Kiwis are spoiled for choice when it comes to television viewing and paid streaming service options, but how many do we really need to shell out for?
With rising living costs forcing many of us to tighten our belts, it's worth checking how much you are paying for the likes of Netflix, Sky, Neon, Disney+ and Amazon Prime Video, and weighing up which streaming service or pay television platform gives your family the best bang for your buck.
Weigh up your options
Sky has long been the big player in pay television - particularly for sports fans - but the traditional satellite service requires you to sign up for a Starter package at $25.99 per month. That’s before they ask an additional $20.93 for Movies, while their Sports subscription prices are increasing by $3 to $34.99 from May 1.
Those costs may be beyond people more interested in films and TV shows, which is where Netflix has been able to muscle in, with plans starting from $12.99 per month.
Likewise, Neon, which has similar film and TV show content to Sky - including HBO - with the ability to watch on demand, is available for $15.99 per month, or $159.99 per year.
Amazon Prime Video at $8, AcornTV at $7.99, and AppleTV+ at $8.99, offer good value monthly subscriptions, but the latter two may lack wide appeal for families - although AppleTV+ is growing in terms of diversity and quality.
Disney+ has made a foothold in the local market, particularly among families, for a monthly bill of $12.99.
But the convenience of the MySky function that lets you pause, rewind and record live TV - for the add-on monthly cost of $15 - means Sky remains an attractive option, particularly in busy households where a range of TV shows, movies, and sports entertainment is preferred.
Competition helps
However, Sky has faced increased competition from Spark Sport - which won the broadcasting rights for the 2019 Rugby World Cup, and also boasts some international cricket - with subscriptions starting from $24.99 per month.
Sky has met the challenge by offering economical sports streaming plans with Sky Sport Now available with a weekly ($19.99), monthly ($39.99) or annual ($399.99) pass.
Sports viewers' loyalties are set to be tested further as we await confirmation on which platform will secure the lucrative rights to the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.
If we had to pick one?
“In terms of family viewing, Disney+ would always lead the pack given the catalogue of more than 80 years of entertainment they have to draw on,” says Stuff film and TV reviewer James Croot.
“New specific content is dropping every month, many linked to existing franchises, while there's been a recent surge of popular TV series like Grey's Anatomy, The Resident etc. being re-homed from other places like TVNZ - to the latter's detriment.”
Binge and move on
Free trials are a good way to keep costs down while bingeing the content you want.
“In terms of good deals, it is definitely about investigating the free trials, timing them right in terms of the shows you particularly want to watch,” says Croot.
“For example, waiting until there's only a couple of episodes to go, so you can binge-watch an entire season.”
Consumer NZ also suggests Kiwis get flexible with their subscriptions, by getting in the habit of putting them on hold when you’ve had your fill - this goes for film and TV buffs, as well as sports fans.
“Pick a service and watch all the new stuff you’re interested in, then cancel it and move on to another,” says product test writer Nick Gelling.
“You can always reactivate these accounts and pick up where you left off.”
What do we pay compared to Australia?
The good news is Kiwis are forking out around the same money for streaming privileges as our Aussie neighbours.
Across the ditch, most monthly subscriptions sit around the same mark as New Zealand.
Where they have it over us however, is the wider range of streaming and pay TV options available – although costs remain relatively on par.
Aussies also enjoy access to better free OnDemand platforms, with the likes of SBS, ABC, and 9Now.
