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Video ads, even with no sound, feel like a violation of modern TV-viewing norms.
The same thing applies to the volume of ads.
Subscription streamers havent gone there yet, but the trend lines are worrisome.
(Theres a reason it was called premium TV.)
Offering ad-supported options allows services to keep prices (relatively) affordable.
Seems like a good recipe for encouraging folks to find other forms of entertainment or worse.
And the extra exposure these shows get from streaming brings in more revenue and helps producers book better guests.
But ratings arent the only thing streamers stubbornly refuse to be transparent about, or at least consumer-friendly toward.
Take, for example, the madness surrounding the comings and goings of older TV shows from streaming libraries.
And as far as I know, its not currently streaming anywhere else.
Similarly, all streamers should be better at advertising classic-TV additions to their services.
I was happy to see Hulu make a big deal out of the arrival ofL.A.
Lawnext month, but when the show landed on Prime Video in August, the Amazon-owned streamer stayed mum.
and more brands (Hallmark and Reelz on Peacock, AMC+ on Max).
Want to get to your personally curated list of shows and movies via the home page?
Of course, Max is hardly alone in turning its home page into a blurry mess of disparate content.
But sometimes it pushes it down a few rows (forreasons, I guess?
), and its also much worse than most streamers about letting you find your Continue Watching list.
Now, look not everyone uses streaming services the same way.
Some folks really prefer to see a Continue Watching row ASAP, making Netflixs interface massively annoying.
But theyre rarely well curated and are often hidden in the user interfaces.
I love both of those things, but theyre TV not HBO.
And yet I have become convinced that my years-old subscription to YouTube Premium is absolutely my smartest streaming investment.
Honestly, considering how much I watch YouTube, Id seriously consider spending the $14justto avoid ads.
