Semi-OT: YouTube TV may be dropping ESPN this week
Something to keep an eye on with bowl season approaching...
December 14th, 2021 at 8:17 AM ^
We go around this carousel every few months. A streaming service or cable company says they can't afford to keep a channel in its regular lineup, the channel says that it is making every effort to stay with said provider, they get people to write some emails on their behalf, and they magically hammer out a new deal. I wouldn't worry a whole lot.
December 14th, 2021 at 8:29 AM ^
Didn’t work for Fox Sports Detroit.
December 14th, 2021 at 8:40 AM ^
It also helps that the Tigers, Pistons and Wings all blow right now
December 14th, 2021 at 8:43 AM ^
In fairness, this is because the company that bought the Fox RSNs paid a couple billion for it -- way more than they could afford -- and were trying to recoup that money quickly. And then everyone called their bluff and they lost a ton of eyeballs. It wasn't just YTTV and not just FSD that disappeared, it was every RSN from every platform except for like, Comcast.
December 14th, 2021 at 8:23 AM ^
They will both be lowering my monthly price by 100% while Disney, ABC, & ESPN content is off the platform, and they will be lucky if I reactivate it. Not to mention, I'm already not a huge fan of either company, so canceling both YouTube TV and Disney+ won't be too hard.
December 14th, 2021 at 8:28 AM ^
Well then I may be dropping YouTube TV this week
December 14th, 2021 at 8:39 AM ^
I had Sling Blue plus Sports extra for $45/month. ESPN was the only channel lacking. You make do.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:01 AM ^
I tried sling tv at the start of the season. Need blue and sports extra for btn. Need orange for ESPN. Was gonna be 75-80 a month. Same price as just adding it to my internet plan. And with cable I get local channels too. Right now there is very limited value in the streaming services.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:20 AM ^
Yeah, I skipped the Orange package and just decided that I would not watch MNF and maybe miss a few MI MBB games. There's only so much money I'm going to spend in order to catch one or two additional basketball games a month here or there.
If the B1G came out with a comprehensive TV package for all of their content I think you could easily persuade several million people to part with several hundreds of millions of dollars each year. Maybe some day they will make that work.
December 14th, 2021 at 8:47 AM ^
They were also going to drop nbc a couple months ago.
Then they didn’t
i honestly thought Google was going to call NBCs bluff and let them walk. They were even encouraging their subscribers to get peacock for live sports. The fact that they made a deal in the 11th hour means this is all a charade.
Dropping ESPN is 1000% not happening; live sports are the only reason most people have YouTube tv. This is carriage negotiations 101. same shit, different day
December 14th, 2021 at 9:02 AM ^
I had to drop Youtube TV about 6 months ago as it was more expensive to have Youtube TV plus internet rather than have TV/Internet through the same company. I wish I didn't have to, Youtube TV kept raising rates to where it wasn't an advantage to have them. I had psvue, and I believe it was like 40$ a month while I had it. Youtube TV is now like 65 or 70, which for me is the same or more than the big-name companies that Youtube TV advertises against.
December 14th, 2021 at 3:50 PM ^
I hate the cable/satellite kleptopoly with such a burning passion that I would rather pay Google more for YouTube TV than pay Comcast another dime (in addition to what I already pay them for internet because they're they only God damned option in my area).
December 14th, 2021 at 9:07 AM ^
Good timing. I was planning on trying Vidgo and/or Fubu after vacation anyway. Both have a week free, so I should be able to see both of our games.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:24 AM ^
I agree that at the end of the day this is likely just a negotiating ploy as sports channels are what drive cable, satellite and streaming. Going with Hulu Live is looking like it was the best decision more and more everyday.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:41 AM ^
Same verbiage and discount that YouTubeTV stated back in late September when the NBC/Comcast deal was expiring.
They'll get something done, too important for both not to.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:44 AM ^
oh shit keep yo hulu people .. oh you all know that people you work here
December 14th, 2021 at 9:47 AM ^
Well, I dropped Youtube TV last week, so we're even in my house. Got it to watch sports, especially M sports, and often--despite promises--they weren't there.
What are people seeing as the best current sports option? I watch Michigan sports, Florida State University and NWSL soccer with my daughter, both US soccer teams, pro football toward the end of close, important games and--some years--stretches of the NBA playoffs.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:50 AM ^
Fubo covers everything I want to see and then some. A ton of soccer channels if that's your thing although I don't know exactly what leagues they have rights to air.
