There Are Too Many Subscription Channels—Are They Still Convenient?
Renae Townsend | Opinion Editor
Imagine it’s 2016 again. You just stepped into your house after a long day of school. Your mother says you only have a half hour to have a snack before she needs to rush you to soccer practice. You grab your packet of Goldfish and settle yourself on the couch, grab the TV remote and turn the television on to watch a rerun of the SpongeBob SquarePants episode; the one where Squidward rallies Bikini Bottom to play at the Bubble Bowl. You finish your snack, have some entertainment, and move on to soccer.
Life used to be so simple.
Nowadays, there are hundreds of distinct subscription services globally—and approximately 91% of U.S households use at least one of them. These services used to boast about a cost-effective way to consume content and were a convenient alternative to traditional cable. In the early 2010s, Netflix stood as the main streaming service. But in 2026? We have Hulu and Paramount Plus and Peacock and Disney Plus and Max and Prime and Apple TV; the list goes on and on. Each of these services offer what they think is a premium selection of cream of the crop content. And yet, navigating these many, many streaming services doesn’t make me feel grateful.
It makes me feel overstimulated and frustrated.
Let’s return to the original scenario at the beginning of the article; thirty minutes to eat a snack and squeeze in some entertainment. Reports show that the average person spends nearly ten and a half minutes browsing and deciding what to watch. And nearly half of viewers visit multiple apps during a single search for content. By the time this child begins to watch something, nearly a third of their time is spent—wasted looking for something to watch. In 2016, you have a childhood memory. In 2026, you have ‘decision fatigue.’
In his 2004 book, The Paradox of Choice: Why More is Less, Barry Schwartz argues that an abundance of options can do more harm than good—causing decision paralysis and reduced satisfaction when an outcome is reached. That’s exactly the trap that streaming services set for us; a digital cage. To me, cable was suitable because it made the choices for us—it showed set programs at set hours. The consumers didn’t have to make the decision; we could just sit back and enjoy the ride. Fifty three percent of people feel overwhelmed by the number of streaming services.
But what about commercials? Commercials are justifiably the worst part of cable. You’re watching a horror movie, and then you’re watching an advertisement for Progressive. It completely ruins the ambiance.
And yet, nowadays, almost every major subscription now includes advertisements. Streaming—the product that was meant to kill cable—has now just become a more expensive, fractured version of cable. We are now paying for multiple apps than we ever did when we had cable boxes. For all that, we still must work seven times as hard to find something to watch. Some premium service.
Years ago, I believed we switched from cable to streaming services for cheaper and more valuable entertainment services. But as I scroll through my several streaming services, looking for the Sunday Night football game, I can’t help but feel cheated. As the streaming world becomes larger, I can’t help but wonder...is it worth it?
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