Hey there! I’m Jared Newman, and this is Cord Cutter Weekly, my newsletter on how to save money on TV and make the most of streaming. Sign up here if someone shared this newsletter with you.

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This week on PCWorld: Roku’s obnoxious ad experiment

Jared Newman   |   March 21, 2025

Roku has sunk to a new low in the streaming wars, with an experimental ad format that blocks your home screen behind an auto-playing video ad.

Roku players recently started loading a trailer for Moana 2 instead of the home screen they were turned on. While Roku says the ad is just a test, and that users could manually dismiss the ad instead of watching the whole thing, it still represents a new obstacle to basic control over your device.

Roku isn’t alone in seeing what kinds of advertising annoyances it can get away with, but it’s crossed a line by putting an ad wall in front of its home screen and requiring extra clicks to get rid of it. Test or not, it’s a disappointing sign of what’s to come.

Read the full column on PCWorld →

Become an iPhone expert

Hey folks, I wanted to tell you about another great newsletter from my pals at iPhone Life. Every day, they share quick tips on things like decluttering duplicate photos, making the most of Apple’s Passwords app, and impressing your friends with cool iMessage tricks. I think it’s a valuable resource for becoming a savvier iPhone user.

The folks at iPhone Life are fans of Cord Cutter Weekly as well, so we’re introducing each of our newsletters to our respective readers this week. Check it out!

Weekly rewind

Regional sports unbundle watch: With less than a week until baseball season, several more teams have opened up in-market streaming options that don’t require a big pay TV package:

  • Dodgers: SNLA+ is $30 per month or $200 for the season. No Spectrum service is required, but those who bundle Spectrum home internet and wireless can get SNLA+ for free. (This is separate from the existing SportsNet+ subscription for Lakers games.)
  • NBC Sports regionals: Peacock subscribers can add NBC’s regional sports networks for $18 per month in California, $15 per month in Boston, and $25 per month in Philadelphia. That’s on top of a Peacock subscription, which starts at $8 per month.

I’ve updated my MLB, NBA, and NHL regional streaming guides accordingly.

Fubo Essential no more: Fubo is already killing off the regional sports-free package that it introduced in December. The Essential plan has the same $85 per month list price as Fubo’s Pro plan, but doesn’t have regional sports or their associated fees (which add at least $13 per month to Fubo’s advertised price).

Existing Fubo Essential subscribers can keep their plan, but it’s no longer available for new subscribers. Fubo spokeswoman Jennifer Press confirmed the move, saying customers prefer the regional sports option “especially during baseball season.” The company will offer a cheaper Sports & Broadcast plan—rumored to cost between $50 and $60 per month—in the second half of this year.

Plex Pass price hike: Plex is raising the price of its home media server subscription, from $5 to $7 per month, $40 to $70 per year, and $120 to $250 for a lifetime subscription. You can lock in the current lifetime rate by signing up before April 29, when the price hike takes effect.

This has no effect on Plex’s free streaming channels. It only applies to Plex’s media server software, which caters to techies who like to host their own video and music files or want to use Plex’s over-the-air DVR service. Plex says it’s raising prices so it can keep investing in these features, and it’s making some additional changes you can read about here.

More catch-up

Save more money

This section of the newsletter has affiliate links, earning me a commission if you buy or subscribe to something in some cases.

Friendly reminder that this is the cheapest way to watch March Madness if you don’t already have big pay TV package:

  • Get a month of Max for $17 (ad-free plan required for sports after March 30), which covers TBS, TNT, and TruTV.
  • Get a month of Paramount+ with Showtime for free via this link, or use an antenna for CBS.

Since a lot of folks are having trouble getting Paramount+ for free lately, here’s sneaky way to save on a paid subscription: Just sign up for a Sportsline subscription, currently on sale at $50 for the year with promo code REBOUND, or $12.49 for three months with promo code ASSIST. You’ll get Paramount+ with Showtime at no extra cost after linking your accounts.

(If you already have Paramount+, you’ll need to cancel that subscription first to avoid overlap; there’s no prorating for existing subscribers.)

Other notable deals:

Remember that I keep a full list of active streaming deals on the Cord Cutter Weekly website.

Thanks for reading!

Got cord cutting questions for me? Just reply to this email to get in touch.

Until next week,
Jared

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