All-Encompassing Streaming Service Discussion

[TheVileOne]

9 minutes ago, Niners Fan in CT said:

@TheVileOne I think HBO MAX is a solid name..  just because when someone hears "HBO" that usually means prestige.  I think it packs more of a punch than "Warner Bros." would in 2020 

Fair enough. 

[Matt D]

Work just upgraded our iPhones so I have Apple TV+ for a year. We already watched a couple of episodes of the new Fraggle shorts, but is anything else on here good?

[Execproducer]

On 6/22/2020 at 9:53 AM, BigKevFan said:

Season 3 of Cobra Kai (along with s1 & 2) are moving from YouTube to Netflix 

https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/cobra-kai-moves-netflix-1299581?utm_medium=social&utm_source=twitter&__twitter_impression=true

Great news as long as it doesn't suffer the same fate as so many other three season Netflix shows.

[RIPPA]

Because of the unique nature of this - I am gonna put this here

Quote

Beloved 1987 film “The Princess Bride” is getting a DIY makeover from some of Hollywood’s biggest names.

Though the project is helmed by “Juno” director Jason Reitman, who has previously staged live readings of the film’s script, the remake was shot entirely at-home by each cast member using their phones. Beginning June 29, Quibi will release chapters of the fan-made movie every day for two weeks.

The star-studded cast includes couples Joe Jonas and Sophie Turner, Common and Tiffany Haddish, Neil Patrick Harris and David Burtka and Chris Pine and Annabelle Wallis, as well as Hugh Jackman, Jennifer Garner, Elijah Wood, Jon Hamm, Beanie Feldstein, Lucas Hedges, Jenna Ortega, Jack Black, David Oyelowo, Keegan-Michael Key, Patton Oswalt, Josh Gad, Andy Serkis, Diego Luna, Taika Waititi and Zazie Beetz, and even more.

The actors will trade off roles throughout scenes, each paying homage to “The Princess Bride” in their own unique way. In addition, original director Rob Reiner will play “The Grandfather” and Fred Savage will reprise his role of “The Grandson,” 33 years later.

The roles aren’t the only aspects of the film getting switched up: a corgi plays the “Rodent of Unusual Size,” Lego figurines or stuffed animals are used for crowd scenes and Jonas and Turner gender-swap a couple of the roles, with Jonas playing Princess Buttercup and Turner as Westley.

The remake is also for a good cause, as Quibi donated $1 million in the name of the project to chef José Andrés’ charity World Central Kitchen, which provides meals to those who have been most affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

 

[Curt McGirt]

A friend of mine posted on Facebook something along the lines of these people need to be fired on with bazookas. I'll tell him that at least the proceeds are going to Andres.

[Raziel]

Google's got some fucking BALLS jumping YTTV's price up to $65 because of 8 networks that no one watches.  Back to Sling.

[Niners Fan in CT]

There's finally an HBO MAX bundle thing..    Basically if you buy DC Universe you get HBO MAX for $4.99 so it's $11.99/month total.  

[NikoBaltimore]

14 hours ago, Raziel said:

Google's got some fucking BALLS jumping YTTV's price up to $65 because of 8 networks that no one watches.  Back to Sling.

I kind of watched some of those channels before but they weren't channels I missed.  I would have much preferred the option for 4K streaming or offline viewing as I know they were testing that some time ago.  But with more channels coming in (MTV Classic sounds promising though we'll see) as long as they don't raise the price again then I might be okay.  But if they do then it's time to shop around.  Luckily with monthly contracts we're not tied to one service for a couple years so it's never been easier to make the switch.

[Raziel]

MTV Classic wasn't that great, at least when I had it when I had AT&T NOW.  But the 8 channels added to the lineup (along with the ditching of YES and some other Sinclair sports stuff), wasn't worth the 30% price hike.  I'm back to Sling for this month, and might do the Hulu TV/Disney+/ESPN+ deal next month.

[RIPPA]

https://www.vulture.com/2020/07/is-anyone-watching-quibi.html

Another story on the fiasco that is Quibi

As the story notes - one thing that is going to be interesting. Most of the 90 day free trials that started when the service started, expire this month

It could be real ugly (well more than it already is)

Oh and a whole lotta this
 

Quote

People have wondered why Katzenberg and Whitman, in their late and early 60s, respectively, and not very active on social media, would believe they have uniquely penetrating insight into the unacknowledged desires of young people. When I ask Whitman what TV shows she watches, she responds, “I’m not sure I’d classify myself as an entertainment enthusiast.” But any particular shows she likes? “Grant,” she offered. “On the History Channel. It’s about President Grant.”

Katzenberg is on his phone all the time, but he is also among the moguls of his generation who have their emails printed out (and vertically folded, for some reason) by an assistant. In enthusing about what a show could mean for Quibi, Katzenberg would repeatedly invoke the same handful of musty touchstones — America’s Funniest Home Videos, Siskel and Ebert, and Jane Fonda’s exercise tapes. When Gal Gadot came to the offices and delivered an impassioned speech about wanting to elevate the voices of girls and women, Katzenberg wondered aloud whether she might become the new Jane Fonda and do a workout series for Quibi. (“Apparently, her face fell,” says a person briefed on the meeting.)

