If you’re a Pac-12 fan and want to watch your favorite teams on TV, but don’t have cable or a satellite package, there are a few ways you can do it.
The first step is to look at live sports streaming services. These services let you watch popular channels such as ESPN and FS1 for a fraction of the cost of cable or satellite.
Skinny Bundles
Skinny bundles have become a popular option for consumers who don’t want to pay for traditional pay TV, or those who are looking for a cheaper alternative. These services typically come with a limited number of channels and are offered for about $35 or $40 per month.
These services were born out of a desire to provide viewers with a more convenient way to watch their favorite shows, as opposed to the bulky packages they were previously paying for. The skinny bundle concept has been around since the early 1990s, but it only came to fruition in recent years.
The nascent internet-based skinny bundle market has seen an explosion of competitors. From Dish Network’s Sling TV to AT&T’s DirecTV Now, Sony’s PlayStation Vue and Google’s YouTube TV, a variety of new OTT streaming skinny bundle options have debuted in the past year.
Despite their popularity and perceived universal value, a number of these services have been struggling to make money. And that has forced them to raise prices a few times in the last year.
AT&T’s (NYSE:T) DirecTV Now is the latest company to increase prices on its smallest skinny bundle, which now costs $50 per month. That’s up from $40 in January, and it’s a sign that the bundle isn’t bringing in the kind of profits that would make it worthwhile for the companies to keep offering them.
FuboTV
If you’re looking for a new way to watch your favorite college sports teams without cable, there are several options out there. One of the best is fuboTV, which offers a wide variety of live and on-demand sports programming for a low monthly fee. It also has an impressive list of channel options, including the Pac-12 Network.
The Pac-12 Network broadcasts games and other events from the Pac-12 Conference. It has a national channel as well as six regional channels, which show games from specific schools within the conference. These are Pac-12 Arizona, Pac-12 Bay Area, Pac-12 Los Angeles, Pac-12 Mountain, Pac-12 Oregon and Pac-12 Washington.
Each of these regional channels features games and other programs that spotlight the team’s athletics and academics. Additionally, the network airs non-sports programs like “Varsity Days” and “Timelines,” which look at important moments in the school’s history.
You can watch the Pac-12 Network on a wide range of devices, from mobile to smart TVs and Roku. You can even stream it using your browser.
Sling TV is a popular option for fans of sports who want to cut the cord. It costs $40 per month and offers more than 31 channels, including ESPN, AMC and CNN. Its Orange and Blue packages split the major sports channels up, so it’s not ideal for someone who wants all of them.
It also lacks original content, but it’s still a good choice for college sports fans looking for an affordable option. The service also has a few extra features that make it stand out from the competition, such as its cloud DVR.
Sling TV
If you’re a Pac-12 Conference fan and don’t want to pay for cable TV, there are plenty of options for watching the channel live. FuboTV, Sling TV and Vidgo are just a few of the services that carry the Pac-12 Network. You can stream these services on Smart TVs, Google Chromecast with Google TV, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, PCs and smartphones.
Sling TV has 30 channels as part of its base plan, including A&E, BET, Bravo, Cartoon Network, CNN, Discovery, Disney Channel, E!, ESPN, FX, Food Network, Freeform, HGTV, History, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, MSNBC, TBS, TNT, Travel Channel, USA Network and more. There’s also an ad-supported DVR plan for $5/month that offers 50 hours of storage.
The DVR section of Sling TV lets you record shows, schedule recordings and watch them on demand. There’s also a Playback Controls tab on the main navigation, which lets you pause, rewind and fast-forward live TV.
Sling TV also offers DVR Plus ($5/month), which adds an extra 200 hours of DVR storage. It’s included in the Total TV package, and it’s a great deal if you plan to record a lot of television.
One of the most frustrating aspects of Sling TV is the fact that it only carries three regional sports networks (RSNs). You can’t watch your local team on these channels, so you’ll need to subscribe to another service or use your own OTA antenna to get the games you want.
Fortunately, Sling TV does offer some great features for fans of the Pac-12 Network. The new app, which launched in October 2016, features a better-looking live guide and more ways to customize your channels.
Vidgo
If you’re a fan of college football, the Pac-12 Network is the best place to watch games. You can get it on Sling TV, fuboTV, and Vidgo (sign up for a free trial).
The Pac-12 Network is a cable channel that focuses on games from the Pac-12 Conference. You can also watch a variety of original programs that focus on the universities and the athletes at them.
You can watch Pac-12 Network without cable if you sign up for fuboTV or Sling TV. These live streaming services work on Smart TVs, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast with Google TV, Apple TV, and PCs.
Another great option for watching Pac-12 Network is Vidgo, which offers a variety of popular channels and is available on Android and iOS devices. This service also has a unique social feature called Hangs, which allows users to chat with each other while they watch content.
While Vidgo has a few shortcomings, it does have a lot to offer compared to its rivals. Its base package includes 110 channels for $65 per month. Its cloud DVR functionality is smooth and it offers a wide range of streaming devices.
In addition to the basic package, Vidgo has a $5-per-month Stremium service that lets users watch on-demand content through separate apps. It also has a $8-per-month Channels DVR that allows users to record live networks and store them on their local hard drive.