Starting a podcast, or know someone who is? Check out all of Rob’s tips here: https://youtube.com/live/cLfH2PBx3R4?feature=share
7 free streaming TV platforms
I heard a stat the other day I had to share: The average U.S. household spends $61 per month on streaming TV. Plus, you still need to pay for cable or another way to get the internet.
We’re in the midst of a streaming arms race, and prices are only going up.
- Last October, Apple, Amazon and Disney upped their streaming prices by $3 monthly.
- Netflix also nudged up its monthly basic plan rate by $2 last October.
- Just yesterday, Max raised the price of its cheapest streaming plan by $1 to $16.99 per month. Yeah, that’s with ads, people.
TL;DR: If you subscribe to only the basic plans for those services, your bills have gone up $12 per month in the past year. Wanna cut that down? I have seven streaming platforms that are completely f-r-e-e free.
Pluto TV: Pluto’s owned by Paramount, so you get over 250 free channels, including news, sports and lifestyle options. It’s got a solid selection of old TV shows, plus some movies. It’s also compatible with most streaming devices and platforms, like Apple TV, Android TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Roku and PlayStation TV.
Tubi: Tubi gives you over 50,000 movies and TV shows, thanks to content from big studios like MGM, Lionsgate and Paramount. You can watch it on your smartphone, laptop and pretty much any other streaming or gaming console.
YouTube: You know it, you love it, but I bet you didn’t know you can find thousands of TV show episodes and even feature films on it for free (with ads). Not to mention, creators like MrBeast have full-length, high-production shows that give regular TV a run for its money. And you get my shows for free, too.
🍿 Speaking of … Here’s a list of the 100 best free flicks available on YouTube. (“Back to the Future,” anyone?)
The Roku Channel: Get thousands of free movies and TV shows, along with over 350 live channels, on any Roku streaming device, compatible Samsung smart TVs or Amazon Fire TVs, or the Roku app. The content is constantly updated, and they have some surprisingly solid originals, too, like “Weird: The Al Yankovic Story” and “The Great American Baking Show.”
Crackle: If British TV is your jam, Crackle might be your best bet. It has a lot of BBC shows, like the sitcom “Peep Show” and comedy-drama series “Shameless,” plus a big library of movies and classic TV series, including “The Dick Van Dyke Show.” The downside? Long ads before and during programming. Bollocks …
Freevee: Freevee is Amazon’s free arm, so you’ll need an Amazon Prime account for this one. But once you’re in, it has thousands of free movies and TV episodes with fewer ads than network TV. It also has some excellent original content, like “Jury Duty,” which was nominated for an Emmy last year and is wet-your-pants funny.
Kanopy: This one’s my ringer. Kanopy lets you watch thousands of films completely ad-free using your public library card. They have a great selection of classic, critically acclaimed and foreign films. Stream ‘em on your phone, tablet or almost any other TV streaming device, including Apple TV, Roku and Chromecast.
YouTube trick: There might be a good reason you need a solid screenshot of a single frame of a YouTube video. Now, it’s easy to do. Pause the video, right-click on it and select Copy video frame. Sweet! Just paste it into a chat, image editor or document.
I miss the bouncing DVD logo: Remember when I told you how YouTube hijacks your TV screensaver with its own videos? Now Amazon’s doing it, too, but it’s way more annoying. When you let your Fire TV fall asleep, it’ll show you a 30-second ad before your screensaver pops up.
Which platform is winning the streaming wars, with the largest share of viewers? Is it … A.) Prime Video, B.) Netflix, C.) Hulu or D.) YouTube?
300M Spotify streams of Taylor Swift’s new album
“The Tortured Poets Department” set a new record high on its release day, along with these Spotify records: Most streams of a single artist in one day, most streams of a song in one day (“Fortnight”) and most gossip in one day. I made that one up, but I bet it’s true.
Blast from the past
The classic puzzle game Minesweeper is now on Netflix. This colorful, reimagined version features an ocean-like setting where you find underwater mines in locations around the world. No in-game ads, no in-app purchases and no extra cost to play.
Have a YouTube channel? Check out the awesome eraser tool. It uses AI to detect and remove copyrighted music without affecting dialogue or sound effects. It’s not perfect (the tool might struggle if the song is “hard” to remove), but it beats losing money because your video got flagged.
Brand-spankin' new: Kim's national radio show as a podcast
You can catch it in your favorite podcast app for free — or pay a few bucks to listen commercial free. Score!
Time to pay up: Netflix is phasing out its cheapest ad-free plan. If you’re on it, you’ll get a notification saying your last day to watch is July 13 unless you upgrade. Options: $6.99 ad-supported, $15.49 ad-free or $22.99 ad-free 4K premium.
DIY Projector
Sometimes, it’s just too hot to go outside and play. Why not try this DIY smartphone projector? You can enjoy time with the kids while staying cool.
No more password sharing on Disney+
If you mooch off someone’s streaming service, time is up. Disney+ is the next streaming service banning password sharing.
We are the No. 3 podcast!
OK, OK … No. 3 in Rwanda. But hey, that’s something, right?!
Reset your Roku password before it's too late
Roku was hacked over the weekend. To keep yourself protected, I suggest changing your password ASAP!
📺 Like cable … but different: Comcast’s new Xfinity StreamSaver bundle gets you Netflix, Apple TV+ and Peacock Premium for $15 a month. Before you get too excited, it’s the basic versions of Netflix and Peacock — in other words, lots of ads. But if you’re already on the basic plans, it’s a $10 monthly savings.
Too much power: Advertisers can now use Walmart’s shopping data for targeted ads on Disney+ and Hulu. Disney Advertising and Walmart Connect’s partnership gives marketers access to 145 million customers. They say they’ll match users’ data “without violating their privacy,” but they always say that.
Ad-ception: Next time you open Amazon Prime Video, brace yourself for ads when you hit pause — even when you’re already watching a commercial. These “shoppable carousels” show up as a sliding lineup of products. You can turn them off … for an extra $3 per month. Jeff Bezos needs the money.
So you want to make money with YouTube. What’s the best time to post your video masterpiece to give it the best chance of going viral? Is it … 7 a.m., 9 a.m., 1 p.m. or 7 p.m.?
9.3M new subscribers for Netflix
In the first quarter of 2024, bringing the platform’s global total to 270 million. Netflix execs are stopping sharing subscriber numbers. My guess: They’re reaching saturation, and soon, there’ll be nowhere for these numbers to go but down.
Lots of us spend a ton of money on streaming (but not everyone). What percentage of American TV viewers watch ad-supported streaming TV every week? Is it … A.) 10%, B.) 25%, C.) 50% or D.) 75%?