Six tricks to save on streaming platforms

BarcelonaThe sharp rise in prices in recent months, added to the great offer of streaming, makes television entertainment increasingly an economic expense that many users cannot and do not want to assume. Even if you are a fan of series, having all the platforms on the market contracted is not viable if current salaries and the cost of living are taken into account. What strategies can be followed to continue audiovisual consumption without multiplying costs? We review six possible tricks to save.

Explore joint packages

The overpopulation of platforms is a reality that the sector itself is trying to correct. One of the options to try to attract subscribers is the union of several services, which offer a better offer than an individualized subscription. They are some packages, bundles in English, which allow the user access to the catalog of two or more platforms. A few days ago, Disney and Warner Bros. announced that starting this summer, viewers in the United States will be able to subscribe to Max, Disney+ and Hulu at the same time by paying a single monthly fee, and shortly after Comcast announced that it will make a bundle which will add Netflix, AppleTV+ and Peacock.

In Spain, the closest thing to a union of platforms is what Movistar+ offers, which for a month has offered access to HBO Max and SkyShowtime series if you have the Total Fiction package, which normally costs 16 euros monthly (the introductory offer was 10 euros). On the other hand, if SkyShowtime and HBO Max are contracted individually, the monthly cost is 17.98 euros (7.99 euros per month for the first and 9.99 euros per month for the second). This package also includes access to seven series and movie channels.

Movistar+, which also offers series produced by itself and others, has offers with other television services. streaming. The Total Fiction with Netflix Standard package, which costs 26 euros, allows you to use Netflix on up to two devices, access to HBO Max and SkyShowtime content, and seven series and movie channels. Netflix's standard ad-free rate is 12.99 euros. If this cost is added to that of HBO Max and SkyShowtime, it amounts to 30.98 euros. Therefore, if you opt for the Movistar+ package you save four euros per month, which is not a fortune, but amounts to 48 euros per year.

Have rotating subscriptions

It is one of the practices that platforms like least, which prefer loyal subscribers, but it is one of the most widespread in recent times. Instead of having all the subscriptions contracted, the user registers and unsubscribes from time to time depending on what they are interested in consuming. The normal thing is to have a fixed service and several satellites, which vary depending on the content offer of the moment. For example, a user expects that a certain platform has released several proposals that interest him – that is why it is good to set alarms in apps like Just Watch –, he registers, consumes them all, and unsubscribes until the next time. that there are contents that you want to watch. To carry out this strategy it is essential to have contracted monthly and not annual rates.

According to a report this February by the consulting firm Antenna, specialized in subscription businesses, in the United States 10% of users of Internet services streaming Those who unsubscribe resubscribe the following month, while one in three return after six months. The company emphasizes that one of the platforms' priorities should be strategies to gain the trust of former subscribers.

Share subscriptions

Although you can do less and less, sharing your subscriptions with friends or family is a good way to save. Most platforms "do not recommend" this practice, but they have not implemented measures to prohibit it either. HBO Max or Filmin, for example, we still allow people who do not live in the same house to use the same subscription account. The same thing happens with Disney+, although they have already warned that this practice has its days numbered in their service. In the case of AppleTV+, the platform can be shared using the "Family" option, which creates a family group without the need for its members to live together (everyone must have an Apple ID, of course). Something similar can be done on Amazon with the Amazon Household option, which allows two caring adults on Amazon to share the benefits of Prime, which includes its audiovisual content. The service with which there is no sharing option is Netflix, which was the first to put effective restrictions in order to gain subscribers.

When putting this option into practice, it is necessary to be clear about the limitations of each platform in terms of the number of devices connected at the same time. For example, the standard HBO Max plan (which will become Max on May 21) gives the option to connect two devices simultaneously, while the Premio accepts up to four. The same goes for Disney+.

Annual rates

One of the strategies of some platforms to try to seduce new subscribers is to offer annual rates that represent savings compared to the monthly rate. Thus, until now, if you contracted HBO Max for one year it cost 69.99 euros, almost 50 euros less than if you paid the rate of 9.99 euros per month for 12 months. Alert because this rate will change starting April 21, when the platform will be renamed Max. Then the rate for the standard annual plan will be 99.90 euros (more per month it will be 118 euros)

On Disney+ there are two annual plans. The standard costs 89.99 euros, almost 18 euros less than if you opt for the monthly rate of 8.99 euros. The annual Premium plan is 119.90 euros (if you pay month by month per year it comes to 143.88 euros). SkyShowtime also has this policy: paying in advance for a year costs 62.99 euros, while month to month at the end of the year it amounts to 95.88 euros. Netflix is ​​one of the few platforms that does not give the option of paying for a year at once.

Advertising-supported options

Given the evidence that it is increasingly difficult to get new subscribers, most platforms have launched new rates at a cheaper price with the inclusion of advertising. If we don't mind swallowing several ads, they are the cheapest options. Disney+, Netflix and SkyShowtime are the three platforms that offer a lower rate in exchange for ads. In this context, Amazon Prime Video has given its subscribers a hard time: those who paid the normal rate (4.99 euros per month) have found that they now have ads, and if they don't want they have to pay more, 6, 98 euros per month.

Be attentive to promotions

From time to time, platforms offer some promotions, especially if they have just arrived. In its day, HBO Max allowed you to subscribe guaranteeing a 50% discount for life. In recent years Filmin has carried out a campaign during Black Friday, which allows access to the annual subscription at a price with a 25% reduction from the usual rate.