Yeah, that is why it is all so stupid. They will posture for a few weeks and then come to an agreement. Life will go on and the bills will continue to creep up.

Honestly, I will keep the Direct Stream because I like the way it functions like a traditional cable service because that makes life easier with the wife. In the short term I will do the free trial of the YTTV and move on.

More important things to stress over in life than this first world problem.

I do think the traditional providers' days are numbered. I am old enough that I like the convenience of having all my channels on one platform. I know how to switch to different apps and such, I just don't like that model because it is not what am used to. My 20 something kids NEVER really watch using the traditional method. All they use are the apps and smart features. So that change is definitely coming.

I went through the same thing a year or two ago when I was with Dish and switched to Youtube TV as result. Dish had been through a similar negotiation/blackout with a company that owned a ton of network affiliates which had also blocked out one or two of the majors networks for me not too long before that, and I'd had enough.

But I'm afraid this is going to be the new norm. Whichever provider you have, expect a prolonged blackout when you'd least like it to happen when your service faces contract renewal negotiations with Disney and some other larger content providers.

Tergdor said:

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Bad Poster said:

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TexAggie1999 said:

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79TAMU79 said:

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Looks like my fall schedule will have a lot more time now... Can't believe that DirectTV is fighting with ESPN/Disney at the start of football season!

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ESPN/Disney want an insane amount of money (probably because they pay insane amounts for the rights to college and pro sports). If the DirectTV and others just give in to the high prices, then everyone will just pay more for their cable/satellite/streaming. People NEED to start pushing back against the high prices.

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How about they stop packaging bs channels with every package and cheapen it. I dont care about the alien nation channel, the anger management channel, the are we there yet? Channel… and yes these are all channels on my choice package directv stream. Cancelled my service, they wont refund my money for this month. Never going back to directv again. Hope they go out of business after this.

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Those packages exist because companies like Disney demand that their channels are packaged. DirectTV/AT&T has been pretty clear for a while that they want per-channel choice, because that's the only way they'll stay competitive with streaming in the long run.

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Yes. This was part of the FUBO lawsuit against Venu. The carriers (cable/sat/streamers) don't want all the BS channels that Disney/ESPN or Viacom/Paramount force upon them, and they'd be very willing to do skinny bundles that include the items that Venu was offering.

From here:

Fubo also complained the defendants refuse to empower streamers to offer their own skinny sports bundles. They instead make streamers bundle sports channels with entertainment channels and other bloat that sports fans don't want.


ETA: Also, a good chunk of those other channels (like Alien Nation channel or QVC or HSN) don't cost the carriers anything to run and many pay to have their channels on there (or share in advertising or purchasing revenue). That's why you'll see many of those same channels on free services like Pluto TV.

YouTube is the best. Half the price. I love the split screen option. 4 games at one time. My wife hates it.

When I had Directv about 5 years ago, they had ESPN as a premium channel and charged extra for SEC network. It was an easy choice to get rid of them.

Does anyone know how long the contracts between the content provider and carrier are for?

Last year Tegna held DirecTV hostage like Disney is this year. They have done similar with Dish and others in prior years.

If you are an Astros fan, your options are DirecTV and Fubo, assuming you are rural as we are. I have thought about switching to Dish and using a VPN and subscribing to MLB, but then my bill increases. I have a grandfathered package with DirecTV and use "retention" a lot and have been able to keep my bill somewhat reasonable. That said, it is tiring to have to always threaten to leave only to get it reduced back to what it has typically been.

The problem is these disputes because you have no idea when they are going to rear the head. Sure I can switch to another carrier but how do I know it won't be their turn in the barrel with Disney, Tegna, etc.... next year???? It basically means its a constant headache and utter bull*****

I would go the YouTube TV route.

alexandertheok said:

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I would go the YouTube TV route.

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Just fired Directv and subscribed to YouTube TV

Excellent choice. You will love it.

80s Guy said:

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alexandertheok said:

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I would go the YouTube TV route.

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Just fired Directv and subscribed to YouTube TV

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I did the same (but Dish instead of DirectTV) a year or so ago, and look back on that as an EXCELLENT decision. Given a large number of TV's at a couple of different locations, I am paying a couple of hundred dollars less monthly and I have not experienced any service disruptions (whether from weather or contract negotiations).

The contract negotiations will probably come some day, though. I'm not sure how any service provider can be immune in the long term from being held hostage by content providers when bigger contracts are up for renewal.

Add me to the list of those that fired DirecTV and went to YouTubeTV

https://v2.sportsurge.net/home4/

lotoarmy said:

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DTV went to hell when AT&T bought them. AT&T is like sips. They destroy everything they touch.

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Naw. AT&T fiber is excellent in every respect.