Readers are unhappy with the state of streaming. Here’s why.
“After cutting the cord over a decade ago I now long for the days of cable. What started as a way to save a few extra bucks has now become an expensive endeavor.”
Streaming reigns supreme in our modern day TV ecosystem. With the freedom to choose what to watch, when, and how, it might come as no surprise that nearly all, 99%, of U.S. households now subscribe to one or more streaming services, according to Forbes.
Not only has it risen to become a prominent way to watch TV, it’s become the dominant way to watch: streaming surpassed cable as the country’s most-watched platform in 2023, according to a Nielsen study. This is in part due to “cord-cutting,” or switching from a paid TV subscription (such as cable, satellite TV, or a bundle with a telephone company) to an Internet-based streaming service like Netflix.
The intent behind cord-cutting is often financial, as it is usually cheaper to stream TV than pay for cable nowadays. But with streaming services hiking their rates amid growing competition, many Boston.com readers are dissatisfied.
Take it from Casey, a reader from Raynham. He cut the cord on cable five years ago and signed up for YouTube TV at $29 per month. At the time, other streaming services’ monthly charges were in the single digits, and Casey found he could keep his monthly entertainment and internet expenses under $150 per month. But the money saved by cord-cutting was short lived.
“Flash forward to today and YouTube TV is now $74.99 a month and dropped most of the local channels I cared about,” he said.
Tom from Acton agreed, saying subscribing to multiple streaming services is “no longer a cheaper option than cable if you’d like variety.”
When we asked Boston.com readers if they’re happy with the state of streaming, the majority (72%) of the 123 respondents to our poll said no. Just under a quarter of respondents said they were satisfied with the state of streaming.
Many readers said their dissatisfaction with streaming comes from simply having too many services to choose from (there are more than 200 streaming services available worldwide), in addition to the climbing costs of subscriptions.
“Too many streaming services. I find it easier to manage by bundling with my cable service and using my DVR,” Boston.com reader Theo N. from Somerville said.
Others, like River from Fort Worth, Texas, said he feels like streaming services are “turning into cable companies with the ads now.”
Indeed, Disney+, Netflix, Max, and now Amazon Prime now offer subscribers cheaper ad-supported plans, with the option to pay a higher monthly subscription for ad-free streaming.
Below, readers share their cord-cutting woes and what they wish streaming would do better.
Responses have been lightly edited for grammar and clarity.
Have we reached a tipping point with streaming services?
“At this point, with all the streaming services it is JUST as expensive as having cable. And as the days of being able to share passwords with people seems to be coming to a close, all it means is that there’ll be some hard decisions as to what streaming services actually stick around.” – Jenny, Quincy
“Absolutely – the individual companies have just recreated cable TV in a more annoying and disjointed way. I am paying about the same that I was for cable, but now I have to go to 8 different platforms for different things. And especially now that they are all adding ads to their platforms (unless you pay more.)” – Katie, Quincy
“Cable prices are ridiculous! In order to watch certain things you have no choice but to stream! It is really disgusting the amount of money they charge, I have basic plus which doesn’t include much and my bill is still over $200 a month.” – Tracey, Haverhill
“When Netflix announced that it was raising his prices, I decided that it was too much to pay for something that I feel like I hardly ever watch anymore. I feel as the selection quality has gone down, so I canceled it. I also don’t want to spend as much time watching TV. I’d rather be outside living my life.” – Patricia D., Cambridge
“Not enough good choices on any single streaming app. Often get one for a month or two then cancel, but they are making it tougher to do that plus, they are charging more and more for each app. Re: Netflix. Don’t have cable in the house so other than streaming over the airwaves is the only other option and the commercials, 10+ minutes out of every 30 make it an untenable option. Might be time to just shut off the TV’s.” – Stephen G., Wayland
“Probably not. As internet speeds get faster and more widespread to rural areas in conjunction with the ever increasing costs of cable bundled with useless channels few people watch I don’t see streaming viewer numbers going anywhere but up.” – Howard K., North Attleboro
“Yes, streaming is beginning to look like regular TV with commercials except that the content is of much higher quality than networks. I foresee streaming consolidating into bundles for purchase. Then, they will be the new cable. The traditional networks have behaved like Blockbuster did. They missed the boat.” – Jim C., Hartford, Connecticut
“The economics of streaming just make more sense. We are a household that was already buying Disney+ and Hulu (in addition to Netflix and Peacock, and Prime simply as a benefit of having Amazon Prime). When my cable bill kept ballooning and they charge $50+ in fees and equipment it made financial sense to dump Xfinity, get cheaper internet from Fios and bundle our Disney and Hulu with their Live TV service. Sure I don’t get NESN, but what exactly have the Red Sox done in the past several years to justify paying for that product? Switching to Hulu Live and Fios internet nets us over $100 savings a month over what we were paying for Streaming+Cable+Internet.” – Mike, Hingham
“Cord cutting used to be a beneficial cost savings measure using over-the-air antennas backed up by (at the time) inexpensive streaming services. Now, every studio wants their piece of the pie and they continue to offer up the hundreds of useless, wasteful channels we were trying to escape paying for on cable in the first place. Instead of exorbitant fees being paid to cable, now it’s exorbitant fees being paid right to the source.” – Greg G., Cranston, Rhode Island
“After cutting the cord over a decade ago I now long for the days of cable. What started as a way to save a few extra bucks has now become an expensive endeavor. It used to be a good ‘high-def’ over-the-air antenna, cable internet, HBO Go and Netflix would get you by on the cheap. Now to keep up with peak television you need 5 or 6 additional services to the above. All we accomplished in the past decade is creating a la carte cable at a higher price point.” – Jason, Lexington
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