LocalBTV, part 2

Last week, I installed the LocalBTV app on my Roku device. I said I would give a check out over the next few days.

Well, it's been a few days. I'm not impressed. Well, a little maybe, but not a lot.

It's a great idea. Find local stations that will allow you to offer their content streaming. They focus on the minor stations, the ones carrying the minor networks, such as Retro TV, get TV, Cozi TV, Right Now TV, and so on.

While that's good, it's not really all that much. It's not that there aren't some good channels, it's just that the overall total is quite limited. And the on-screen guide isn't that helpful. I think that's actually a bigger problem.

I should mention that there are no local channels available for me. I'm in the Savannah market, and LocalBTV doesn't have any agreements with the Savannah stations. However, for those in my situation are provided a national feed. That's certainly better than nothing, and in many cases has nearly as much content as some markets. That is, while you get more if there is a local viewing market, there isn't a whole lot more. The national feed is okay.

The national feed has 34 channels. There are channels with older programming, some news, some sports (no major sports channels), some music programming, and the like. Think the local minor networks you can get over the air. That's what you would expect from LocalBTV is there are local agreements, and what you get with the national feed in other areas.

The service is good insofar as what it is, but the channel guide is the real problem.

Only seven of the channels have proper programming information. Only those seven tell you the actual episode or movie details. The rest don't provide any level of information.

To be fair, for the news channels, that's to be expected. For music channels, that's also to be expected. But allowing for those, you still have at least 2/3 of the channels with no details on the content.

I can't really blame LocalBTV for that, as they can only provide what the channels provide. But LocalBTV is providing channels that don't offer that level of detail, so it really does fall back on them.

My Streaming Live will only have LocalBTV on an occasional basis. It's good, it's just not good enough.

Longer ads on YouTube

Google plans to have longer ads, or at least longer ad breaks, on it's YouTube videos. And they're making out like it's good news.

Okay, in fairness, maybe it is. I mean, I don't think so, but maybe you'll like it.

According to a recent blog post, Google will have fewer ad breaks, but the ad breaks will be longer:

Viewers expect a different ad experience depending on the content they are watching. When it comes to long-form content on TV screens, 79% of viewers would prefer video ads that are grouped together instead of distributed throughout a video. Based on this preference, we are evaluating new options that minimize average interruptions for viewers, such as fewer, longer ad breaks, to create a more seamless viewing experience on the big screen.

Maybe that is good news. I mean, if you regularly skip the ads, and have to do that six times in a video, you'll now only have to do it three times, right?

Well, maybe it's not that simple.

Last year, we refreshed the ad experience as part of YouTube’s more modern look, and in May of this year, we announced CTV-first formats, including 30-second, non-skippable ads and Pause experiences. We also launched shoppable ads on CTV and an industry-first send-to-phone mechanism to allow people who use a second screen while watching TV — over 80% of viewers — to engage with ads.

Recently we’ve brought feed ads to the big screen, so viewers can interact with ads and take action while they’re streaming without interruption.

You saw that part about non-skippable ads, right? Now that doesn't mean that all ads will be unskippable. But it sure seems to me that more will be. If you find that to be a good thing, then yes, good news everyone. I'm not quite so happy about it.

Of course, I can pay for YouTube Premium and omit the ads entirely. I think Google probably makes more money from ads than they do for YouTube Premium subscriptions. If so, they want to minimize the number of people subscribing, but at the same time, keep that subscription revenue stream. They probably have enough information on everyone that they know how many ads they can play and maximize their income.

My Streaming Life can tolerate ads. Just how many, I'm not sure. I have a feeling I'm about to find out.

Disney and Spectrum kiss and make up

It took a week and a half, but Spectrum and Disney finally settled their differences and ended the blackout.

At the start of the month, Disney channels, including ESPN, were removed from Spectrum. Things got nasty, mean things were said, and Spectrum customers did without ESPN for a week and a half.

That's over now. They're playing nice. Mostly.

Disney gave a little, Spectrum gave a little, and Spectrum TV customers now have ESPN again. But they didn't get everything back.

Spectrum customers will no longer get access to Baby TV, Disney Junior, Disney XD, Freeform, FXM, FXX, Nat Geo Wild and Nat Geo Mundo under the deal announced Monday.

As part of the new deal, customers will be able to purchase Disney+, Hulu or The Disney Bundle directly through Charter. Anyone who purchases Spectrum TV Select Plus will get the basic version of Disney+ included in their package. Spectrum TV Select Plus customers will also get ESPN+ and ESPN's standalone streaming service, which hasn't launched yet.

Only 1% of U.S. households watch more than 12 hours of ESPN in the average month, according to analysts from LightShed Partners. That means Spectrum's dedicated ESPN viewers could have easily picked a different avenue for watching live sports "a few clicks and a credit card," analysts said in a research note Monday.

Is this a good thing? Well, it's good for Spectrum TV customers. Personally, I'd have ... well, I can't say what I would have done. I never used Spectrum TV, and I haven't subscribed to any cable TV service since January 2011.

I dropped cable a long time ago, and really can't relate to people who still subscribe to cable. My Streaming Life works great for me. If Spectrum TV customers are happy, great. I couldn't be them.

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.