this post was submitted on 11 Aug 2023
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For a moment, it seemed like the streaming apps were the things that could save us from the hegemony of cable TV—a system where you had to pay for a ton of stuff you didn't want to watch so you could see the handful of things you were actually interested in.

Archived version: https://archive.ph/K4EIh

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[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 year ago (6 children)

At this point, the best way to go (besides sailing) is to subscribe to one or two services at a time, cancelling others month-to-month based on what you want to watch.

We need an app that lets you search for content across all platforms and easily cancel and start subscriptions - queueing them up and helping you easily limit the amount you’re paying monthly.

But with these prices, it’s worth doing that manually.

[–] gsb 10 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Right now it's smart to cycle through but I wouldn't be surprised if that is the next thing to go.

What I could see happening is they keep raising monthly prices until the math doesn't work out of them. Then they'll introduce a small discount for locking in multiple months (3,6,12mon). Both will continue to rise in price but month to month will be quicker.

[–] [email protected] 9 points 1 year ago

Or straight-up contracts. But I think the next step will be more slow-dripping content.

Netflix just pulled an obvious one by splitting the Witcher season 3 to the release half at the end of June and the other at the end of July. They claim it was for “an effective cliffhanger” but it’s clear they just wanted to squeeze one extra payment out of its viewers who aren’t interested in their other content. Paramount meanwhile stretches all of their Star Trek series out across the entire year.

I imagine platforms will start slow-releasing more of their most popular originals. I wouldn’t put it past them to flood social media with spoilers to punish anyone who’s waiting. I also wouldn’t be surprised if we start seeing one episode per month someday.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Disney+ (at least in Canada) gives a 15% discount if you pay for a year up-front.

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