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Originally Posted by Solecismic
I'm very intrigued by Sling TV, but concerned about the quality, the cost of unbundling and the absence of BTN.
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Sling is fantastic. Great quality! Its HD quality.
But yes, no BTN. But there is ESPN, ESPN2, and AMC in the basic tier ($20 a month). But you miss out on DVR (AMC has limited video on demand) because ESPN isn't going to sign on to any streaming service that has DVR - but you have access to Watch ESPN through Sling, so there is that.
I do think that cutting the cord requires a bit more effort on the part of the viewer. It isn't as easy as flipping through cable channels and deciding to watch a show you've heard about and being able to watch new eps right away, after catching up with Blu-rays or Netflix, if you want.
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Originally Posted by Fidatelo
Yep, in 10 years we'll probably all be begging for the good old days of cable tv.
I know it's never going to happen, but I truly wish for a world of total a la carte. Let me buy shows, including live sports and news and whatever, completely independent of any other payment. I want to watch the news tonight? $1. I want to watch the Jets game tomorrow? $5.
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The channels themselves have made it impossible to a la carte. Most major channels are in conglomerates themselves. ESPN, for example, is under ABC/Disney's umbrella. So, for instance, with Sling TV, in order to have Disney, you have to have ESPN - both are on the basic tier, because otherwise ABC Disney won't sell you those channels or any other channels they own.
You somewhat have limited a la carte though, through Amazon and iTunes. You can buy a show episode by episode if you'd like, but, of course, some providers don't want to give you that option.
Streaming exclusivity is already the lay of the land, though the ability to purchase some episodes exists, thankfully. However, I think with DVR and binge watching, the era of caring that you have to wait a year in order to buy the DVDs to watch a show will dissipate and will take away one of the most fun things about weekly watching - 'watercooler' discussions. You can already see it with shows like House of Cards. It'll take a while for shows like Game of Thrones, but I think it'll eventually come.
I'd also argue that if we got true a la carte, we'd been begging for cable TV within a year as prices would likely be far higher than we anticipated they would be. Amazon and iTunes can sell programs the next dat for $2.99 an episode, but that's mostly because the providers get money for being on a cable tier. Unmoor that, and I can see AMC deciding that $5.99 an episode for The Walking Dead would be the price.