Pros And Cons Of Cord-Cutting To Guide Your Decision
These days, a good number of Americans are abandoning their cable services for streaming platforms. Internet streaming has become so popular that people seem to have more than enough options to choose from to get TV content even after kissing their cable or satellite providers goodbye. However, it is important to note the pros and cons of cord-cutting before taking the decision cut your cords. Many people do not seem to give much thought to this nowadays.
A considerable percentage of Americans have cut their cords and are quite happy with the entertainment they get from alternative sources. This does not necessarily mean that cord cutting is convenient for every American. It remains necessary for people to consider the pros and cons of cord-cutting before they decide to switch from cable or satellite to other forms of acquiring TV entertainment.
The Basics
Before deciding to cut the cord, it would be beneficial to do a quick scan of the services you will be subscribing to. It would be necessary to check and confirm that the service is beneficial to you. Some cable TV services require subscribers to make a commitment for one or two years. Some impose penalties for ending your contract prematurely. On the other hand, streaming services like Netflix do not have such penalties and subscribers are free to cancel their subscription anytime.
It is wise to figure out a suitable replacement before cutting your cord, and perhaps give it to go for a month. Observe the new system and verify that it meets your expectations. If you are satisfied with the results, you can go ahead and cut the cord. If the alternative doesn’t quite meet your expectations, keep searching until you find what you need. It is important to note, however, that some people may need to subscribe to two or more streaming services to get exactly what they need.
It is also essential for people to remember that they would rely on the Internet after cord-cutting. Therefore, they need to ensure that the quality of their connection is good enough to meet the requirement for their streaming service. Internet speeds of up to 50 Mbps must be needed, without which it may become a challenge to use streaming services.
Pros and Cons of Cord-Cutting
If cost is a major concern for you, you probably will not bother considering the pros and cons of cord-cutting as your objective is to reduce your expenditure on TV entertainment. In such cases, cord cutting is more of a privileged obligation and less of an option. The situation is different for households that are simply overwhelmed with the quality and quantity of services available. Such households will have to consider their decisions carefully without which they may spend exorbitantly for content that they do not quite need. The process of cutting the cords is simple, but the consequences could be disastrous if due consideration was not accorded the decision.
Cable and Satellite TV providers will not sit back and watch you go. They will make every effort to prevent you from leaving them for other alternatives. Sometimes, these service providers could propose very tempting offers. During such periods, it becomes absolutely necessary to think about your decision carefully. It will do you a lot of good to make proper calculations before you eventually decide whether or not to fall for the bait of the cable and satellite provider. And if you find it difficult making a decision on which way to go, maybe you will settle on something when you know more about the pros and cons of cord-cutting.
The Pros of Cord Cutting
There are several positive aspects people with the experience have attributed to cord cutting. Of course, whether these attributes are good enough to convince you to cut your cords depends entirely on your requirements. From being cost-effective to enabling you to customise your service, there are quite some interesting benefits you can enjoy when you decide to leave the cable and satellite service providers for other sources of TV entertainment. Want to know more about these great advantages? Let's look at them together.
It Saves You Money
Savings on service cost is one of the main advantages of cord cutting. Cable TV subscribers pay on average $120 per month and get close to $1500 per year. Added to this, about $900 to $1000 could be spent every year for high-speed internet connection. That’s about $2500 spent every year for both services. But with high-speed internet and just a fraction of what is typically spent on cable and satellite TV, a family could very well enjoy all the TV content they get from their cable subscription. Cord-cutting saves you money, every step of the way.
Ease Of Use
Another advantage cord cutters attribute to ditching the cable providers is the ease with which they operate when they go cord cutting. Alternatives to streaming like Netflix are easier to use than cable TV. Sometimes, Cable TV subscriptions offer channels that are never watched. By cutting the cord, they get to regroup their favorite channels for easy access.
Portability
Some people rate cord cutting very high because it gives them the possibility of watching their favorite channels on handheld devices such as smartphones and tablets. Also, people no longer have to worry about the rough weather conditions which are known to greatly interrupt cable and satellite signals. As long as such people still have access to the internet, they can continue to watch their preferred content.
The Cons Of Cord Cutting
Of course, like everything else, cord cutting also has some aspects that may not be quite pleasing to the user. Of course, the pros and cons of cord-cutting depend on the individual. What may be an advantage to an individual may be a disadvantage to another. And what some people may very much like about cord cutting may be a nightmare to sole other people. Dependability on internet connectivity is one of the setbacks of cutting cords. What are some others? Let's find out together.
Not Exactly Free-of-Charge
When people cut their cords, they will most likely turn to internet streaming for TV content. Unfortunately, these streaming services not available free of charge. Service providers like Netflix will charge around $10 to $20 every month with some even higher. And it may take subscribing to more than one service provider to get exactly what you want. Purchasing Apple TV or the Amazon Firestick will cost around $200. Therefore, a certain investment is obligatory.
Broadband Internet is Required
It is already established that streaming is the go-to option when people cut their cords. It is impossible to stream without the high-speed internet. For those who do not have this already, it is vital to consider the cost of acquiring high-speed internet connectivity. This is one disadvantage people need to take particular note of. Sometimes, the connection could be faulty and there is nothing you can do but wait for it to return to normal before you can enjoy your TV content again. This is particularly the case with those who watch live TV. Some streaming services give you the opportunity the record and save content which you can watch in the absence of internet connectivity.
Minimal Sports Content
For sports fans, getting all the content they love may be challenging. They will certainly find a number of apps, websites, and services that are helping sports fans stream their favorite matches online. These services may, however, pose challenges of their own. Sometimes, the packages are expensive and unavailable in many regions.
Watch Recently Released Content
One of the major setbacks of relying on the internet for TV content after cutting your cords is a delay in the availability of TV shows. Netflix is a perfect example of this problem because it never releases episodes of a show as it progresses. They prefer to release entire seasons of shows at a time. If you would rather follow TV serials as they evolve, you may have a problem doing so on the internet.
Final Thoughts
TV entertainment is an important component in the life of every American. If it is not news someone is interested in, it will be sports, drama, comedy or any other category of content. It is important for these contents to be made available for everyone and at a cost affordable for all. This is probably something the TV industry in America should consider.
In Canada, cable providers offer basic cable packages at giveaway prices; as low as $25 a month. These basic packages give customers the option to add channels which they prefer. Perhaps it will be helpful if consumers in the United States could benefit from such a service. Perhaps, many more people will consider the pros and cons of cord-cutting and stay with their subscription if basic cable packages were available at prices as low as what it takes to go cord cutting.