At a casting session this year, while watching a tape test for a Daily Essentials host who was a Black man with an Afro, Katzenberg said the man didn’t look “authoritative.” Content executive Shawna Thomas, an Emmy-winning journalist from Vice News and NBC, was used to the political incorrectness endemic to casting conversations, but as a discussion of the candidate’s hair went on and on, she felt increasingly uncomfortable and left the room to avoid becoming visibly upset. That evening, she and Katzenberg had a long phone chat in which she explained why she makes a point of wearing her hair in a natural style on TV — so that, say, a little Black girl watching MSNBC could see someone authoritative who didn’t conform to the predominant white American standard of beauty. Afterward, she felt Katzenberg had understood her. “The discussion was frank, honest, and positive and might not have gone as well at another company,” Thomas says.

Katzenberg and Whitman also point out that they stocked the Quibi offices with young employees who are in the demographic they’re trying to reach. But “there was an incredible lack of knowledge of the audience and dismissiveness of the audience,” another ex-Quibite says. “A thing Jeffrey always says is ‘I’m not a child or mother, but I made movies children and mothers loved. I know millennials better than millennials.’ ”

 

[Craig H]

On 7/1/2020 at 12:11 PM, Raziel said:

MTV Classic wasn't that great, at least when I had it when I had AT&T NOW.  But the 8 channels added to the lineup (along with the ditching of YES and some other Sinclair sports stuff), wasn't worth the 30% price hike.  I'm back to Sling for this month, and might do the Hulu TV/Disney+/ESPN+ deal next month.

I'm done with YTTV. Fuck em. I switched to YTTV when it was $35 because it had a very limited selection of channels that fit my family's viewing habits very well. In the time since they've continued to make large price jumps. This most recent one to add a bunch of bullshit that I don't want for $15 more dollars is the last straw. I don't understand why they don't follow Sling's model of just offering package add-ons. Like, if you want all of these bullshit Viacom channels, then you can pay extra to get them. Otherwise, take care of the people that jumped onto your service early on as the best alternative to TV.

I switched to Sling for the trial. I have yet to use it on my Roku, but the phone app seems much better than the last time I used Sling a couple years ago. I'm hoping the TV app works well too. Better yet, the Sling Blue basically gives me everything I want. I don't want or need all of the sports channels, I couldn't care less about having a bunch of dumb music channels, and I don't bother with news channels. So it looks like I can get what I want for $30. The only downsides with Sling are the limited DVR, on demand options, locking out some channels from pausing or rewinding, and no local channels. Do all of those add up to $35 extra, I don't think so, but we'll see.

I need to research some other options too. I'd go as high as $50 for this shit. It also bums me out that Playstation Vue is dead because I thought that service was really good.

[Raziel]

You mean Chrissy Tegan and a Film Student redo of Princess Bride in 20 parts isn't gonna save the service?

 

In other things I stumbled into, for Cord Cutters that have issues with Local/Network TV (Sling and Philo having the least access), I found a service called Locast.org.  It's "free"* as it basically has a HD antenna set up somewhere and streams it out, guide and all.  I'm in the Philly market for TV and get upwards of like, 20 channels through it, but it has all the Network affilitaes I care about (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW, PBS).  Web, Roku, and Fire apps all work well.  It get's a *little* sketchy sometimes, but since you're essencially getting a feed from an Antenna set up somewhere, it's somewhat understandable.

 

*I say "Free", because they ask for a "donation" of $5 a month, and I get it, setting up the necessary kit to do this right because it is a pain in the ass to stream all this out.  The only downside is after a couple hours, they start inserting commercials asking for donations and that tends to cut off shows and reset the player back to the guide.  It's worth $5 right now, so I don't have issue because between that and Sling, I'm still under what YTTV, Hulu, or AT&T would charge. Setting up a login and donating erases those commercials, obiviously.

@Craig H, I shopped around when YTTV threw out the price hike, and like I did when I jumped off AT&T when they gutted their tiers down to 2 and priced the grandfathered package holders out of the old service, and yeah, even though the DVR features aren't as good as the others, Sling's pretty much the best value and most flexible as far as stuff being tiered.  It's way more ala carte, which works.  

Edited July 6, 2020 by Raziel

[Dolfan in NYC]

To piggyback on Rippa's Quibi article...

DIE HART

Starring Kevin Hart & John Travolta

Exclusive to Quibi.  

I'm amazed at how bad this looks and I cannot wait to find out how much money Hart & Travolta got paid in advance for this. 

[NikoBaltimore]

54 minutes ago, Raziel said:

You mean Chrissy Tegan and a Film Student redo of Princess Bride in 20 parts isn't gonna save the service?

 

In other things I stumbled into, for Cord Cutters that have issues with Local/Network TV (Sling and Philo having the least access), I found a service called Locast.org.  It's "free"* as it basically has a HD antenna set up somewhere and streams it out, guide and all.  I'm in the Philly market for TV and get upwards of like, 20 channels through it, but it has all the Network affilitaes I care about (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CW, PBS).  Web, Roku, and Fire apps all work well.  It get's a *little* sketchy sometimes, but since you're essencially getting a feed from an Antenna set up somewhere, it's somewhat understandable.

