Oof, when did streaming movies, games, and music get so expensive?

Cable used to be the only game in town for wide entertainment. Sure, if you wanted to subscribe to a game like EverQuest or World of Warcraft, you could (and well, guess the rest of us were never seeing you again). But for variety, cable is what you had—and it wasn’t cheap. So when streaming services came along, they seemed like an answer to everyone’s budget prayers. These days there’s a digital subscription available for most interests, including gaming. And individually, they’re affordable. Or at least, they were. Xbox Game Pass just went up in cost. (Even if you use the conversion hack to get it cheaper.) So did PlayStation Plus. GeForce Now so far is exempt, but PC gamers haven’t been able to sit assured about much these days. Meanwhile, on the TV and movies side of things, Netflix is rumored to be raising prices yet again. Disney+ and Discovery+ have already announced hikes. And in an extremely annoying variation of shrinkflation, Amazon Prime Video and multiple services are adding adverts to their basic streaming plans (or have already done so). As for music, Spotify also got more expensive, sending notice to subscribers with little fanfare. Streaming was great when you were paying less than $25 per month for all the content you could want. But now subscribing to even three services ad-free runs almost $50 per month. Let’s say you want regular access to Game Pass, Netflix, and Disney Plus—that’s already $40 to start with, if you’re only a PC... Continue reading at 'PC World'

[ PC World | 2023-10-04 14:10:27 UTC ]

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Elf Heads to TV For the Holidays

It may be increasingly common for first-time authors who can’t place their book with a trade house to publish themselves. But it’s pretty rare for a self-published book to sell more than 1.5 million copies—or move to the small screen as an animated film to be aired on CBS in prime time on Black... Continue reading at Publishers Weekly

[ Publishers Weekly | 2011-11-04 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Stonewall from government on library closures

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Wed, 22/06/2011 - 16:03 Campaigners desperate to save their local libraries from closure have been left none the wiser about the circumstances in which culture minister Ed Vaizey would intervene, after the Department for Culture, Media and Sport... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-06-22 00:00:00 UTC ]
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Publishers begin "buddying" schemes

Written By: Benedicte Page Publication Date: Fri, 20/05/2011 - 08:34 Random House and Bloomsbury have begun "buddying" programmes to support their local libraries and library authorities. More than 20 Random House staff have volunteered to be part of a pilot scheme pioneered by deputy group... Continue reading at The Bookseller

[ The Bookseller | 2011-05-20 00:00:00 UTC ]
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