Alternative satellite TV providers

As for other sports, the antenna is actually better than the satellite for my local teams. So many games were blacked out with the satellite, and they did not have the rights to the channel that broadcasts all of my favorite baseball team’s games.

To see my favorite hockey team I had to upgrade to a special package, and if any of my teams happened to play on a channel I did get the game was blacked out.

So here was my solution: I subscribed to NFL Game Rewind on NFL.com. You get to see every NFL game on your computer, including the post-season, but you can’t watch the games until a designated period after they are over.

So, if you absolutely must be the first person at the watercooler talking about a game this might not be the package for you, but for my purposes it is perfect.

MLB.com has a similar product called MLB.tv I may try next season for baseball, and that one is actually available through the Roku. NFL Game Rewind and MLB.tv aren’t cheap, but you get a lot for your subscription.

And, a year subscription to each individually costs less than a month of what we were paying for our satellite service.

Don’t forget, there is also ESPN online where you can keep up with all the latest sports and watch clips from SportsCenter and other shows. Plus, just about every major network, and every sport, has a website packed with news, clips and scores.

If you’re a big sports fan it might make you nervous to be without cable or the satellite, but there are ways to cope if you have other good reasons to ditch the satellite.

Taking the Plunge

It’s easy to feel trapped by the policies of major satellite and cable companies, and the whole industry seems to be working together to make sure consumers get squeezed for every buck. It would be nice to see a company give the consumer better options and pricing, so we could get more of what we wanted and not have to pay for things we don’t.

I don’t think that will happen as long as people are willing to pay jacked-up prices and accept what is given to them. And, there may be reasons it isn’t even possible.

For my wife and me, our decision was not made for financial reasons but we’re still seeing a benefit. Even with the cost of the antenna, Roku and various subscriptions, we’re still going to save close to a thousand bucks over the course of the next year. And, we have the peace of mind of knowing we’re only paying for what we want, and can quit at any time.

Satellite TV and cable might be exactly what you need when it comes to home entertainment, and you might find it worth the price. When it comes down to it, we’re all responsible for ourselves. Only we can decide if their system is in our best interest, and worth the cost.

• Internet and TV service providers
• Best TV satellite providers
• Christian satellite TV providers