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Live sports is the last big battleground for cord cutters. For all the services that let people watch television content over the internet—from Netflix to HBO’s upcoming standalone streaming service—there’s not a totally reliable way to watch sports without a cable package.
But Dish Network is trying to change that. On Monday, at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Dish debuted its much-anticipated streaming service, Sling TV. For $20 a month, viewers get access to live programming as well as on-demand content from a small bundle of channels, including the holy grail for would-be cord cutters: ESPN.
“Live television, including ESPN, for $20 per month with no commitment or contract, is a game changer,” said Roger Lynch, CEO of Sling TV, in a statement. “The arrival of Sling TV lets consumers, who’ve embraced services like Netflix and Hulu, take more control of their video entertainment experience.”
Sling TV demonstrates the important position that cable and satellite companies can play in the movement to internet TV. Until now, these streaming services have primarily spun out of the networks, which offer viewers access to their content, and their content alone. CBS did it with its All Access service, and that’s HBO’s plan for its upcoming streaming service, too. That means the environment for internet TV is slowly, but surely, becoming extremely fragmented, with viewers forking over small sums of money to every content provider.
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But cable and satellite companies like Dish aren’t married to the content itself. They’re free to strike deals with whatever networks they choose and offer viewers bundles of channels that are not only more cost effective than the traditional cable package, but more manageable than paying for each channel a la carte. By offering viewers a middle ground, between paying hundreds of dollars to one cable company and cutting the cord altogether, Dish stands to retain some of the customers that the rest of the industry is rapidly losing.
“Sling TV provides a viable alternative for live television to the millennial audience,” said Joseph P. Clayton, Dish president and CEO, in a statement. “Sling TV fills a void for an underserved audience.”
In addition to ESPN and ESPN2, Sling TV subscribers will also get access to channels like TBS, The Food Network, The Disney Channel, CNN, and more. For an extra $5 a month, subscribers can tack on additional channels as well. The Kids Pack, for instance, includes access to Disney Junior and Baby TV. A Sports Pack is coming soon, and Dish says the add-on options will likely grow over time. Sling TV is also device agnostic and will be available on a range of set-top boxes and smart TVs, as well as on mobile phones and the web.
With this launch, Dish is validating the field of internet TV in a way that few other incumbents in the television industry have been willing to do. More often, they’ve used regulation to fend off newcomers, like Aereo, a recently shuttered service that gave viewers access to network television online. By embracing the future of internet TV, Dish just may be ensuring its own.
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