don't have agreements in place.

Does it have all the local stations? No, and if there is a catch, this is the catch.

LocalBTV has agreements with some of the local stations in the markets where they operate. They don't have agreements with all of them.

For example, I'm in the Savannah, GA market, but LocalBTV doesn't have any agreements with Savannah stations, so I don't get LocalBTV. Not locally (more about that in a minute). But in Columbus, GA, where I lived for a nearly 20 years, LocalBTV is available.

The service only has a few stations there. None of them are the major broadcast networks. That's true overall; none of the LocalBTV service areas include agreements with ABC, CBS, Fox, or NBC affiliates. They do have Get-TV, Cozi TV, and those kind of networks, but not a lot of them.

In my area, there is nothing. Well, that's not exactly true. For those outside the service area, they do grant access to a "national" feed. Oh, and that national feed? It has plenty of the same type of content, including Cozi TV, GetTV, iSciFi, and more.

It's not a slam dunk, but it is an interesting service. I'm going to be checking it out over the next several days to weeks, and get a better grasp on not just what it offers (which does look good) but the overall experience, to include how easy and reliable the service is.

My Streaming Life doesn't really need another free live streaming service, but this might be a good thing. I'm looking forward to it.

Goodbye Google Play Movies & TV

Google is, once again, removing services. This time it's Google Play Movies & TV.

This week, I got an email from Google about this. It gave a bunch of details, but the wording could be confusing to some. I had to read it a couple of times, but I got it. I think I got it.

Based on comments I've seen online, this has caused confusion for some people. Here's the email:

Google Play Movies & TV app is going away on 05 October 2023

Google Play Movies & TV app will no longer be available on your Android TV device from 05 October 2023. You can continue to buy or rent movies directly through the Shop tab on your Android TV.

You can find your existing purchases, including active rentals, on the Shop tab on Android TV, Google TV Android and iOS mobile apps, and YouTube.

Please visit Google TV Help center or Youtube Help Center if you need help accessing your previous purchases.

Some seem to think that Google TV is being shut down. It's not. The functionality appears to be splitting among a couple of apps and services.

Google Play Movies & TV was a place to both purchase and play content from the Google Play store. The purchase portion is inside the Shop tab on the Google TV app. But what if you don't have the Google TV app? Well, there's also the YouTube app. I don't see a way to get your purchases if you don't have the Google TV app, or the YouTube app, or a Google/Android TV device.

If you have a Roku platform device (streaming stick, Roku TV, Roku set top box, etc.) you actually lost the Google Play Movies & TV app a couple of years ago. You needed YouTube to watch your Google Play purchases, so nothing Google is about to do will impact Roku users. They got impacted in 2021.

I'm not sure that this will impact me. My Streaming Life uses content purchased from Google, but I watch it on YouTube, or on a Google TV device. If you're worried about this, I think you don't really need to be. Fire TV and Apple TV both support YouTube, and if those are your platforms, you still have ways to play your content.

More illegal IPTV services shut down

Recently, a family member asked about an illegal IPTV service. The family didn't realize that's what was being asked, and was slightly taken aback when I suggested as much.

Many people that are new to streaming don't realize what's legal and what's illegal. And the thing is, many people I know that don't realize the difference are actually pretty sharp people. They're just not familiar with everything.

If you're not sure, here's what I use to help determine if some service I've not heard of is an illegal IPTV service.

First, the fact I haven't heard of it is a good indicator. However, I make an effort to keep up to date on these things. If it was all new to me, would I know the difference? Maybe. Maybe not.

Next, is it "too good to be true?" If so, then it's not true. Ever buy a Rolex out of the trunk of someone's car? If so, do you think it was a real Rolex? Hint: it wasn't. The trunk of Mr. Bashir's car is not one of the authorized distribution channels. (Before you get your panties in a wad over that last sentence, I knew a Mr. Bashir that sold fake Rolex from the trunk of his car. So there.) Mr. Bashir's "Rolex" watches were not legitimate, and you can pretty much guarantee that an IPTV service that offers everything for a cheap price, or a one time fee, is not legitimate.

Then, some people really don't care if the service is legitimate or not. They just want to watch TV cheaply. After all, unlike Mr. Bashir's "Rolex" watches, the TV channels are real. The service is what's illegitimate. And what's wrong with wanting to save some money?

There is nothing wrong with wanting to save some money. But where do you draw the line? Would you walk into Walmart and shoplift because the company makes a lot of money and shoplifting is cheaper? No? When why would you steal TV service from someone?

Not the same thing? Really? Why not? They are legally entitled to receive compensation for their property aren't they? If you wrote a book, wouldn't it be wrong for someone else to copy it and sell those copies and not go through the proper publishing channels?

There are a lot of illegal IPTV services, and the content owners are pushing for crackdowns on them. This happened recently in Egypt:

In synchronized arrests on August 28 and 29, the Egyptian police and the Egyptian Ministry of Internal Affairs took action against two operators of the ring of live sport, TV series and movie sites livehd7 and 3sktv in Kafr El-Sheikh, Egypt. The ring of sites was logging an average of nearly 18M visits monthly, with most of the traffic coming from Egypt, Algeria, Morocco and Saudi Arabia. Police noted that the operators grossed nearly 1M USD from their illegal activities.

This operation follows two successful raids conducted earlier this year by the Egyptian authorities and demonstrates their continued commitment to combating digital piracy. In February, Egyptian police, in partnership with the Egyptian Ministry of Internal Affairs, took action against the operator of Egylive.online and five other domains in the region of Edkou, Egypt. The six domains combined averaged nearly 5.9 million monthly visits, with 2.3 million monthly unique visitors originating primarily from Egypt, Morocco, Iraq, Lebanon and Algeria.

My Streaming Life doesn't involve illegal services. But I'm not paying high prices for those services either. I can do without. And I'm always going to suggest that others avoid these illegal services. My family member was caught off-guard by my comment about it likely being an illegal service. I didn't mean to cause discomfort, but I'm going to offer my best suggestion at all times. And I always suggest avoiding piracy.

Ads, everywhere ads

I do not like ad blockers. But maybe not for the reason you think.

Yes, there are ads on this Website. If you are running an ad-blocker, you might not see the ads. But that's not why I don't like ad blockers. Let me clarify what I actually mean. I don't use ad blockers.

I don't subscribe to a lot of things, and am fine with ad-supported Websites. It's true that some Websites have a ridiculous number of ads, so many that they are annoying. I skip those Websites.

If the ads are bothersome, I won't return to the Website. If the ads are not too bad, I'll return to the Website.

I understand why many Websites run ads. It's a way to make some money. I don't make much money on this Website. It would be wonderful if I did, but the traffic to the Website isn't enough to make any money. I'll support Websites that use ads. I get it. But how do I feel about your using an ad blocker.

Honestly, it doesn't matter how I feel. If you choose to allow ads, that's great. If you don't, then you don't. Maybe you'll get some benefit from the Website. That would be good. It would be better if I got some advertising revenue from your visits, but I'm not about to put up code to deny your access if an ad blocker is detected. If you allow ads, great. If not, well that's just how it is.

My Streaming Life uses a lot of free ad-supported television (FAST) services. My Web browsing uses a lot of free ad-supported Websites as well. Ads are fine. Well, for me, they are.