Same here. I was going to switch to YouTube TV, but they raised their price like every other live streaming video service. I did the math and ultimately I'm better off sticking with Directv Now + HBO for $55/month once my $10/month discount expires in July.
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DirecTV Now - Avoid the Price Increase
- Thread starter Juicy Box
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Same here. I was going to switch to YouTube TV, but they raised their price like every other live streaming video service. I did the math and ultimately I'm better off sticking with Directv Now + HBO for $55/month once my $10/month discount expires in July.
I have seen a few people mention that they might try Philo, it starts at $16 a month and looks pretty promising as long as you don't care about the sports channels.
Same here. There isn't another streaming service that offers Hallmark (essential for the wife) at a better price, even after the hike.
Try Philo.
It is only $16 a month, and offers Hallmark Channel, Hallmark Drama Channel, and Hallmark Movie Mystery Channel.
I know this because it was the only channels my mother wanted when Inwas shopping around for a service to replace my parents DTN subscription after the price increase.
Last summer, I convinced my baby boomer parents to cut the cord on their FiOS TV service, which other than the initial learning curve, went pretty smoothly.
But after 43% sub increase in less than a year, it is becoming very similar to Comcast and FiOS.
So, I think we might end up trying Philo.
I had DirecTV Now, took advantage of the free Apple TV promotion they had going. When looking for ways to cut costs, this seemed like a no brainer as DirecTV Now offered pretty much the same amount of channels we had with the satellite version of DirecTV at about half the cost. Really the only channel we did not get was one of our locals, the other 3 came in just fine. And all in all it was ok, it was a bit of an adjustment, but one I could get used to due to the savings. However with them raising prices and messing around with some of my channels, I decided it was time for a change and we moved to YouTube TV. Since moving to YouTube TV I have now been getting lots of emails from DirecTV Now begging me to come back and even offering me my old channel package which is no longer offered and knocking $10 off a month for 6 months, which I have ignored because it reminds me of the wheeling and dealing I had to do before with traditional TV service, getting a certain price for a fixed amount of time and then remembering to call them back and renegotiate.
All in all, very happy with YouTube TV, we now get all of our local channels, and a few more we did not get before. Really the only thing we miss, which is not that big of a deal, is the History channel and Hallmark. And my wife discovered the Hallmark app for when she is ready to watch her shows on that. Hopefully YouTube TV picks up the History channel some day.
Read an article the other day that A&E is now in contract negotiation with DirecTV Now (Article), thought to myself just another reason I am glad I left. DirecTV Now was not perfect, when I had their service, it worked good for us and the amount of channels they offered was fantastic. Here lately tho, it seems like they have gone downhill, with raising their prices and removing channels.
All in all, very happy with YouTube TV, we now get all of our local channels, and a few more we did not get before. Really the only thing we miss, which is not that big of a deal, is the History channel and Hallmark. And my wife discovered the Hallmark app for when she is ready to watch her shows on that. Hopefully YouTube TV picks up the History channel some day.
Read an article the other day that A&E is now in contract negotiation with DirecTV Now (Article), thought to myself just another reason I am glad I left. DirecTV Now was not perfect, when I had their service, it worked good for us and the amount of channels they offered was fantastic. Here lately tho, it seems like they have gone downhill, with raising their prices and removing channels.
Well I have to admit there’s a lot of whining about the latest price increases.
I prefer using directvnow over my comcast feed.
The free streaming on ATT is a nice perk.
The other day I noticed a strange thing when requested a channel.
Thought it was a glitch.
Today I did the same thing.
Not a glitch. The channels were dropped.
After the NHL season is through, so is this service
I prefer using directvnow over my comcast feed.
The free streaming on ATT is a nice perk.
The other day I noticed a strange thing when requested a channel.
Thought it was a glitch.
Today I did the same thing.
Not a glitch. The channels were dropped.
After the NHL season is through, so is this service
I wouldn't consider people's complaints about the DirecTV Now price increases over the past year as whining.
Increasing the price by 43%, while removing channels to the new lowest tier plan is pretty unreasonable imo.
It is no wonder they are losing so many subscribers.
Thank you for pointing this out.
What I truly meant to say was; people were just whining.
I understand prices will inevitably increase which usually is accompanied with “whining”.
Increasing the price along with the additional of a few add-ons can ease the impact.
However in this case ATT not only stabbed the wallet but twisted the knife.
The “whining” wasn’t whining it was a legit and warranted complaint.
I would love to cut the cord and go with DirecTV Now. But I tried it for a week a few months ago on my Apple TV 4k and the Channel Guide kept saying "Woops! Looks like we've encountered an error"...Canceled my free trial that same day, it was a real turn off. 
The picture quality was also grainy and not very HD.
The picture quality was also grainy and not very HD.I would love to cut the cord and go with DirecTV Now. But I tried it for a week a few months ago on my Apple TV 4k and the Channel Guide kept saying "Woops! Looks like we've encountered an error"...Canceled my free trial that same day, it was a real turn off.
