(photo: Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY — The brilliance of streaming services such as Netflix and HULU is that you can stream all if not most of the content that you love in one or two places, ad free, for a reasonable monthly payment.
That worked for a while, in part, because both Netflix and various media outlets benefited from each other. They breathed new life into old content and introduced new content as well.
Then Netflix grew really fast.
Now, companies like Amazon, YouTube, HBO, Disney, CBS, NBC, and Apple (to name but a few) have already created or are creating their own streaming service. And some of them are taking their proprietary content away from Netflix and HULU.
As a result, some of your favorite content will no longer be in one or two places. It will more likely be in 8 or more different places. That reasonable monthly payment will not be so reasonable anymore with multiple services ranging from $5-$75 per month. To add insult to injury, some of these services at their base price make you watch ads even though you are already paying.
It appears that Disney understands that this could create some division among viewers. They have created a Disney+, ESPN, and HULU bundle for $12.99 per month. This might help bring more content under one roof, but what if you want to stream “The Office” or the new “Star Trek: Picard” series? You will have to pay for two more streaming services, since “Star Trek: Picard” is only on CBS All Access and “The Office” will be exclusive to NBCUniversal in 2020.
It’s hard to say what this means for the future of streaming but when all of our favorite content is spread out among so many different streaming services. For many people, having multiple streaming services may not be an affordable option.