this post was submitted on 26 Sep 2023
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With the simultaneous rollout of restrictions on account sharing and price increases/addition of advertising, I’m cutting back severely on streaming services.

I allowed my streaming subscriptions to grow without thinking about it. Without trying to remember the constant merging and bundling, I was subscribed to probably a dozen services at one point. They ranged from Netflix and HBO and Hulu to Shudder and Showtime. I had Paramount, Criterion, Disney, Peacock, and others. I’d do the typical thing where I’d search for a movie, find it is exclusive to a platform, and grab the free trial and forget to cancel. I excused it if I found a movie even every couple of months on it. There were still nights where it’d take an hour to find something I wanted to watch. I was probably closing in on $200/month all told, and I don’t have sports subscriptions.

I’m interested in learning what other people are doing regarding the price hikes and service compromises. Are you cancelling? Are you taking advantage of bundles with your internet services? Are you rotating on some interval? Or are you not changing at all?

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I have tidal for music and I really want to drop it since their price hike. The only thing still blocking me is that I don't have a decent way to listen to music in my car without a subscription service. It sucks.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (2 children)

Thought about the car music problem today as well. I've tried a lot of the streaming services for music but they all suck and tie you into their shitty playlist/UI system. I imagined a better world where the cd's-mp3 compatibility continued to the point where you just have a thumb drive you can install new music with on your car stereo with it's dedicated storage built in. Now it's all about just slapping your phone cord in but even the phone seems to be less favorable as a media storage & player in favor of the cloud method.

I just want to have the songs and playlists from the past. If I still had all of my data and could still currently use old playlists I would be thrilled, just think of having decades worth of custom built musical experiences you could relive and expand on.

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

I stopped subscribing in my own country and started subbing in other countries to take advantage of regional pricing. Now for the cost of less than a month of Crunchyroll in my country, I'm getting a full year. For Netflix, what would normally cost a month in my country, I get about 3 months worth of service.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (2 children)

We'll be keeping Spotify, and Prime AFAIK hasn't announced anything crazy so that will stay as well. We'll most likely - if we get the "don't share accounts" screen - will subscribe to Disney+ as we enjoy the Star Wars content and regularly watch movies using this together (Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar are our go tos). Netflix may be on the chopping block but my wife enjoys it more than I do so we'll have to see.

We don't subscribe to anything else, partly because the content isn't appealing and partly because - as Canadians - they don't even have it up here anyway!

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

We cancelled Netflix recently. With the quality ever going down there was nothing new left to watch and just rewatching old series out of habit can be replaced with browsing random youtube videos or so. And those end up often having some curiosity or educational value.

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

Canceled my Netflix subscription a few months ago and I'm now using Kodi + Real Debrid. As of yet, I'm really happy with my decision.

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

I was going to cancel my Max and Peacock account but my niece was still using it. I pay for Nebula, YouTube, and Spotify but I use them enough to feel that it's worth it.

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

Cancelled my Netflix account when they announced the password sharing crackdown (even though I wasn't password sharing), and recently cancelled my Spotify family account when they increased the price.

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

I wish we had HBO+ or Max or whatever the fuck it is now in the UK.

The only legal way to get their stuff is via NowTV, which is fucking dreadful and think 1080p should be behind an extra paywall. Also, they carried on charging me after I cancelled, because apparently fuck me for thinking that a cancel option in an app they made would work.

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

I don't use them.

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

Pretty much just have Spotify+Hulu, YouTube premium (should cancel Spotify maybe but I like seeing what songs get removed from my playlists rather than them just disappearing), Amazon prime, and Disney+. Thinking about cancelling Disney+ soon but I want to see Loki s2 still.

[–] Michal 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I only have 1 (youtube) but on occasion i will subscribe to a service if there's a tv show i want to watch.

Currently watching pottery throw down on channel 4 but i can't purchase a subscription without a British card, so I'm watching with ads...

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

I support the services that have what I'm interested in. I want more It's Always Sunny, so I subscribed to Hulu to watch it. Bonus of finding a couple other shows that made it worth it. I want more Star Wars and Marvel content (and my parents use it), so I pay for D+ yearly, and the same for formerly HBO where I want DC content.

That doesn't mean I don't keep these shows for myself as well, because at any given time something will happen or a server will be down or the internet will have an issue and I want to watch what I've rightfully paid for.

However with the recent direction of HBO I may cancel when the year lapses. It's the struggle between Zaslav and Gunn there lol

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

Kodi with a Real Debrid subscription for me.

[–] JackbyDev 2 points 1 year ago

I'm trying to get better about canceling services we don't actively watch and only having two at a time. We already have Prime so I don't count it but we have Max and Hulu right now. We swapped Disney+ for Hulu when What We Do In The Shadows released and my wife is an Our Flag Means Death stan so we will probably permanently have Max (but the new season comes out soon anyways).

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

Eventually Netflix will kick me off the family account but there's no way I'm paying for that garbage. I might pay for Hulu as they have a much better selection for my tastes.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I get a lot of value out of Netflix, I watch tons of their shows every month.

I use Prime quite a bit also obviously for Amazon shopping and try to watch Prime Video a few times each month, and now they've expanded the music I'll try that too.

I will be canceling Disney and just pirate what I want to see, which isn't much, literally just one show.

E: I canceled Spotify ages ago and use their free version but for my favorite bands I downloaded their MP3 discographies. I buy their music on CD because it pays them better than streaming their songs thousands of times, plus I buy merch and go to the concerts so I'm OK with that.

E2: someone mentioned Patreon, I cancelled most of those as well because my gaming group broke up and all my patreons are for gaming 3D files. I have years worth of stuff to print and will never reach the end.

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

Can you download netflix movies on laptop? We all know the downloaded movies on Netflix will expire after a certain period. At this time, we need powerful netflix downloader to save netflix movies on laptop permanently.

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

We have YouTube family premium, mostly because pf the youtube ads bit also 3 ppl use music regularly.

We have netflix but it's bundled with the fiance's phone contract which is payed by her company.

I just installed Sponsorblock on the TV and phone in addition to PC because I hate advertisement.

If there is thia one movie which is not on netflix then I sail the high seas to get it, but that' like once a year or so.

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

Cancelled everything except YouTube. I could afford them but I just don't like the direction they are going, especially Netflix.

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

I've only ever subscribed to Bilibili. I think it's still fine so I'll keep my subscription for now.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

I'm usually subscribed to at most 2 at a time. Over a year or so I cycle through 4 or 5 of them.

I will not accept ads in my paid subscriptions.

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

I haven't been subscribed to a streaming service for about five years. Well, sometimes I pay for a month of Hidive. I usually just buy the show/film on disc and rip it. A decent amount of the shows I want to watch are old and not even on a streaming service.

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

I'm a Criterion early subscriber and am still on their early subscriber yearly pricing. Get gift certificates a few times a year for their physical disk web store.

I knew about the Disney+ price hike and plan to add ads last year.

I was able to get Hulu (with ads) for $1.99/month for 12 months (then $7.99 per month) then add on Disney+ for $2.99/month during last year's Blacks Friday discount. Which was cheaper than just Disney+ by itself with ads.

Not sure what I'll do once I hit my head mark with Hulu.

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