DTV Now has had it's fair share of bugs with their tvOS app especially. I've been with them for about eight months now, and other than the occasional bug, the service has worked out pretty well.
I forgot to update the thread on my experience.
A few months ago, I called to complain about the price increases.
The DTN customer service rep grandfathered my price for at least 3 months, but said that there is “a note on my account” to continue the discounted price indefinitely.
The last part sounded too good to be true, and I found out in June that it was, as my price was increasing starting July 15.
I called again to try to extend my grandfathered price, and was basically told it wasn’t going to happen. I requested that my account be canceled, which the Rep did, and I got a confirmation email stating that my account would be deactivated on July 15th.
After my service was turned off, I immediately received an email asking me to reactivate my account, with my old “live a little” plan, and with an extra discount, which would bring it to $35 a month. This lasts 3 months, then I guess the price will increase again.
I am not saying others should cancel their service hoping to get this deal, because you may not get the offer, and you may not be able to get you channel lineup again, but if you don’t care about the potential loss to the channel line up like me, you might be able to get a good deal.
A few months ago, I called to complain about the price increases.
The DTN customer service rep grandfathered my price for at least 3 months, but said that there is “a note on my account” to continue the discounted price indefinitely.
The last part sounded too good to be true, and I found out in June that it was, as my price was increasing starting July 15.
I called again to try to extend my grandfathered price, and was basically told it wasn’t going to happen. I requested that my account be canceled, which the Rep did, and I got a confirmation email stating that my account would be deactivated on July 15th.
After my service was turned off, I immediately received an email asking me to reactivate my account, with my old “live a little” plan, and with an extra discount, which would bring it to $35 a month. This lasts 3 months, then I guess the price will increase again.
I am not saying others should cancel their service hoping to get this deal, because you may not get the offer, and you may not be able to get you channel lineup again, but if you don’t care about the potential loss to the channel line up like me, you might be able to get a good deal.
It doesn't seem that AT&T knows what to do with DTVN, and even if it did, it would still probably screw things up like it does with everything it touches.
However, I suspect many of the original grandfathered subscribers are still hanging on, because the fact of the matter is that as long as those packages are still offered, they are still the best value in a market that has seen prices rise for everyone.
I'd have no regrets about kicking DTVN to the curb, but after doing some comparison shopping, I'd end up paying more, for less, even if I can accept some compromises. The real kicker, and not up for compromise is HBO, which would cost 2-4x what it costs on DTVN. AT&T needed to grab Time Warner, like every other dumb-pipe company that wants to compete in the future, and for now, that vertical relationship is still favorable for consumers.
Until AT&T cuts off the grandfathered plans, and forces everyone's hand, some will still remain onboard. But I have no doubt that it's a "when," not "if," that will occur.
However, I suspect many of the original grandfathered subscribers are still hanging on, because the fact of the matter is that as long as those packages are still offered, they are still the best value in a market that has seen prices rise for everyone.
I'd have no regrets about kicking DTVN to the curb, but after doing some comparison shopping, I'd end up paying more, for less, even if I can accept some compromises. The real kicker, and not up for compromise is HBO, which would cost 2-4x what it costs on DTVN. AT&T needed to grab Time Warner, like every other dumb-pipe company that wants to compete in the future, and for now, that vertical relationship is still favorable for consumers.
Until AT&T cuts off the grandfathered plans, and forces everyone's hand, some will still remain onboard. But I have no doubt that it's a "when," not "if," that will occur.
As per above, I'm one of the original (from day one) grandfathered Go Big subscribers. I compared most other streaming services, and this still offers the most choices for the lowest price. But the program quality of most of these channels is pretty low, in my opinion.
So if they terminate my grandfathered plan and ratchet up the prices, I'm fine to cancel this service with just free over-the-air programs via antenna.
So if they terminate my grandfathered plan and ratchet up the prices, I'm fine to cancel this service with just free over-the-air programs via antenna.
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I'm in the same position as you. My DTVN price went up to $55/month from $45 last month. After looking at Hulu w/ Live TV and YouTube TV, I'm most likely sticking with DTVN as I'd be paying more with the other two services with the channels that my wife and I watch. If HBO weren't included in the DTVN rate I'm paying, the decision would be much easier to ditch the service. I would ideally like to go with Hulu, but I'd be paying close to $70/month with HBO add-on and upgrading the DVR so we can FF through commercials (which is ludicrous that they charge $10/month for this).
The one thing that does irk me is the beef between AT&T and CBS which is causing CBS to be blacked out on DTVN. This isn't an issue now, but once CFB and NFL return it will become one. Although worst case scenario is that I re-subscribe to CBS All Access.
As @vertical smile noted, I don't think I'm comfortable cancelling my DTVN subscription to see if they send me an email to resubscribe with a promotional rate (because with my luck, I won't get the email).
