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NFL Plus: Is It the Next Big Sports Streaming Service?

Subscribers will have access to live NFL games on mobile and tablet for around $5 per month. But will this streaming service be the next big hit?

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Anyone who claims to be a football fan should be jumping with joy at the launch of the National Football League’s new streaming service, NFL Plus. It has the potential to replace other sports streaming services since it airs virtually every NFL game during the season for a reasonably low price.

What is NFL Plus?

NFL Plus is a new streaming service launched by the NFL. It streams local and prime-time games to your phone or tablet; in fact, almost every game during the season is available to fans on-demand. The service features two different price tiers: NFL Plus and NFL Plus Premium.

NFL Plus costs $4.99 per month, or $39.99 per year, and enables users to watch live games and live NFL Network content and listen to live audio from every game of the season on mobile devices.

NFL Plus Premium is $9.99 per month (or $79.99 per year). It includes all the content from NFL Plus as well as ad-free full-game replays and condensed replays across different devices. 

Best of all, both services include a seven-day free trial. That’s a full week you can try out the service for yourself without commitment.

What are the downsides to NFL Plus?

While there are a lot of benefits that come with the service, there are also a few downsides that raise concern. The biggest issue for early adopters is NFL Plus is only accessible through phones and tablets. This means you can’t stream straight to a TV. But, there are workarounds.

For example, anyone with an Apple device can mirror their screen and watch content in full-screen mode on a smart TV. It doesn’t come with the full resolution many people have come to expect, but it’s one solution.

Other users have reported that the NFL Plus interface leaves something to be desired. At a time when most apps have streamlined user interfaces to provide the best possible experience, this can feel like a step backward. Finally, there are device restrictions for live games and no access to out-of-market regular season games. 

What does NFL Plus mean for streaming in the future?

While there is no way to predict whether NFL Plus will see widespread adoption, it certainly poses a convenient option for NFL fans. At $4.99 per month, it’s much more affordable than signing up for one of the other live tv streaming services just to access live NFL games. Take Sling TV for example; it’s $35 per month and comes with a lot of extraneous channels for someone who just wants to watch football. Some NFL games might not even be available on Sling TV without the Sports Extra add-on, which is an extra $11 per month.

The relatively low cost for NFL Plus could mean a lot of users will drop existing services in favor of more focused content. While it’s unlikely NFL Plus will affect national networks carrying the games, it does stand poised to fill a gap in the market for low-cost, budget-friendly sports streaming options, particularly in comparison to higher-cost options like Hulu + Live TV.

It could also point toward a new market for more localized streaming services. Take the New England Sports Network (NESN) as an example: The Boston Red Sox and Boston Bruins own NESN and focuses primarily on content for fans of those two teams. Naturally, it carries all the games for those two clubs as well as several minor league baseball team games, regional college sports events, and more.

Local cable stations in the New England area carry NESN, but it also just announced the launch of a direct-to-consumer streaming service called NESN 360. It allows for the live streaming of select 2022-23 games and 300-plus live events from different New England teams. 

If the launch of NESN 360 is any indication, other sports teams might band together to launch streaming services to take the place of network coverage. 

Is it worth streaming sports versus using cable?

There’s something special and nostalgic about gathering around the TV with your family and friends, a plate full of wings, and a couple of cold ones. It’s a tried-and-true tradition for sports fans across the country. However, if your favorite team is playing and you aren’t at home, streaming offers the ability to catch the game even if you can’t sit down to watch.

That holds doubly true when you take into account NFL Plus Premium’s replay feature. In the event you can’t catch the game live, you can watch the replay on your phone or tablet whenever you find the free time.

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