Opinion: The last streaming service standing when others are cut
Maybe it’s the start of the new year and many families’ renewed commitment to frugality, or maybe it’s the rising costs of seemingly everything, but it feels like everyone I know is reviewing their budget for 2024. Part of that involves pruning our subscriptions.
The nature of content now is such that the most beloved shows are spread out over multiple streaming platforms. In my home, we’re subscribed to Max, Hulu, Netflix, YouTube TV, Amazon Prime, Peacock and Disney+. I recently canceled Paramount+ and Apple TV+, and I’m in the process of deciding which service is next to go.
The Wall Street Journal reports that roughly one-fourth of streaming service subscribers canceled at least three streaming services in the past two years. I suspect this trend to continue so long as prices remain what they are, and especially if they increase.
Which means many parents are deciding which subscriptions are best to hold onto to keep the entire family entertained. And from my informal research on the subject, one streaming service stands out.
I took to social media to find out which service the parents I know prefer, and overwhelmingly they told me it’s Disney+. Their reasons included an extensive catalog suited for all ages, the quality of movies and shows, the frequency with which new programming is added and, quite simply, nostalgia. But the most common response was that parents prefer Disney+ because it has the popular children’s show “Bluey.”
That’s where I stand, too.
One of my requirements for kid-friendly streaming is programming that won’t make me want to pull my hair out. My husband and I have tried, and failed, many times to hide YouTube from our television screen. Somehow, my 5-year-old manages to find the YouTube thumbnail and turn on Blippi even when we think we’ve deleted the app from all our technology.
For those (lucky) uninitiated, Blippi is a full-grown man who dresses and talks like a child. I have never met an adult who doesn’t hate Blippi to their very core, and I’ve never met a young child who doesn’t love Blippi with their whole heart. This dichotomy is not uncommon in programming tailored to children. Much of what kids love to watch, parents loathe for its overcommercialization (I’m looking at you, YouTube stars), off-putting visuals (like those in “Cocomelon” on Netflix) or general stupidity on many platforms.
What I need from a family-friendly streaming platform is content that will keep kids entertained while not driving me crazy, and content that we can all enjoy together. “Bluey” is a perfect harmony of those two requirements.
The show features a blue heeler family — dad Bandit, mom Chilli, and daughters Bluey and Bingo, and chronicles the everyday adventures and conflicts of their life in an Australian suburb. The short episodes make me laugh and sometimes cry, and my kids have seen each one at least twice. They’ve watched it so much that my son now uses the word “cheeky” to describe anyone acting silly and calls money “dollar bucks” thanks to the vocabulary he has picked up from “Bluey.” It’s the show I can always tolerate having on in the background, and one that I look forward to sitting down and watching with my kids.
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But it’s not the only show on Disney+ that we watch and enjoy. The Pixar shorts and “Star Wars” series like “The Mandalorian” and “Andor” are family favorites, and when we sit down to watch a movie together, nine times out of 10, it’s a Disney or Pixar film. And unlike other streaming services that rotate their content, the Disney catalog is, for the most part, there to stay.
So if we were forced to keep only one streaming service, it would be Disney+, although — I know this is maybe kind of cheating — we would do the Disney+ and Hulu bundle for just a few extra dollars a month. With Hulu, we have access to network and cable TV shows, as well as their original programming like “The Bear,” which just won three Golden Globe awards and was my favorite show in 2023. Thanks to the ability to create PIN-enabled kid profiles, I can enjoy these adult-centered programs without fear that my children might stumble onto something inappropriate for their age.
There may be some content we currently consume that we would miss, but not much. And most of the kids’ programming on other platforms is available somewhere for free on the PBS app or YouTube.
So as for me and my house, we’ll be holding onto Disney+, perhaps until it’s the last streaming service standing.
