Without net neutrality rules, telecom-backed streaming services are free to fight dirty
By Karl Bode
After decades of soaring cable TV prices, the streaming revolution has finally arrived. Netflix, YouTube, Hulu, and Amazon are all fully stocked services, entirely capable of competing with cable on content, and they're all rated far higher in customer satisfaction than the companies they hope to supplant.
The result is new competition for cable companies that's pushing them into the streaming business. Nearly every broadcaster that's currently in the cable TV lineup will offer some kind of direct-to-consumer streaming service by 2022. Most notable will be Disney's looming Disney+ service, which will soon be the exclusive streaming home of must-have content from Pixar, Marvel, and the Star Wars universe. AT&T plans to launch its own streaming service next year, drawing on content from DC Comics and Harry Potter that was acquired as part of the recent Time Warner deal.