The past two years have created unprecedented challenging times. A global pandemic has disrupted economies, school operations, and available medical treatments, not to mention the serious psychological impacts that have caused overwhelming feelings for some that include –

• Feelings of isolation from social distancing and lockdown measures are required to keep the public safe.
• Concern about one’s health and the safety of other family members and friends.
• The uncertainty created by financial instability across economic sectors and demographics.

Most Americans have found new and unique ways to cope with these extreme measures that are required to ensure the public’s health and well-being are protected. Fortunately, the pandemic and lock downs took effect when Americans had the benefit of more choices for Television programming than ever before!

A recent developing trend is that the senior American population has been one of the primary groups taking advantage of these new (and sometimes very old) movies and television options available across a variety of digital platforms.

This should not be completely surprising because, before mandated lock downs, seniors tended to live alone and watch lots of films & television programming. However, it took some time for seniors to grow comfortable in the new modern digital landscape that exists beyond cable TV.

Seniors have found their way to the use of streaming services rather than paying monthly cable fees for a variety of random channels, many of which are never even watched by seniors. Sports, original programming, home and garden, and the food network (plus more options than you count) are now available in a variety of streaming services.

Read on to learn more about the most popular streaming services for American seniors so that each consumer can make a well-informed decision based on their budget and viewing preferences.

The Streaming Services Most Popular with Senior Americans

American seniors have been migrating towards streaming services because these services are typically more cost-effective than random packages of channels offered by cable giants. And now, streaming services are easier to use, offering a wide variety of viewing options for everyone. The following provides seniors with a curated list of those streaming services that offer endless hours of viewing entertainment for American seniors.

Hulu

Hulu [1] was launched in 2007 as a collaborative effort of the major TV networks. Hulu is only available in the United. States. Hulu’s name derives from Mandarin Chinese, which roughly means – ‘interactive recording.’ [2]

Hulu offers more than 75 channels of entertainment from sports to news, to events, and (new and classic) TV series, to name a few. Hulu also offers original content that is filmed and produced by Hulu. Hulu also provides live TV through main channels like CBS, NBC, Fx, Disney-ABC, etc.

Hulu is a reliable option for those who want to stream new and classic shows as well as live TV across platforms. Hulu subscribers can use the service with a mobile phone, an internet-capable TV, a gaming console, a tablet, and a Blu-ray player, to name a few. Hulu’s exceptional connectivity is among the reasons it remains one of the top streaming services for movie and television viewers of all ages.

Netflix

Founded in the late 1990s in California, Netflix [3] offers a broad variety of award-winning movies, documentaries, television shows, and anime, to name a few. Netflix began as a DVD home-delivery service but segued into the digital market around 2007. Like Hulu, Netflix is available across digital platforms. In 2021, Netflix had more than 210 million global subscribers, except in mainland China where it is prohibited due to local restrictions.

Netflix offers its members unlimited viewing at any time, which is an excellent option for seniors who face insomnia issues. All these services and options are provided to senior members without a required contractual commitment or commercial advertisements.

Sling TV

Sling TV, founded in 2015, [4] offers great senior programming options. As a subsidiary of Dish Network, Sling TV was the first app-based television service that allowed subscriber members to stream live television as well as on-demand content across the internet. Sling bills itself as a multichannel video programming virtual distributor. Sling TV offers a variety of programming packages, plus mini-add-on programming called ‘extras.’

Fubo TV

Established in 2015, Fubo TV offers streaming services across the United States, Spain, and Canada that primarily focus on the distribution of high-definition sports programming and other entertainment packages. Fubo TV offers its members several service options from which to choose, with a base package that provides more than 100 channels! In 2021, Fubo TV had reached a mark of more than 1,000,000 subscribing members. [5]

The Take-Away

The streaming service you ultimately choose will depend on your interests, budget, and viewing priorities. If you are diligent and make a well-informed choice, any of the above-noted streaming services would be a great fit for American seniors looking for quality and flexible programming choices.

sources

[1] https://www.hulu.com/welcome?orig_referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F

[2] https://brandfolder.com/blog/hulu

[3] https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/digital/netflix-q3-2021-earnings-1235033272/

[4] https://market.us/statistics/online-video-and-streaming-sites/sling-tv/

[5] https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/9/22772953/fubotv-1-million-subscribers-announced