As Shoppers Cut Back on Spending, Live TV Streaming Services Aim to Attract Subscribers with No-Contract Deals

Most Flexible Plans

DirecTV

Genre Packs from $34.99 per month and Signature Packages from $79.99 monthly; five-day free trial and $30 off first month for a limited time

Sports and news fans will find most of the regional and national channels they want in DirecTV, which recently added more subscription options and moved to month-to-month offerings to provide more flexible packages and pricing. Streaming plans (available with or without DirecTV’s Gemini device) now start at $34.99 per month and up for the new Genre Packs that include 9 to 60 or more popular news, sports and entertainment channel lineups.

The TV streamer’s existing Signature Packages start at $79.99 per month for the Choice tier with over 125 channels, with select plans on sale for $30 off your first month. Other plans offer 90 to 185 or more channels for $84.99 to $154.99 monthly; all packages include the company’s MyFree DirecTV lineup of over 95 free live channels and on-demand shows and movies.

Movie and TV lovers can add on-demand streaming services such as Max, Disney+ and Hulu Basic, Starz and more to their DirecTV package. Satellite plans are also available.

Free trial: 5 days
Monthly prices: $34.99 and up for Genre Packs, $79.99 and up for Signature Packages
No. of channels: 90 to 185+
Local channels: ABC, CBS, Fox, NBC, PBS
News: BBC, CNN, CNBC, C-Span, Fox News, MSNBC
Sports: ESPN, Fox, MLB Network, NFL Network, Tennis Channel, T2, TBS, TNT
Entertainment: A&E, Bravo, Cartoon Network, Discovery, E!, Food Network, FX, HGTV, Investigation Discovery, Lifetime, National Geographic, Nickelodeon, Paramount Network, TLC
Profiles: Up to 5
No. of concurrent streams: Up to 3
Add-ons: Max (2 free months), Disney+ and Hulu, Cinemax, Starz, MGM+, more
DVR: Included
Video quality: 4K on select channels with compatible device
Contract: Optional; month-to-month available