To Subscribe Or Not To Subscribe, That Is The Question: Paid Streaming Services

[Kel Varnsen]

2 hours ago, possibilities said:

I think on Netflix you can search a person and it will show you all the stuff they've been in that's in the Netflix catalog. I haven't tried it recently, but I've done it in the past.

Yea you can enter an actor or director in the search bar and it will show you what they have. I just wish you could filter your results. Like show me movies with a certain actor that came out in the last 5 years.

 

6 hours ago, Shrek said:

Try IMBD.com for everything like that, it also tells you where what you're looking for is available to watch. I use their ap a lot if I see someone on the screen & can't remember where I've seen them before, or to settle a dispute with Fiona on some technicality in a movie/show.

Yea you could probably do something like that I wonder if it would work with Netflix Canada. Of course one thing it wouldn't have access to is my Netflix ratings. Like sometimes I just want to watch a dumb action movie I have seen and like. If it could show me all of those then I wouldn't end up just watching Terminator 2 or The Dark Knight.

[caitmcg]

This is just for the US, as far as I know, but I use JustWatch (app or website) to learn where things I'm interested are available. If you look up a movie or series, it will tell you on which platforms it's currently streaming, which seasons are available where for TV series, and so on. If something's available for rental vs. subscription, it will tell you how much it costs on each service. You can limit which services it shows results for, but you don't have to. 

[Broderbits]

1 hour ago, caitmcg said:

This is just for the US, as far as I know, but I use JustWatch (app or website) to learn where things I'm interested are available.

This is very helpful! Thanks for the link.

[shapeshifter]

My cheapo Hulu subscription is expiring on Nov. 20. 

Right now there's: Get First Month Free, then $9.99/ month

Hoping there will be another Black Friday deal. 

[Bastet]

9 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Hoping there will be another Black Friday deal. 

I'm sure there will, but it will be for new subscribers only -- those of us who signed up for a year at .99/mo aren't going to be eligible to turn around and do that again this year.

I'm sure there are ways to beat their system, with different emails, credit cards, etc.  But Hulu's ads are so goddamned annoying I wouldn't put in the effort.

[shapeshifter]

7 hours ago, Bastet said:

I'm sure there are ways to beat their system, with different emails, credit cards, etc

Yes. That’s what I do for Hulu.

[AheadofStraight]

I've been doing that for 4+ years but I'm finally out of credit cards. Originally they only checked for a different email but the past couple of times the card needed to be different too. 

[shapeshifter]

47 minutes ago, AheadofStraight said:

I've been doing that for 4+ years but I'm finally out of credit cards. Originally they only checked for a different email but the past couple of times the card needed to be different too. 

Yeah. Do you happen to know if I can use a Debit card? I only have 2 credit cards and have used both.

Both of my cards are set to expire in 2025, so they will get a new numbers, which I doubt they are tracking, so I could wait for that to happen. I seem to recall the banks renew them at least a month ahead of the date, probably to allow for people to get around to it. They don't want to lose their customers either.

I've stopped watching some of the shows I've been watching the next day on Hulu anyway. Once I relegate a show to next-day viewing, it's only a matter of time before I put it off indefinitely.
And the 4th season of Only Murders In the Building is over.
And Jimmy Kimmel's monologues are on free YouTube.

[peachmangosteen]

22 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

Yeah. Do you happen to know if I can use a Debit card?

You can.

[Moose135]

1 hour ago, AheadofStraight said:

I've been doing that for 4+ years but I'm finally out of credit cards.

I wonder if you can get one of those 'one-time' numbers from your credit card company to use. It wouldn't tie back to your original account number, it might work, especially if you pay for the full year up front.

Edited November 7 by Moose135

[AheadofStraight]

1 hour ago, shapeshifter said:

 

Both of my cards are set to expire in 2025, so they will get a new numbers, which I doubt they are tracking, so I could wait for that to happen. I seem to recall the banks renew them at least a month ahead of the date, probably to allow for people to get around to it. They don't want to lose their customers either.

 

When mine expire, I keep the same numbers just with a new expiration date. 

33 minutes ago, Moose135 said:

I wonder if you can get one of those 'one-time' numbers from your credit card company to use. It wouldn't tie back to your original account number, it might work, especially if you pay for the full year up front.

Good thinking. Also wondering if I can use paypal and set up another account with a different email. Hmmmm.

Edited November 7 by AheadofStraight
typo fix

[Shrek]

2 hours ago, AheadofStraight said:

When mine expire, I keep the same numbers just with a new expiration date. 

 

I was thinking the same & that the only thing that changes is the expiry date & the number on the back.

[caitmcg]

3 hours ago, AheadofStraight said:

Also wondering if I can use paypal and set up another account with a different email. Hmmmm.

I use PayPal. I switch year to year between two Hulu accounts registered to different emails, and I always use PayPal for the subscription — same PayPal account, never any problem.

[opus]

I’ve thought about stuff like that, but is there any illegalities to it? Are there any potential repercussions?

[SoMuchTV]

13 minutes ago, opus said:

I’ve thought about stuff like that, but is there any illegalities to it? Are there any potential repercussions?

I can't speak to the legality, but to me the biggest downside would be not having my history (favorites, watched/unwatched status) carry over from one account to the other.  I think before I resorted to different emails/payment methods, I'd let the subscription lapse for a bit until a better deal come up that I qualify for.  I've been doing that with Peacock and Paramount+ for at least 2 or 3 cycles.  So far, as long as I don't have an active subscription, I'm considered "new or returning."  And my history is still out there.

But I think the original question was about Hulu - not sure if they work the same way because it's included with my phone plan.  (But I feel like I more than pay for it every time the 2-3 minute ads come on.)

[AheadofStraight]

That is definitely the biggest downside. I have a list of my Hulu shows and I re-add them when I start over. Definitely a pain but a tradeoff for the price. I get offers on my previous emails and none of them come close to the BF deal. Usually it is a bundle deal, though the most recent one was 2.99 for 6 months (no bundle). 

[SunnyBeBe]

Problem solved.  

Edited November 9 by SunnyBeBe

[Cloud9Shopper]

I need to get rid of a few of my subscriptions. Hulu and Disney+ costs me $18/month now with subscription plus tax, but I still use Hulu the most so I am probably going to just cancel the Disney+ portion and keep Hulu. I barely use Peacock and Prime Video either. Actually, Prime hasn’t been impressing me on the shopping end lately…a lot of stuff is not two day shipping really anymore and seems to have the “we’ll email you when we have a delivery date” tag. That’s not acceptable for a $130 annual subscription with fast shipping a part of the deal. I’m only holding on to it because I bought stuff on Prime Video and don’t want to lose access to it. 

[atomic]

28 minutes ago, Cloud9Shopper said:

I need to get rid of a few of my subscriptions. Hulu and Disney+ costs me $18/month now with subscription plus tax, but I still use Hulu the most so I am probably going to just cancel the Disney+ portion and keep Hulu. I barely use Peacock and Prime Video either. Actually, Prime hasn’t been impressing me on the shopping end lately…a lot of stuff is not two day shipping really anymore and seems to have the “we’ll email you when we have a delivery date” tag. That’s not acceptable for a $130 annual subscription with fast shipping a part of the deal. I’m only holding on to it because I bought stuff on Prime Video and don’t want to lose access to it. 

Any digital media you've purchased stays on your Amazon account. You won't lose access to it if you cancel Prime.

I personally don't feel like I get my money's worth from my Prime subscription either. If I did not share the account with a couple other family members I would probably get rid of it too.