According to the latest update, there are too many ways to pay for TV, and some are better than others.
Industry observers note that the pitch is that they’ll consolidate more of your subscriptions in one place, so you’ll have fewer streaming menus and billing systems to deal with. Roku, Amazon, and YouTube increasingly want you to sign up for streaming through their respective subscription marketplaces, rather than the streaming services’ own websites or mobile apps.
According to the latest update, they also create more confusion around which publisher’s in charge of your subscriptions. When I’m signing up for streaming, I almost always avoid these marketplaces and just subscribe directly through the streamers’ websites instead. Alluring as that may be, these third-party subscription marketplaces may cost you more and come with frustrating access restrictions.
As part of the ongoing story, some notable examples:. By “subscription marketplaces,” I’m referring to third-party services that sell access to multiple streaming catalogs in one place, including HBO Max, Paramount+, AMC+, and Starz.
According to the latest update, when you download an app, it may whisk you along to its own website to sign up, or it may use the in-app purchase mechanism that your phone or streaming device offers. Signing up through one of these services is not the same as downloading a streaming app on your phone or TV.
Industry observers note that (Like I said, there are too many ways to pay for TV.). By contrast, these marketplaces play by a different set of rules, using their own billing systems and offering their own ways to access the underlying content.
As part of the ongoing story, i’m always trying to avoid paying full price for streaming, and I keep a big list of active streaming deals on my website to help others do the same.
According to the latest update, want a free month of Apple TV? Paramount+ for $1 per month? The usual Black Friday sale pricing on Disney+ and Hulu? You won’t find those offers on streaming marketplaces. If you want the best deals, you usually have to get them directly through the streamers’ websites.
The report highlights that amazon and Roku’s marketplaces will sell you HBO Max, for instance, but not the discounted HBO Max bundle with Disney+ and Hulu. They have Fox One, but not the bundle with ESPN Unlimited that knocks $10 off the monthly price. Meanwhile, Amazon only offers an ad-free bundle of Peacock and Apple TV for $20 per month. Signing up directly through Peacock or Apple gives you an option for ad-supported Peacock that’s $5 per month cheaper. The marketplaces are also missing some of the bundle deals that the streaming services offer directly.
The report highlights that amazon in particular has been pushing multi-service bundles, like one that combines MGM+, Starz, and AMC+ Premium for $22 per month, $9 less than when sold separately. But these tend to involve less-widely used services that you might not want year-round. The marketplaces do have their own bundles and periodic sales.
The report highlights that when you subscribe to a streaming service through marketplaces like Roku Premium Subscriptions and YouTube Primetime Channels, you may have to use those services to access the content.
According to the latest update, amazon, for instance, lets you link your account with Apple TV or HBO Max, so you can use their respective apps after signing up through Prime Video Channels. Typically, though, you can’t use the streaming services’ own apps at all. There are some exceptions.
Industry observers note that access to HBO Max’s app via Prime Video Channels is the exception to the rule.
In a fresh development, while the Roku Channel app is available on other streaming services like Fire TV and Google TV, you can’t access your subscriptions on those devices. This is especially a problem with Roku Premium Subscriptions, which are only available through the Roku Channel app on the publisher’s streaming devices, or within a web browser.
The report highlights that perhaps you like the app’s interface better, or you want quick access to a specific catalog directly from your streaming device’s home screen. In those cases, you’re also better off just subscribing to the service directly. You may prefer to use a streaming service’s own app for other reasons.
Industry observers note that you can sign up for multiple services without re-entering payment details, and you can manage all those subscriptions through a single web page. (Relevant links for Roku, Amazon, and YouTube.). One of the supposed benefits of these streaming marketplaces is their ability to consolidate billing.
According to the latest update, if you sign up for HBO Max through Amazon, for instance, you have to cancel through Amazon. If you sign up for Fox One through Roku, you have to cancel through Roku. But when you sign up through Netflix directly, you must cancel through Netflix. What I’ve heard from readers, though, is that these marketplaces can lead to more confusion about who’s in charge of your subscriptions, especially because not every service supports the marketplaces to begin with.
In a fresh development, as a bonus, you can also pay for these subscriptions with limited-use cards to control your streaming budget and avoid unexpected price hikes. That’s harder to do when several subscriptions are tied to a single payment method. In my mind, it’s easier to keep track of subscriptions when they’re all tied to a streaming service’s own website.
In a fresh development, some examples of where that applies:. I’m not fully against using marketplaces like Roku Premium Subscriptions or Amazon Prime Video Channels, but they have to provide clear value beyond what you’d get by signing up for a service directly.
As part of the ongoing story, maybe for Amazon and Roku, which can more easily upsell you on additional subscriptions while taking a cut of what you’re paying. But unless they’re actually saving you money, they’re not really doing you any favors. By contrast, is consolidating multiple subscriptions into one ecosystem a tangible benefit?
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According to the latest update, his Cord Cutter Weekly newsletter has more than 30,000 subscribers, and his Advisorator tech advice newsletter is read by nearly 10,000 people each week. Jared has a master's degree in journalism from NYU and specializes in making complex tech topics easy to understand, from streaming and cord-cutting to neat apps and useful tech tricks. He is based in Cincinnati, OH. Jared has been a freelance technology journalist for more than 15 years and is a regular contributor to PCWorld, Fast Organization, and TechHive, where he's written a weekly cord-cutting column since 2014.