[Stevie]

I've found that cutting the cord isn't possible unless you're willing to give up some show availability.

For me, that's Baseball. Sure, MLB has an excellent streaming service, but I'm well in the O's blackout area. And our illustrious owner, Angelos, has such a nice cable deal that you only get O's games with premium cable/satellite subscriptions. I love watching the O's, but it's not worth upwards of $150 a month. (Especially during seasons like this one.)

The wife and I don't watch much TV, so we can make do with just Amazon and Netflix. I also subscribe to Motortrend On Demand, I get most of my motorsports through that. Still need to figure out how to stream NHRA races, I know they stream them but I just haven't figured out how to get it to the tv yet.

As for news, I find it's much easier to filter it in online formats. Everyone puts out so much extra crap on top of the little bits of information that actually matter it takes insane amounts of time to actually watch the news and get anything useful from it.

The Portland Trailblazers did that this year, they switched from having 10-15 games a year on the local NBC affiliate to every single game on Comcast Sports NW, which requires a cable package AND the add on sports package to get.  I'm a fan, but I'm not that committed.  I can go watch games at the bar rather than pay $200 a month.  For football we can get by with mostly local channels only, Mariners games I don't mind listening to on the radio honestly. 

When I first moved into my Portland apartment I had an FM antenna and got internet so I could have computer and netflix.  We got a free trial of Comcast's Prism TV and we liked it enough to pay for but now after two years we're on the brink of cancelling.   We have a Roku TV, so we can get Netflix, Amazon prime and we're debating some other subscription services like Hulu or Sling.  Even if we have 3 or 4 things that are all 10-20$ a month it's still cheaper than Prism.  I have a few shows I follow on Netflix and Amazon, my wife hardly watches TV at all except NFL football.

The hitch of course is still paying 75$ a month for the high speed internet to run all the streaming stuff.  But, that's still better than the internet and cable which will go up to like 180$ a month when our current deal ends..

Wait, you need a premium cable package to watch a local sports team? The only local pro sports team in your market (yeah I know the Timbers are pro, but soccer isn’t close to the NBA)? That’s total and complete horse s***.

[Phil_M]

That's the case here. Same with the Nats, Angelos makes money off them as well. (Part of the deal cut to allow another team in the O's market.) He makes a killing weather the O's sink or swim...so they mostly just sink.

If Machado ends up in pinstripes I'm burning my Orioles gear and becoming a member of the Red Sox Nation. (My dad's side of the family are all from MA. Next to the O's that's the only other baseball team my family cares about.)

[ethinson]

I've found that cutting the cord isn't possible unless you're willing to give up some show availability.

For me, that's Baseball. Sure, MLB has an excellent streaming service, but I'm well in the O's blackout area. And our illustrious owner, Angelos, has such a nice cable deal that you only get O's games with premium cable/satellite subscriptions. I love watching the O's, but it's not worth upwards of $150 a month. (Especially during seasons like this one.)

The wife and I don't watch much TV, so we can make do with just Amazon and Netflix. I also subscribe to Motortrend On Demand, I get most of my motorsports through that. Still need to figure out how to stream NHRA races, I know they stream them but I just haven't figured out how to get it to the tv yet.

As for news, I find it's much easier to filter it in online formats. Everyone puts out so much extra crap on top of the little bits of information that actually matter it takes insane amounts of time to actually watch the news and get anything useful from it.

The Portland Trailblazers did that this year, they switched from having 10-15 games a year on the local NBC affiliate to every single game on Comcast Sports NW, which requires a cable package AND the add on sports package to get.  I'm a fan, but I'm not that committed.  I can go watch games at the bar rather than pay $200 a month.  For football we can get by with mostly local channels only, Mariners games I don't mind listening to on the radio honestly. 

When I first moved into my Portland apartment I had an FM antenna and got internet so I could have computer and netflix.  We got a free trial of Comcast's Prism TV and we liked it enough to pay for but now after two years we're on the brink of cancelling.   We have a Roku TV, so we can get Netflix, Amazon prime and we're debating some other subscription services like Hulu or Sling.  Even if we have 3 or 4 things that are all 10-20$ a month it's still cheaper than Prism.  I have a few shows I follow on Netflix and Amazon, my wife hardly watches TV at all except NFL football.

The hitch of course is still paying 75$ a month for the high speed internet to run all the streaming stuff.  But, that's still better than the internet and cable which will go up to like 180$ a month when our current deal ends..

Wait, you need a premium cable package to watch a local sports team? The only local pro sports team in your market (yeah I know the Timbers are pro, but soccer isn’t close to the NBA)? That’s total and complete horse s***.

I feel like that's the way a lot of markets are going.  Baseball plays half the year in empty stadiums because of all the TV money. More and more it seems like the NFL doesn't care about butts in the seats (and not just with their public statements).  I don't know if anyone does anymore, but that's why they used to do the local blackouts of games to get people into the stadium.  Rather than try to force everyone to the arena, they make more money off the TV deals...

Timbers games are sometimes on local KGW, sometimes on Root sports, so I can usually watch them.  I'm half tempted to say the Timbers draw a bigger crowd than the Blazers, but that's probably not true.  Both fan bases are super passionate. 

There's so many bars in town that show Timbers matches and Blazer games I can't imagine paying for the premium package.  Plus, tickets usually aren't too hard to come by.