Michigan Radio & TV Buzzboard

That's right, Amazon is placing ad breaks in Prime Video. They'll charge an additional $2.99/month to remain ad-free. Isn't the $139/month Prime membership enough?

I recently cancelled Paramount Plus, Hulu, Disney Plus and ESPN Plus due to price hikes. And guess what, I haven't missed them a bit. It doesn't seem that all these separate services will be able to survive long term without joining forces at some point. But doing so without turning into a modern day bloated cable service.

Kanopy is free with a library card.

TC Talks wrote: ↑

Fri Sep 22, 2023 11:32 pm

Kanopy is free with a library card.

Wow, there's some great stuff on that platform, thanks!

There is (and always has been) SOME content available via PRIME that has commercials, but not their main fare. Are you saying they're all migrating to commercials unless you pay an additional fee?

I used to have the basic Comcast streaming box that came free with their Internet service but gave it back because we never watched it - because it had so many commercials! Even at FREE it wasn't worth it.

Kanopy is free with a library card only if your library pays Kanopy for the service. Many libraries don't subscribe and there is a growing list who have stopped the service because of the cost. When I first heard of it several months ago I thought hotdog this is great then found out Ann Arbor's library doesn't subscribe.

I think I have been an Amazon member since 2007. It was about 6 or 7 years before I actually watched any Prime content. Back then it was $79 a year and I thought the 2 day "free" delivery was a great thing.
Now at $139 a year I wonder if I am actually saving much by shopping from home and getting that "free" delivery. It would be rather complicated and time consuming to figure out.
I would have to check prices, check delivery costs from other places, factor in time, gas costs and wear and tear on my car to drive to a local brick and mortar.

A lot of times the shipping is still free on Amazon, you just forego the "get it in two days", even though there's a lot of PRIME that doesn't arrive in two day anymore.

km1125 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 23, 2023 9:22 am

There is (and always has been) SOME content available via PRIME that has commercials, but not their main fare. Are you saying they're all migrating to commercials unless you pay an additional fee?

I used to have the basic Comcast streaming box that came free with their Internet service but gave it back because we never watched it - because it had so many commercials! Even at FREE it wasn't worth it.

Streaming with ads:
TUBI - Longest running and probably the best in terms of content
FREE-VEE - The "Commercials" version of Amazon Prime.
Crackle - Sony's failed effort on streaming. Some great movies mixed in with a bunch of crap
Plex, VUDU and Roku - A blend of free content and pay per viewing

Lots of almost free stuff out there.
Pluto TV, Crunchyroll, YouTube TV, FilmRise, Popcornflix, Stirr, Philo

News
Sky News, France 24, CBS, News On, Newsy, ABC

craig11152 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 23, 2023 9:52 am

Kanopy is free with a library card only if your library pays Kanopy for the service. Many libraries don't subscribe and there is a growing list who have stopped the service because of the cost. When I first heard of it several months ago I thought hotdog this is great then found out Ann Arbor's library doesn't subscribe.

I just checked, my library participates.

What I dislike about Pluto TV is that the ads almost never come at the natural breaks in the program, but just appear at random. I've found Freevee to be quite user friendly, although the only stuff I watch there is Judy Justice and its spinoff Tribunal Justice (with the former Hot Bench judges). At least they place the ads where one would expect them to be and the breaks are relatively short.

ChrisWL1980 wrote: ↑

Sun Sep 24, 2023 12:34 am

What I dislike about Pluto TV is that the ads almost never come at the natural breaks in the program, but just appear at random. I've found Freevee to be quite user friendly, although the only stuff I watch there is Judy Justice and its spinoff Tribunal Justice (with the former Hot Bench judges). At least they place the ads where one would expect them to be and the breaks are relatively short.

I've found this problem one of the most maddening things of free streaming, commercial breaks coming often in mid-sentence! Some platforms at least flash a visual countdown to when a break occurs; albeit these platforms are usually the same ones Chris mentions as those whose breaks come "naturally".

This is correct, unfortunately.

km1125 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 23, 2023 9:22 am

There is (and always has been) SOME content available via PRIME that has commercials, but not their main fare. Are you saying they're all migrating to commercials unless you pay an additional fee?

All the free streaming outlets have ads. But it seems mindboggling that Amazon will charge to remain ad-free, even after that hefty $139/year membership.

TC Talks wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 23, 2023 12:34 pm

km1125 wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 23, 2023 9:22 am

There is (and always has been) SOME content available via PRIME that has commercials, but not their main fare. Are you saying they're all migrating to commercials unless you pay an additional fee?

I used to have the basic Comcast streaming box that came free with their Internet service but gave it back because we never watched it - because it had so many commercials! Even at FREE it wasn't worth it.

Streaming with ads:
TUBI - Longest running and probably the best in terms of content
FREE-VEE - The "Commercials" version of Amazon Prime.
Crackle - Sony's failed effort on streaming. Some great movies mixed in with a bunch of crap
Plex, VUDU and Roku - A blend of free content and pay per viewing

Lots of almost free stuff out there.
Pluto TV, Crunchyroll, YouTube TV, FilmRise, Popcornflix, Stirr, Philo

News
Sky News, France 24, CBS, News On, Newsy, ABC

I think you will find that the commercial inserted shows on Prime are actually freevee content that appears in Prime.