 

*I say "Free", because they ask for a "donation" of $5 a month, and I get it, setting up the necessary kit to do this right because it is a pain in the ass to stream all this out.  The only downside is after a couple hours, they start inserting commercials asking for donations and that tends to cut off shows and reset the player back to the guide.  It's worth $5 right now, so I don't have issue because between that and Sling, I'm still under what YTTV, Hulu, or AT&T would charge.

@Craig H, I shopped around when YTTV threw out the price hike, and like I did when I jumped off AT&T when they gutted their tiers down to 2 and priced the grandfathered package holders out of the old service, and yeah, even though the DVR features aren't as good as the others, Sling's pretty much the best value and most flexible as far as stuff being tiered.  It's way more ala carte, which works.  

Thanks for all that.  I did a bit of shopping around and Sling seems like the best option though I didn't know if I wanted to get an antenna.  Locast seems like a pretty good way to check that so that works.  There's only show I DVR from ABC which is ending soon anyway.  So I think when making the switch I'll be okay.  And if for some odd reason it doesn't work out (Craig's issues with it are points to consider) then I can always go back to YTTV or switch to Hulu.  Time will tell.

 

Edited July 6, 2020 by NikoBaltimore

[JonnyLaw]

@RIPPA, thanks for the reminder to cancel my free trial.

[Travis Sheldon]

There are a number of good Diy antenna plans for the cheapest of asses. 

Still use two I've made, one from old coat hangers and some deck wood I had and another from binder clips and a jewel case. 

Yep, I'm that guy. 

[Curt McGirt]

[Craig H]

Sling just isn't going to work for me. It just feels very cumbersome to use. I like the price, but not much else.

What will work is Hulu Live TV. So YTTV is going to be $65. I also have the Disney/Hulu/ESPN bundle for $13. That's $78 or more for all of that. I can switch to Hulu Live with the Disney bundle that includes nearly everything YTTV has, it includes Disney/Hulu/ESPN that I'm already paying for, and it's $62 a month. It's only a $16 difference, but it basically brings me back to what I was paying before.

I love the YTTV interface. It's probably the best out of everything I've used. The DVR is fantastic. The on demand library is great too. I just can't justify spending $65 for YTTV though, no matter how good it is.

I'm hoping Google comes to their senses with how much bullshit this is and makes a more ala carte product. Hell, I'd go back to YTTV in an instant if they dropped the price back down to $50 and made the sports or Viacom shit add on stuff for an additional price. I doubt they'll do that. They haven't done that for any of their other increases.

One other benefit of Hulu Live TV...They have the Marquee network. As much as I hate Tom Ricketts and his whole corrupt family and as much as I hate Sinclair, I still want to watch Cubs baseball and that gives me the opportunity to do that if there even is a baseball season.

[NikoBaltimore]

20 hours ago, Craig H said:

One other benefit of Hulu Live TV...They have the Marquee network. As much as I hate Tom Ricketts and his whole corrupt family and as much as I hate Sinclair, I still want to watch Cubs baseball and that gives me the opportunity to do that if there even is a baseball season.

At least you have a way to watch your team.  When baseball comes back (Yay!) the Orioles games are mainly on MASN which is only on cable carriers like Xfinity.  Try as I might there's no way to watch it on any of the streaming services.  If I'm feeling froggy I might try Discord and see what I can watch live but may be best off just going to a bar.

[Niners Fan in CT]

Google won't come to their senses. FAANG runs the world.

[Craig H]

I gotta say, so far, Hulu+ with live TV is pretty awesome. It has basically everything my daughter, wife, mom, and myself want, it's a one stop shop for live tv and the whole catalog of recorded series, I still get ESPN+ and Disney Plus, and I'm paying less altogether than what YTTV is going to start charging in August. 

[JonnyLaw]

 

[jaedmc]

An :"order of magnitude"?

So they think they converted 80%?

I'm not great at math, but something tells me they aren't either.

[RIPPA]

Oh its some WWE level of spin

In the article they are arguing only about totally number of app downloads

The report said it was 4.5 million app downloads and Quibi is all NO NO ITS 5.6 MILLION!!!!

And then provided no other data to back up their claims (in regards to retention)

[jaedmc]

I'm actually a little confused by the numbers the article provides.

Like 910,000 people signed up in the first three days of their 90 day trial. Is it 72,000 of that very specific group of people that stuck around? I'm assuming that's where the 8% number comes from. 

I'm assuming that "number of downloads" does not equal "people who signed up for a free trail", because if you signed up you'd probably put it on multiple devices thus multiple downloads. But let's say it's actually 1 to 1 for fucking around's sake. 

The lower number, 4.5 million, would mean 360,000(8%) would stick around and if we take the higher number of 5.6 million. that leads us to 448,000. Not great either way, no?

But then they include Disney+ conversion rate of 11% which is only 3% better but they don't include how many downloads/free trial signups that equates to.

What I'm saying is: I know less now than before I read that article.