20 Streaming Services That Aren't Netflix, Hulu, Or Amazon Prime
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6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Get Tickets For Gru's Most Despicable Movie Yet! Get Tickets PRESENTED BY TRENDING 16,400 VIEWS TVANDMOVIES 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime From art-house movies to British TV to anime and Bollywood, here is a sampling of the expansive world of (legal) online streaming. Posted on June 29, 2017, at 7:37 a.m. Adam B. Vary BuzzFeed News Reporter Adam B. Vary / BuzzFeed News; Joe Belanger / Alamy Stock Photo Share Share https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 1/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime It's been 10 years since Netflix first opened our eyes to the world of streaming movies and TV shows directly to our computers. A year later, Hulu and Amazon Prime Video officially launched similar services. Soon enough, all three also began streaming original content, which has gone on to win Emmys and Oscars and lead crucial national conversations about teen suicide, gender identity, women's rights, and abandoning best friends in the Upside Down. In less than a decade, Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon Prime Video have become so central to popular culture that, for many, they've replaced broadcast TV networks as the new Big Three — the core trinity of content delivery for millions of cord-cutting viewers. The world of digital streaming, however, expands far beyond the scope of these three services. Just about every broadcast and cable network also has its own streaming service (never to be outdone, HBO has two), and the major sports leagues all have their own as well. This year, CBS even began making premium original shows — The Good Wife spinoff The Good Fight, and the first Star Trek TV show in 12 years, Star Trek: Discovery — for its subscription-only service, CBS All Access. And some outlets, like YouTube, PlayStation Vue, Sling, and Hulu, have started offering streams of live TV and à la carte access to popular basic cable networks. All of that would provide enough #content — delivered through a sprawling technological ecosystem of tablet apps, set-top boxes, smart TVs, and USB sticks — for several lifetimes. And yet, specialized streaming services have been proliferating like cinematic universes and NBC’s Chicago shows. Tucked into just about every corner of the mainstream internet, these services offer platforms for all kinds of feature films, TV shows, and short-form series one could imagine — and many more one could not. There are services for military veterans, workout routines, and science and nature documentaries, to name a few. There have never been more options for streaming — and making sense of where to do that has never been more overwhelming. Universal search sites like Yidio and GoWatchIt don't cover many of these services. Confusing things further, Amazon has started offering several of these streaming services separately from their respective discrete apps via its Prime Video Channels option. To help make sense of it all, here is a small sampling of services available within the current streaming landscape, along with how much they cost and what devices you need to watch them. (Note: While some of these services are available outside of the US, all viewing and pricing options listed here are for their US versions only.) FOR FREE …so long as you're cool with ads running during your movie or TV show. 1. Crackle https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 2/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Crackle What is it? While just about every TV network has its own streaming portal, very few movie studios have followed suit, preferring instead to use established ones like Netflix, and VOD options like Vudu. Sony is the rare exception, launching this free, ad-supported movies and TV service in 2007 that leans heavily on male-skewing content. What’s on it? Of the roughly 200 viewing options, there's a rotating selection of TV shows, including all episodes of recent (i.e., canceled) shows like Last Resort and The Player, as well as selected seasons of classics like Seinfeld and All in the Family. There is also a limited range of classic and contemporary movies from sci-fi (2011’s Attack the Block) to comedy (1980’s Stir Crazy) to thrillers (1993’s In the Line of Fire) and prestige dramas (2004’s Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind). Crackle also includes a growing assortment of original series, including Snatch with Rupert Grint, and StartUp with Adam Brody and Martin Freeman, and original films, like Joe Dirt 2: Beautiful Loser with David Spade and Christopher Walken. How much is it? Free with ads How can I watch it? Desktop, iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Apple TV, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, PS4, PS3, PS Vita, PlayStation TV, Xbox One, Xbox 360, smart TVs (Samsung, Sony, LG, Vizio), Sprint TV (for an added fee), T-Mobile TV (for an added fee) Where can I watch it? Including the US, Crackle is available in 21 countries. 2. Tubi TV https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 3/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Tubi TV What is it? Tubi TV boasts that it offers "thousands" of ad-supported movies and TV shows not available on subscription-based services like Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon. The depth of its options draws from partnerships with studios such as Paramount, MGM, Lionsgate, and the Weinstein Company, and TV networks like Starz, Sky, and ITV. https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 4/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime What’s on it? A crap-ton of options: Over 5,000 movies and 1,000 TV series rotate through the site every month, pulling from an astonishing library of more than 50,000 licensed movie titles and over 25,000 total TV episodes. The options really run the gamut, from prestige films like Gladiator, Eve's Bayou, and My Week With Marilyn to long-in-the-tooth favorites like Overboard and Teen Wolf. It even includes “wait, that was a movie?” options like the 2013 caper Life of Crime with Jennifer Aniston and the 2009 horror spoof Stan Helsing. (There's also a section named Not On Netflix.) Without the participation of most major US networks, the TV options are more rarefied, emphasizing British options like Spaced and the original versions of Queer as Folk and Shameless, as well as canceled American series like Running Wilde (with Will Arnett and Keri Russell). How much is it? Free with ads How can I watch it? Desktop, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Chromecast, Amazon Fire TV, Xbox One, Xbox 360, smart TVs (Samsung) Where can I watch it? US and Canada 3. Shout Factory TV https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 5/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Shout TV What is it? This is an offshoot of the DVD and Blu-ray distribution company of the same name. It offers ad-supported access to cult favorites, with a selection that strongly evokes the bygone experience of browsing through the aisles of an independent video rental store. What’s on it? There are roughly 350 movies and dozens of TV series, including multiple episodes of Mystery Science Theater 3000, Elvira's Movies Macabre, and the selected works of schlockmeister Roger Corman. Serious dramas like John Cassavetes' A Woman Under the Influence and the selected works of gonzo auteur Werner Herzog keep the service classy in an off-kilter way. How much is it? Free with ads, and $2.99 for an ad-free version via Amazon Channels How can I watch it? Desktop, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku, Amazon Fire, smart TVs (Samsung) Where can I watch it? The US and Canada, with a UK version launching soon via Amazon Channels. FOR FILM BUFFS A crowded and competitive subset that tout “curated” lists of often obscure titles. 4. Warner Archive https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 6/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Warner Archive What is it? A rare movie studio–based service that focuses on titles within Warner Bros.' vast library of classic (and maybe just old) feature films and TV series. What’s on it? A wealth of 600–700 feature film options dating from the 1920s through the 1990s, including standouts like the 1933 screwball comedy Bombshell, the 1967 thriller Wait Until Dark, and the 1971 Western McCabe and Mrs. Miller. Only serious cineastes, however, would recognize many of the titles here, like the 1958 Paul Newman Western The Left Handed Gun or the 1986 psychological thriller Dream Lover, starring Kristy McNichol. The TV options are more modest, with about two dozen series available in any given month, including the '70s sitcom Eight Is Enough and the '80s primetime soap Falcon Crest. How much is it? $9.99/month or $94.99/year How can I watch it? Desktop, iOS, Android, Apple TV, Roku Where can I watch it? US only 5. Fandor https://www.buzzfeed.com/adambvary/streaming-services-you-probably-didnt-know-existed?utm_term=.jkrX2pMX8#.iwLJamOJ9 7/15 6/29/2017 20 Streaming Services That Aren’t Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Fandor What is it? Conceived as an online hub for hardcore film lovers, Fandor recently announced plans to expand to original programming.