Last week, a major shakeup between YouTube TV and Disney has been causing blackouts for viewers who rely on the app for watching Disney-owned channels.
Unable to reach an agreement, Disney has been blacked out on YouTube TV. That means subscribers needed to find other ways to watch last weekend’s college football games without ESPN.
But unfortunately, the dispute is still ongoing, which puts this week’s ABC shows in peril.
Thankfully, there are quick fixes as well as more permanent options if you can’t bear to miss Dancing with the Stars, 9-1-1, 9-1-1: Nashville, High Potential or Golden Bachelor.
Read on for the Watch With Us guide below!
How to Watch ESPN and College Football Games Without YouTube TV
Can I Watch ABC For Free Anywhere?
Fortunately, there are a few options for watching ABC for free. For one, it’s a channel that’s already free over the air and can be accessed with “rabbit ear” broadcast antennae, if you don’t mind going a little old school.
If you’d prefer not to invest in an antenna, you can try free trials of both fuboTV and DIRECTV, which also give you access to ESPN. After the five-day trial, DIRECTV is only $39.99 per month, which is a pretty good deal if you don’t want your live TV to be interrupted again. It can be more expensive, though, depending on what channel pack you want.
FuboTV is also pretty reasonable, and only a little pricier. For one month after the trial period, the price for the basic plan with 29 channels is $45.99, then $55.99 in the second month.
Which Apps Offer ABC Live?
If you’d prefer to keep things on the apps, you can get the Hulu + Live TV plan for $89.99, which includes live TV, Disney+ and ESPN Select. Or, bump that monthly price up an extra $10 and get Hulu Premium and Disney+ Premium.
You can also try Sling TV, which is a cable streaming app similar to fuboTV. It comes with different bundles you can choose depending on what kinds of channels you want to access. For instance, the Sling Orange package for $45.99 per month focuses on sports and family channels, while Sling Blue at $45.99 centers on news and entertainment. Or, purchase both packages together for $65.99, and get half off for your first month. However, you do need Sling Blue to access ABC.
Where Else Can I Watch ABC Right Now?
At the end of the day, pretty much every cable provider is going to offer ABC, so maybe it’s time to make the switch from streaming back over to cable — especially if you’d prefer not to have these kinds of disputes affect you’re daily watching habits. Cable providers to choose from (based on availability in your area) include: Optimum, Xfinity, Verizon Fios, Spectrum, Dish and Cox. Of course, all of these come with a cost.
ABC Fall Schedule for New, Returning Shows: From ‘DWTS’ to ‘Shifting Gears’
People joke about the fact that we pay for so many separate streaming services now that a lot of the time it adds up to the same cost or even more than just paying for a cable package. Perhaps this conflict between YouTube TV and Disney will provide customers with more reason to just go back to basics.
