In this week's collection of recent cord-cutting news items from around the web: How to stream NCAA March Madness action, YouTube TV now has the MLB Network, the 2018 Winter Paralympics live stream schedule, AMC has no plans for an OTT streaming service, GOP attempts to block state net neutrality laws, Netflix is bringing previews to its mobile app, and more!
Sling TV is the most affordable way to watch NCAA action, proclaims Sling TV. "As the most affordable live streaming service to catch college basketball action this month, Sling TV offers the biggest conference tournaments and NCAA tournament games – plus the semi-finals and championship game. And, since you can easily log in... on Google Chrome browser, you can watch daytime games right from the office." Not a subscriber? Get a 7-day trial here and watch a week's work of madness for free.
But Sling isn't the only viewing option for Roku users. A recent Roku blog post explains how to stream March Madness live on your Roku devices. Options include TBS, CBS and CBS All Access, TNT, and truTV. Spoiler alert: CBS All Access requires a subscription, and all other options require a subscription to a participating traditional pay TV service or a live streaming TV service like DIRECTV NOW, Hulu with Live TV, or Sling TV, among others.
Hulu Live TV adds March Madness game start notifications, reports TechCrunch. "[Y]ou’ve always had the option to add your favorite sports teams to 'My Stuff,' which helps Hulu to surface the games you want to follow in your lineup, and automatically records them. Now, Hulu will send iOS and Android users a push notification when your selected teams' games are about to start, too."
Also from TechCrunch, YouTube TV has added the MLB Network to its streaming lineup, while also announcing an expanded promotional partnership with Major League Baseball. "YouTube TV will again serve as the 'presenting' sponsor of the World Series for two more years, and will debut a season-long sponsorship as well."
The 2018 Winter Paralympics TV and live stream schedule has been published by NBC. All events can be streamed on NBCOlympics.com and via the NBC Sports app.
"Discovery, HGTV and Food Network Prep for a Skinny TV Bundle" according to The Wall Street Journal. Completion of the acquisition of Scripps Networks Interactive Inc. by Discovery Communications Inc. means that "'Shark Week' and 'Chopped' could soon be available as part of a new skinny bundle of television channels in the U.S. for as little as $6 a month."
Despite the headlong rush to offer direct-to-consumer streaming packages by many others, "OTT [is] not on AMC's Radar" according to Broadcasting & Cable. "AMC Networks chief financial officer Sean Sullivan told an industry audience that the programmer currently has no plans to bypass traditional distributors with its own direct-to-consumer offering... and has struck subscription video-on-demand deals with streaming services like Netflix, Hulu and Amazon."
Several states have worked to set their own net neutrality laws after the FCC repealed the net neutrality rule. ArsTechnica tells us that the "GOP tries to block state net neutrality laws and allow paid prioritization" in response. "Republicans in Congress are continuing to push a net neutrality law that would preempt state net neutrality rules and let Internet service providers charge online services for prioritized access to Internet users. The Open Internet Preservation Act would prohibit ISPs from blocking or throttling lawful Internet content but clear the way for paid prioritization or 'fast lanes.'"
"Netflix is bringing previews for its shows and movies to its mobile app this April," Variety reports. "The new feature will allow Netflix subscribers to sample content with 30-second video previews that are being displayed as vertical video." This will be similar to the automatic previews that Netflix subscribers see on Netflix's TV interface.
MediaPlayNews reports that "FilmRise has launched several classic Carsey-Werner TV shows on its ad-supported Roku streaming channel. Shows include '3rd Rock From the Sun,' 'Cybill,' 'Grace Under Fire,' and 'Grounded for Life.' Although currently available only on Roku, "FilmRise will soon launch ad-supported channels on Amazon Fire TV, Xbox, Apple TV, and smart TVs such as Vizio, among other platforms, and is currently in development on iOS and Android for mobile viewing via worldwide apps."
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