1171 replies to this topic

[vortoozo]

The CTV news link requires that you have a cable account in order to sign in.

 

 

You can watch the archived 5pm, 6pm & 11pm news broadcasts without a subscription for the past 7 days. They're usually posted a couple hours after live broadcast.

[LJ]

For some folks, like fans of live local news, the OTA antenna route can make a lot of sense (and it's a 720p HD image).

I'd still do it if I knew I could get at least half a dozen channels instead of one.

 

But for me it's 4K, Dolby Atmos streaming and I couldn't be happier ... I never look back at Shaw or Telus cable, not even for a second.

Who do you use for an ISP? What sites do you stream from?

[Cassidy]

I use Shaw for internet because I have a desirable email address that I registered about 2 minutes after Shaw switched from the @home servers to the @shaw.ca servers.

I could never give it up.

 

I primarily stream through my AppleTV 4K, usually Netflix, YouTube Premium, AppleTV Movies (basically iTunes), or Vimeo. I also stream nightly news from the CBC and B.C. news stations that have AppleTV apps.

I watch a lot of music as well as shows, and find that there's more on just Netflix and YouTube than I could ever find time to watch.

What I'm patiently waiting for is for TSN to lose the Formula 1 racing contract so Canadian F1 fans can finally utilize the official F1 app to watch all the different races, live from inside any of the cars, and with multiple (user selectable) camera angles.

 

If I've got a team in the NHL playoffs, I'll sometimes take out a monthly subscription with the NHL app on my AppleTV.

 

When I want the very best video and sound, I watch a favourite movie on my Blu Ray, 4K, UHD, Dolby Atmos, Dolby Vision player. With 4K UHD discs still pretty expensive, my collection is comprised only of my personal favourites, Bladerunner, 2001, Interstellar, etc.

With a beer on the table beside my big comfy chair, it doesn't get any better.

 

My monthly "internet entertainment bill" is about 40% of the $200.00 I was paying Shaw when I had a big cable TV package (40% even with the Netflix and other assorted fees included).

 

[Mike K.]

We dropped cable about a year and a half ago. Haven’t looked back.

In addition to Netflix we also use Prime and it has a lot of great content, particularly old movies and such. YouTube is also great for general interest videos and binge watching independent documentaries of which there are many. You can also purchase a YouTube subscription now which gives you additional content.

[Cassidy]

Ahhh, I forgot about Prime Mike.

I have Prime too, mainly for the free shipping and massive storage of digital photos, but the Prime streaming app makes for some great additional entertainment.

 

After being a Shaw Cable customer for decades, it was a bit nerve-racking to give it up. But once it was gone there was a definitely sense of victory over Shaw. I got rid of their landline phone package as well and went strictly with my cellphone.

I upped my internet speed package one notch to cover the anticipated increase in streaming bandwidth (I also have my daughter living in the suite downstairs, using my internet), and can't recommend the process strongly enough for those who want to keep an extra $100.00+ in their pockets each month by cutting the cord.

 

The thing I didn't realize until I got into it was that there are plenty of streaming apps available from major networks. Some do have a subscription fee, but that fee is nowhere near the cost of a big cable package. Things like Sportsnet, NHL, and TSN for sports, and Treehouse for kids ... things I didn't know were out there until I started looking for them.

There's even a National Film Board of Canada app that gives you free access to all the films they've digitized.

 

One of the best streaming apps out there is the Lynda.com app, with excellent online courses for every subject imaginable. If you've got a GVPL library card, it's all completely free.

 

I run most of my streaming apps on AppleTV, but you can also run them on any smart TV, or any smart  Blu-Ray player.

[sdwright.vic]

I really don't know the packages some of you are paying with Shaw. I pay $140 a month all in, and that is with the hefty portion of the bill being $85 a month.

[Mike K.]

If you’re an average Netflix user with a two-stream subscription, your fees will be rising just a hair under 30% in the coming weeks, according to the company.

Effective immediately for new subscribers are adjusted rates that have pushed the basic non-high-res and single-stream service up by $1 to $9.99, the two-stream service to $13.99 from $10.99 and the four-stream service with 4K quality to $16.99 from $13.99.

Netflix last raised its rates in mid-2017.

[LeoVictoria]

Still unbelievably good value for us. I suspect for the $13 we get at least 50 hours of entertainment a month. Cheap as borscht

[tjv]

^I agree and I am sure Netflix knows that too hence why they can raise prices.  Just compare that with what you used to or currently pay for cable TV and its a heck of a deal

[Mike K.]

$13.99!

[Cassidy]

Netflix at $9.99 and $13.99 is still a great deal for many customers, but the real bargain (using the new pricing) is the four individual streams at 4K for $16.99.

 

Those four streams can be anybody, anywhere. Your kid in Toronto, your ex-wife across town, your sister, etc.

And 4K in 2018 still isn't particularly cheap to access on a regular basis, with 4K Blu Ray DVD's anywhere from 3 to 4 times the price of a regular Blu Ray.

So $16.99 for 4 completely independent 4K streams is an incredible bargain.

 

The only caveat that Netflix has to watch out for is raising their prices to the point where, for the average working guy or girl, the cost suddenly becomes "noticeable", and has to get factored into the monthly budget.

At $9.99, $13.99, and $16.99 ... I think most users still treat Netflix like a couple of cups of Starbucks coffee.

Raise those prices to $24.99 or $29.99, and suddenly folks will start to examine the playing field much, much more closely than they likely do currently, and potentially leave Netflix for the as yet unknown, but new, up and coming 4K service suddenly appearing on the scene for $9.99 a month.

[lanforod]

I'll likely drop it once Disney's upcoming service is available in Canada.

[Mike K.]

It’s not Netflix in isolation, though. It’s just one package. Most people now have at least two streaming services. YouTube is also pushing its paid services for $17 after tax. Add $20 for Crave and you’re starting to push the costs up.

[lanforod]

Remember when Crave was $4? 

[Mattjvd]

Yeah, I do use two streaming services. Netflix+Prime. But Prime was mostly done for the two day shipping, the streaming service is a nice bonus.

[Mike K.]

Prime I can see rapidly escalating the monthly streaming fees once enough demand is there. It’ll be a slow creep.

[lanforod]

Prime has basically kept pace with inflation. Demand? They are likely approaching 100 million memberships. Estimated that about half of US households have a membership.

 

That said, they're producing some extremely expensive shows, eg. Lord of the Rings prequel show has a budget > 1 billion.

[Mike K.]

Right, but the viewership is nowhere near 100 million daily or even weekly users and has yet to break over 30 million viewers overall. Netflix is pushing 150 million subscribers and that's basically equal to viewership.

[Jason-L]

What's going to happen is that content is going to end up split across various delivery services (Netflix, Hulu, Crave, Disney, Prime, etc.) and, much like you used to do with cable services, you'll end up needing to subscribe to various services to get all the content you actually want... and low, it won't be long until the cost of all these streaming services + the underlying broadband network to deliver them will probably end up exceeding what we used to pay to cable companies.

 

Because the cable companies are going to start jacking those broadband rates to cover the cost of pushing all this 4K content across the interwebs.

[Mike K.]

Yup. They're eating dirt now but there's a plan in place, for sure.

 

Just look at the cost of an internet package these days. People are paying $150/month without cable or telephone services.