Will the 2017 NFL Season Put YouTube TV on the Map? For many households, there is one major obstacle standing in the way of cutting the cable: sports. While HD antennas can sometimes receive local sports broadcasts, they don’t work perfectly for everyone. Aside from antennas, there are streaming options available for some sporting events, but major sports leagues have been notoriously slow to get aboard the streaming revolution.

And, after all, why not? Most professional sports organizations have lucrative deals with major networks to broadcast games and sell billions of dollars worth of advertising time. Still, more and more sports leagues and organizations are beginning to sign agreements with streaming services as the industry begins to admit that streaming is the future of all television , including sports. While established streaming giants like Hulu and Netflix dominate the video-on- demand market, some relative newcomers are stepping up in the sports streaming world. YouTube TV, for one, has now become an affordable way to watch the NFL online without cable despite still being in its infancy. Will the upcoming NFL season put YouTube TV on the map? A YouTube TV subscription currently runs $35 a month and provides live streams of over 40 of the most popular networks including ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC, ESPN channels, CBS Sports Network, NBC’s Golf Channel, Fox Sports 1 and 2, some regional sports networks, as well as a wide range of non-sports channels. In addition, YouTube TV also includes access to the entire library of YouTube Red Original series and features a built-in DVR. Since some NFL events like Sunday Night Football are only available on NBC, for example, YouTube TV is an excellent solution for catching the best NFL action without the need for cable. However, there are limitations based on one’s location. Upon launch, YouTube TV was only available in five major markets: New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Chicago and Philadelphia. Since then, the service has added more markets across the U.S. and YouTube has plans to extend its coverage to even more major markets. Still, YouTube TV is facing push back from some regional and local broadcasters who do not want to see their viewers jump ship to YouTube’s new cable cutting service. For example, YouTube TV does not offer live local streams of ABC in Dallas due to outstanding agreements with local affiliates. In time, Google hopes to secure rights to stream local content in more markets. Aside from location, there’s the factor of YouTube TV’s cost. There are cheaper alternatives to stream NFL games without cable, from Sling TV ($20 a month) to PlayStation Vue, which recently raised its monthly fees to $40 a month and up and suffers from a lack of local content. Vue, however, offers the NFL Network in its Core and Elite packages, with an option to upgrade to the NFL RedZone service. The NFL Network is currently unavailable on YouTube TV. YouTube TV might not be the most comprehensive NFL package for die-hard fans, but will still offer enough network coverage to catch most NFL games and pre-game shows. For a fairly middle-of- the-pack monthly price, YouTube TV is stepping up as a great cable-cutting option for both NFL fans and general television audiences alike. With the 2017 NFL season looming on the horizon, time will tell if YouTube TV can step up as a leader in sports streaming. Vue, however, offers the NFL Network in its Core and Elite packages, with an option to upgrade to the NFL RedZone service. The NFL Network is currently unavailable on YouTube TV. YouTube TV might not be the most comprehensive NFL package for die-hard fans, but will still offer enough network coverage to catch most NFL games and pre-game shows. For a fairly middle-of- the-pack monthly price, YouTube TV is stepping up as a great cable-cutting option for both NFL fans and general television audiences alike. With the 2017 NFL season looming on the horizon, time will tell if YouTube TV can step up as a leader in sports streaming.







News Jump California Defends Its Net Neutrality Law; AT&T's Traffic Up 20% Despite Data Traffic Actually Being Down; + more news Are The Comcast-Charter X1 Talks Dead In The Water?; AT&T May Offer Phone Plans With Ads For Discounts; + more news Europe's Top Court: Net Neutrality Rules Bar Zero Rating; ViacomCBS To Rebrand CBS All Access As Paramount+; + more news Verizon To Buy Reseller TracFone For $7B; 5G Not The Competitive Threat To Cable Many Thought It Would Be; + more news MS.Wants Records From AT&T On $300M Project; Google Fiber Outages In Austin, Houston, Other Texan Cities; + more news States With The Biggest Decreases In Speed; AT&T Hopes You'll Forget Its Fight Against Accurate Maps; + more news AT&T's CEO Has A Familiar $olution To US Broadband Woes; EarthLink Files Suit Against Charter; + more news 5G Doesn't Live Up To Hype, AT&T's 5G Slower Than Its 4G; Cord-Cutting Now In 37% of Broadband Households; + more news FCC Cited False Broadband Data Despite Warnings; ZTE, Huawei Replacement Cost Is $1.87B, But Only $1B Allocated; + more Cogeco Rejects Altice USA's Atlantic Broadband Bid; AT&T Is Astroturfing The FCC In Support Of Trump Attack; + more news ---------------------- this week last week most discussed

Most recommended from 18 comments

KraziJoe

join:2006-09-08

Limington, ME 10 recommendations KraziJoe Member Huh? Did YouTube write this? Youtube TV only has network channels in a handful of markets and is not even available where I live, Maine. One could remove YouTube TV and replace it with Hulu Live Streaming or PS Vue or even Sling TV and have the same article...

scott2020

join:2008-07-20

MO 6 recommendations scott2020 Member Crazy All of these crazy restrictions, agreements, contracts, negotiations.... make it so complicated that most people are going to say forget it, I'll just stick with cable. That's of course what they want. You have to really put some work into being successful with cord cutting, or be willing to sacrifice. There are questionable methods to obtain sporting events of course, but if you want to keep it 100% legal it is going to be a challenge.

Anonad792

@chtrptr.net 6 recommendations Anonad792 Anon No such thing as HD antenna "While HD antennas can sometimes receive local sports broadcasts, "



I hate when people say "HD antenna" or "digital antenna" that is marketing talk. They are antennas. A TV antenna from the 70s will work. I can make an antenna out of coat hangers that will work. Nothing special about digital TV signals that needs a special antenna.

Kilroy

MVM

join:2002-11-21

Saint Paul, MN 4 recommendations Kilroy MVM What games do you get is the real question I moved to Minnesota from Michigan and can't watch the Lions play if they play at the same time, due to NFL rules. So, will YouTube still block me, or can I watch the Detroit games? Will a VPN be a work around? Until the NFL gets their head out of their fourth point of contact and allow fans to watch the live games they want instead of only being able to watch them after the final score is already known fans will keep looking else where. mist668

join:2011-02-15

Middleburg, PA 3 recommendations mist668 Member Maybe This can put them more on the map but sports cause price increases and are the devil as far as I'm concerned.