Posted on 05/03/2018 9:16:48 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
[The] Spectrum rep was promising a new kind of a la carte streaming service, officially called Spectrum TV Choice. For $25 per month, he said, I could get all the major broadcast networks, plus my choice of 10 other cable channels, all streaming on mobile devices, web browsers, Roku players, and Xbox consoles.
While I personally have little interest in becoming a Spectrum TV customer—I’m happy with my combination of Netflix, Amazon Prime, HBO, and an antenna—this was a rare opportunity to try something truly new from the cable guys.
Spectrum’s a la carte TV service is a good value, with apps that should feel familiar to cable subscribers.
Spectrum Offer
Spectrum TV Choice includes the following channels:
(Excerpt) Read more at techhive.com ...
Has anybody tried this? What is your experience? I would not buy this except for the fact that Mrs. POF wants cable sports channels.
Price is $25 per month for the TV channel lineup below (24 tv channels + 50 music channels). I get to choose 10 additional channels from the 57 listed at bottom. 100 Mbps Internet is $45 for the first year, going up to $65 for Year 2 and beyond. So, for $70/month I get the semi-a la carte TV, 100 Mbps Internet, no cable box, waived activation fee, included cable modem (no charge) and I provide my own WiFi WAP/Router. For an additional $15/month, I can add a bundle of HBO, Showtime, The Movie Channel, Starz, and Starz Encore.
Thoughts?
Here is the channel line up:
| Included Channels | Genre |
|---|---|
| KAYU - FOX | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KCDT - PBS | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KCDT - PBS Encore | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KCDT - PBS Learn | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KHQ - NBC | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KREM - CBS | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KSPS - PBS | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KXLY - ABC | Broadcast/Local Access |
| C-SPAN | Education |
| C-SPAN2 | Education |
| C-SPAN3 | Education |
| CCTV-4 | Foreign Language |
| EVINE | Lifestyle |
| Government Access | Broadcast/Local Access |
| HSN | Lifestyle |
| Jewelry TV | Lifestyle |
| KCDT - World | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KGPX - ION | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KHQ - SWX Right Now | Sports |
| KREM - TJN | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KSKN - The CW | Broadcast/Local Access |
| KXMN - MyTV | Broadcast/Local Access |
| Music Choice | Music |
| Music Choice - 70s | Music |
| Music Choice - 80s | Music |
| Music Choice - 90s | Music |
| Music Choice - Adult Alternative | Music |
| Music Choice - Alternative | Music |
| Music Choice - Blues | Music |
| Music Choice - Classic Country | Music |
| Music Choice - Classic Rock | Music |
| Music Choice - Classical Masterpieces | Music |
| Music Choice - Contemporary Christian | Music |
| Music Choice - Country Hits | Music |
| Music Choice - Dance/EDM | Music |
| Music Choice - Easy Listening | Music |
| Music Choice - Gospel | Music |
| Music Choice - Hip-Hop Classics | Music |
| Music Choice - Hip-Hop and R&B | Music |
| Music Choice - Hit List | Music |
| Music Choice - Indie | Music |
| Music Choice - Jazz | Music |
| Music Choice - Kidz Only! | Music |
| Music Choice - Light Classical | Music |
| Music Choice - Max | Music |
| Music Choice - Metal | Music |
| Music Choice - Mexicana | Music |
| Music Choice - Musica Urbana | Music |
| Music Choice - Party Favorites | Music |
| Music Choice - Pop & Country | Music |
| Music Choice - Pop Hits | Music |
| Music Choice - Pop Latino | Music |
| Music Choice - R&B & Soul | Music |
| Music Choice - R&B Classics | Music |
| Music Choice - Rap | Music |
| Music Choice - Reggae | Music |
| Music Choice - Rock | Music |
| Music Choice - Rock Hits | Music |
| Music Choice - Romances | Music |
| Music Choice - Singers & Swing | Music |
| Music Choice - Smooth Jazz | Music |
| Music Choice - Soft Rock | Music |
| Music Choice - Solid Gold Oldies | Music |
| Music Choice - Sound of the Seasons | Music |
| Music Choice - Soundscapes | Music |
| Music Choice - Stage & Screen | Music |
| Music Choice - Teen Beats | Music |
| Music Choice - Throwback Jamz | Music |
| Music Choice - Today's Country | Music |
| Music Choice - Toddler Tunes | Music |
| Music Choice - Tropicales | Music |
| Music Choice - Y2K | Music |
| P.E.G. Access | Broadcast/Local Access |
| QVC | Lifestyle |
| Optional Channels (Choose 10) | Genre |
|---|---|
| A&E | Lifestyle |
| AMC | Entertainment |
| Animal Planet | Kids |
| BBC America | News |
| Bloomberg Television | News |
| Bravo | Lifestyle |
| CMT | Entertainment |
| CNBC | News |
| CNN | News |
| Cartoon Network | Kids |
