By the time you pay for internet services plus one or even 2 of the other “TV” services, you might as well get cable TV with a decent schedule and a clear picture (and all sports and many movies… all in HD, too). No you don’t you say? Well OK, if you want to pay Hulu, DirecTV Now, Sling TV, etc., then what’s the difference? To watch live TV (eg., NFL), then you have to pay for the NFL package or pay for 2 or 3 other services to get everything that free to air provides (ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox).

Each of the major networks require you to have a TV provider in order to use their app. I have a Roku device, but it’s basically worthless unless you have a TV provider. And depending on what you want to watch, it could be as much as cable TV. So you can watch ABC without cable, but it still costs you. You can also get fancy with it and use OTA DVRs or a PC TV tuner to transform your simple antenna setup into a high-tech streaming version - but you certainly don’t have to unless you want to. The primary streaming services listed above know that their customers want to use popular streaming devices to watch, so they've made sure to cultivate great and broad platform support.Īs for free over-the-air TV, that’s even easier to get set up with: just plug your antenna into your TV and scan for channels.

We recommend using a product from a trusted brand that runs an easy-to-use streaming “platform” - think “operating system,” like Windows or Mac but for TVs - like Roku, Fire TV, tvOS (Apple TV), or Android TV (many smart TVs). Yes, you can - all you’ll need is a smart TV or a streaming device. Streaming ABC on those devices is great, but what about the TV in your living room? Can you watch ABC without cable on your “main screen”?

But when some of us think about streaming services, we think about computers and iPhones. You can stream ABC using the services we listed (and you can watch it for free over the air, too).

Watch abc app for microsoft