Before I had DirectvNow, I was able to get the free HBO deal because I had unlimited data on AT&T. I think I made an account on DirectvNow without subscribing to it and then watched through HBOGo app. Then later I got DirectvNow to get a free AppleTV 4 and somehow the accounts got meshed together. I'm guessing if I got rid of DirectvNow I could still get HBO through HBOGo because of the AT&T deal?
At least they've reached an agreement, for the O&O markets. The Nexstar dispute I'm not sure of.
But such disputes are not unique to any particular service, and are an unfortunate part of the territory.
One thing I forgot to mention is the service itself is considerably better to use with one of the Osprey Boxes they've sent out as hardware betas.
Surprisingly, I've run into fewer glitches with it than with the ATV app, performance is good, and having a remote with discrete buttons makes an enormous difference in ease of use. Jumping from one part of the guide to another is easy with the number pad (and the guide can be sort by Alpha or Numeral), and there is a previous channel button as well. It's capable of loading apps for other services via the Play Store, but I've left that duty to the ATV.
You're in luck - they changed the name
https://arstechnica.com/information...brand-name-as-tv-subscribers-leave-in-droves/
Directv's long term goal for streaming is to get the price up to $70 for basic service and the $90 a month for premium range just like the satellite. The ONLY reason they offer streaming is to stop the bleeding from cord cutters canceling satellite.
I have also done research, and it looks like there isn't another streaming service that has the same channel line up for around the same price as DTN, even with their 43% price increase.
I may have mentioned it before, but I do not even use the DTV service, even though I am paying for it and it is in my name.
I signed up for it to assist my baby boomer parents in cord cutting.
They complained about their high Comcast/FiOS bills for years, $40 plus a month in equipment charges alone. I kept trying to get them to do an internet only service, but they still watch TV like people did 20+ years ago. They watch live TV, and schedule their viewing habits around the live schedule.
I finally convinced them last summer to try DirecTV Now when they had the ATV4K deal. It took a few weeks of getting used to the Siri remote and the DTN UI, but they seem to like it enough to stick with it.
Then, DTN had two price increases within 8 months.
I have been researching other streaming services, and none of them offer the same channel line up as the "Live a Little" plan, at least at a reasonable price.
I personally would like cancel DTN, not sign up my parents to switch to Netflix, Hulu, and Prime Video, and use the channel apps that let you watch for free with commercials, like CW, but they are stuck in their ways.
I've been a customer since almost day one, and I have the grandfathered Go Big plan for $50/month. Even factoring in the cost of Spectrum internet, it's still about $60 less than I would be paying for the same lineup. That said, if AT&T cuts any of the lineup, I may go to the app-based Spectrum plan.
Agree with all. If you were an original grandfathered subscriber, no other service still has the channel choices at the grandfathered prices. In addition, the free Apple TV 4 back then was the clincher. But I wouldn't sign up for their current Plus or Max plans with such limited channel selection at their current prices.
Who knows what AT&T plans to do with this service next. But I'm not optimistic.
I'd highly recommend that if AT&T offers another round of free beta testing boxes, to get your hands on one.
They recreate the old cable set-top box paradigm perfectly, and a real remote control with buttons is still better than Jony Ives' stick of gum, combined with the hiide-and-seek ethos of modern UIs.
The Osprey box version of the "app" (it runs on Android TV) actually also has UI elements that make using the service more flexible, something the ATV app lacks. Apple often goes on and on about caring about the UX, but in this case, it's not as good.
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I'm really on the fence, have pretty good pricing, but YouTube TV product is so much better.
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Not sure about your setup, but with mine I can use my regular TV remote to control my Apple TV? Do you have an older TV?
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Not sure about your setup, but with mine I can use my regular TV remote to control my Apple TV? Do you have an older TV?
It's possible, but limited in what it can learn and control.
I've played around with JP1 remotes, which are probably the ultimate in cheap custom remote configuration (aiming to achieve the same utility as high-end AV setups), so I'm familiar with pairing them for maximum benefit and preference.
The v2 Osprey box remote is an impressive remote just from a physical standpoint, with a full array of buttons, backlighting, good build/finish, IR/BT/RF, and backlit as well. Voice control, too.
It's a surprisingly nice piece of kit to be giving away to subscribers, and fully integrated with the service.
The ATV interface (and remote) is designed around far fewer discrete functions, and really in a different class.
All generations of the ATVs have a Remote Learning feature enabling you to use just about any IR remote with your Apple TV. I was even able to use the Remote Learning feature on my iRobot Roomba's remote.
Some TV remotes will not be ideal to use with the ATV due to:
The lack of buttons (many TV remotes on new TVs have a minimalist design)
or
If pressing those buttons interacts with the TV (For example, if pressing the d-pad on your TV's remote automatically brings up a menu or something else on the display, these buttons wouldn't be ideal to use with the ATV remote learning feature)
If the two issues above don't pertain to you, then the Remote Learning feature might be the easiest way to control your ATV with your TV remote.
If your TV supports it, you can also use HDMI-CEC to control the ATV with your TV's remote, but I have never done this and can't comment about it.
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