| Comedy Central | Entertainment |
| Discovery Channel | Family |
| Disney Channel | Kids |
| Disney Junior | Kids |
| Disney XD | Kids |
| E! | Entertainment |
| ESPN | Sports |
| ESPN2 | Sports |
| FOX Business Network | News |
| FOX News Channel | News |
| FOX Sports 1 | Sports |
| FX | Entertainment |
| FX Movie Channel | Entertainment |
| FXX | Entertainment |
| Food Network | Lifestyle |
| Freeform | Kids |
| GSN | Entertainment |
| HGTV | Lifestyle |
| HISTORY | Family |
| HLN | News |
| Hallmark Channel | Entertainment |
| Hallmark Movies & Mysteries | Entertainment |
| Investigation Discovery | Lifestyle |
| LMN | Entertainment |
| Lifetime | Entertainment |
| MTV | Entertainment |
| MTV2 | Entertainment |
| NBC Sports Network | Sports |
| NFL Network | Sports |
| National Geographic | Lifestyle |
| Nickelodeon | Kids |
| OWN | Entertainment |
| Oxygen | Entertainment |
| Paramount Network | Entertainment |
| SYFY | Lifestyle |
| TBS | Entertainment |
| TCM | Entertainment |
| TLC | Family |
| TNT | Entertainment |
| TV Land | Family |
| The Weather Channel | News |
| Travel Channel | Lifestyle |
| USA Network | Entertainment |
| VH1 | Entertainment |
| WE tv | Lifestyle |
| msnbc | News |
| truTV | Entertainment |
It is not a la carte if you have to pay for the alphabets. Hold the line.
Where’s the Gorilla Channel?
LOL...damn!
It’s as close to a la carte as the cablecos are going to get. If I buy a handful of truly a la carte stations, I blow past $25 very quickly. Seems like a good deal — IF it works, is reliable, is easy to use, has good picture quality, etc. The guy who wrote the article liked it.
Its a step in the right direction at least. But I agree, its still not exactly a la carte yet.
WOW!
That’s a fair deal!
(Great to see CNN as a ‘choice’.)
ALA Carte makes business sense- and it’s fair to the consumer.
The absolute sweetest thing about this deal is I can NOT BUY CNN! YES!!!
Rush once explained why CNN doesn’t care about its abysmal number of viewers, something like 738,000 - because they aren’t paid by viewership numbers, they are paid, like all cable channels, for being included in bundles. This is close enough to ala carte to solve the CNN problem. Can you imagine if CNN only got 700,000+ subscribers if ala carte was everywhere.
I brought my laptop with me thinking I'd be able to access Spectrum, and watch some of the programs I'd scheduled to record so that I wouldn't have a pile of programs to watch when I got back home. Boy, was I in for a surprise. If you want to watch live TV on a computer or other device, they have a very limited list of available channels to choose from. I get a lot of different channels at home, but they all aren't available on Spectrum's website for live streaming away from home.
So, instead of using Spectrum's site, I've been going to the actual networks to view the most recent episodes so I can delete them from my recorded list on my account page. For example, tonight I watched the most recent episode of The Blacklist on NBC's website, SEAL Team on the CBS website, and The Americans on FX's website. Then I deleted them from my DVR recorded list on the Spectrum website. I did the same thing yesterday with the programs that had recorded on Tuesday. Unfortunately, not all the networks offer online streaming of their episodes, but hopefully I won't have a pile of programs to work through once I get back home.
If my son had Spectrum cable, I would have been able to access more of Spectrum's programming via their app on his Roku.
NO MSM, no CNN, no PubicBS, . Now, a small choice of the other stuff, might make it an option.
You’re stuck using Spectrum internet in order to get the deal though.
Interesting. Thanks for posting.
I currently have Spectrum streaming for $25 per month, no contract. My package is a standard set of channels but does not include ESPN or FNC. The service works well and can also be pulled up on my phone or tablet. Though a short distance from the local antennas, we have a hill in between that makes it hard to get a clear over the air signal. This was a low cost option to ensure reception and add some cable channels.
Their “free” modem is a Technicolor modem that needs to be rebooted daily to bring back its speed. It doesn’t hold its frequency lock well and the jitter values are terrible, due to the Intel Atom 6 chipset issues it has.
I started my career selling cable TV in cities that were being built out in the early 1980s. These packages look similar to the ones I was selling back then.
And the prices are about the same.
Everything old is new again.
That’s bad news about their cable modem. Have you worked with them to fix it? That sounds like a ridiculous situation.
Following.
The fix is to buy your own.
I want a DOCSIS 3.1 modem and they have none approved, yet.
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