December 14th, 2021 at 9:59 AM ^
The DVR option on YouTube TV is great. I hope that it's figured out.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:12 AM ^
Yes YouTubeTV's DVR is the best in the industry such a great feature
December 14th, 2021 at 11:28 AM ^
Hands down the greatest dvr going right now.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:03 AM ^
Will suck but can hit the bar for any games I want to watch and replays on YouTube for others. Post CFB season I don't watch ESPN.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:12 AM ^
These types of negotiations almost always work themselves out, but yeah not having ESPN on YoutubeTV would suck because I love YouTubeTV
December 14th, 2021 at 10:21 AM ^
I use Hulu tv—not the greatest, not the worst.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:34 AM ^
Same here. Like ESPN/ABC, it’s owned by Disney, so it’s free from that particular carriage fight.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:30 AM ^
I thought I read this, but needs to be verified. Isn't the Disney Bundle about $8/month and it would get you ESPN via the ESPN App? If so this is an alternative.
I jsut signed back up for YoutubeTV cause of the constant nagging from MgoWife about Paramount and Bravo. A while back they pulled their YTTV App from Roku, now it is back.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:33 AM ^
Disney bundle gets you ESPN+, which does not show games that are on ABC, ESPN, or ESPN2. It shows other events that are not broadcast on those stations (like low-major D-1 basketball).
December 14th, 2021 at 10:35 AM ^
Thanks for the Info, that blows. Of course Michigan is on ESPN, hopefully they resolve by then and not have to send YTTV users another increase.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:31 AM ^
One thing to note in these negotiations is that Disney owns both ESPN and Hulu, so they’re going to drive a hard bargain with YouTube. Some who leave YouTube will go to Hulu, so Disney wins either way.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:43 AM ^
Yeah, 41 of the 44 bowl games are on espn and ABC so that would be a major problem
December 14th, 2021 at 10:48 AM ^
fubo is probably better anyways. I'll switch by time Bowl Season hits.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:49 AM ^
These disputes can hit you with your "normal" cable company/ISP as well. But it's a lot more of a hassle to switch between those than switching between the streaming providers.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:50 AM ^
I work for a cable company and Disney has been doing this to everyone all year. Their demands on renewal were pretty extreme (like an 80% increase + forcing to carry new channels). They know they have everyone over a barrel and are making ridiculous demands.
December 14th, 2021 at 10:55 AM ^
You cord cutters love drama
December 14th, 2021 at 11:49 AM ^
Drama? I pay less in streaming by a wide margin.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:06 PM ^
Streaming + Internet?
December 14th, 2021 at 12:24 PM ^
Are you *not* paying for internet anyway even without cutting the cord on TV?
December 14th, 2021 at 1:47 PM ^
It’s also a heck of a lot easier to cancel streaming services during the off-season (for me July and August since I’m an NBA fan). Even so, streaming is about $30/month less than a comparable cable package in my area, and with off-season cancellation I save ~$500 a year vs. cable.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:00 AM ^
Not sure if to file this under “cool story bro” or “spam” but I will share anyway.
My father-in-law lives in Ontario and is a NASCAR fan, they don’t get much coverage up there. His coworker created an app that runs on an Amazon Firestick and the app has basically every channel in North America, as well as a huge catalog of movies.
I thought it was too good to be true but I bought a firestick and mailed it to him, he charges $200 annually, and it has been a total game changer. I had to upgrade my internet but I got to cancel my cable.
if anyone is interested in one, I’d be happy to set it up.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:22 AM ^
Hopefully it ends a little better than this....
December 14th, 2021 at 12:07 PM ^
I'm thinking your FIL's coworker is going to get a knock on his door one of these days...
December 14th, 2021 at 12:56 PM ^
Agreed.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:43 AM ^
This seems to be the nature of streaming services. Every football season I seem to have something different. The only reason I get these services is for UM football.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:48 AM ^
I have YouTube tv and Disney plus so I guess I'm good?
December 14th, 2021 at 11:57 AM ^
You are not. You can't watch ESPN, ESPN2, ABC, etc. by having Disney+. Even the Disney Bundle (extra $14 per month) that adds ESPN+ won't get you ESPN, ESPN2, and ABC.
December 14th, 2021 at 1:50 PM ^
Yeah, you’d need the HuluLive Disney+ bundle, which is $70/month.
December 14th, 2021 at 11:55 AM ^
What % of Michigan football and basketball end up being shown live on ESPN?
December 14th, 2021 at 12:18 PM ^
It's definitely not as high as it used to be with the inclusion of FOX and FS1 in the TV contract that was signed a few years back. In fact, this past season only the WMU game was on an ESPN channel. The rest were on ABC, BTN, or FOX.
Basketball will be a higher percentage but there are also a lot of networks to spread around their games (BTN, CBS, ESPN/2/U, FOX, FS1). Thus far, 40% (four of 10) have been on either ESPN or ESPN2.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:22 PM ^
Thank you.
December 14th, 2021 at 12:38 PM ^
Yeah I cancelled YTTV when it went to $65. For the same price I added comcast 125 channel package to my internet with the box included. Less dvr space but less overall hassle as well.