In this week's rundown of recent news items for cord-cutters: Sling TV has upgraded its cloud DVR service, Netflix has more subscribers than cable TV, streaming originals top TV show ratings, Tubi TV has raised $20 million in new funding, and more.
A recent study by TiVo found that
77% of consumers want a la carte TV, and the price they will pay has gone down - $28.31 for the top 20 channels. That 14 percent less than two quarters ago.
Sling TV has upgraded their cloud DVR service with new channels, new devices, and new features. FOX channels, including FOX local networks, FOX Sports 1 (FS1), Nat Geo, and FX, can now be recorded. Xbox One joins Fire TVs and tablets, Android mobile devices and TVs, Apple TVs, and Roku streaming players and TVs in offering DVR capability on Sling. New features include the ability to protect recordings, grouping of shows from one series into a single folder, and the ability to record a show or series from its franchise screen.
Do you want to watch 4k Ultra HD Movies & TV Shows on Netflix? HD Report explains how: You'll need to upgrade your Netflix account to the $11.99/month plan, make sure your broadband speed is sufficient, set your TV's resolution to Ultra HD, have an Ultra HD-compatible smart TV or streaming device, and use an HDMI 2.0 cable made for 4k content.
Netflix has surpassed cable in total subscribers. Forbes, reporting on a Leichtman Research Group study, says that "US cable companies have 48.61 million subscribers while Netflix has just hit 50.85 million."
Exstreamist.com's Rob Toledo recently checked the Spring television reviews on Rotten Tomatoes and found that "four of the top five shows in the ratings during Spring 2017 television are streaming originals." This speaks to the high quality of original shows being produced by VOD services like Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon.
Hoping to get in on the original production action, Apple announced that Sony executives Jamie Erlicht and Zack Van Amburg are moving to Apple "in newly created positions overseeing all aspects of video programming." According to Ars Technica, "Erlicht and Van Amburg are credited with elevating Sony's television business by developing shows including Breaking Bad, Rescue Me, and The Blacklist."
The free ad-supported Internet TV network Tubi TV recently raised $20 million and grew subscribers nine times last year according to The Wrap's Matt Pressberg. Pressberg quotes Tubi TV CEO Farhad Massoudi as saying that "Where we’re different from the video on demand sites is we’re focused on average America that doesn’t want to pay more for TV."
