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.

Does Paramount even have a plan for HBO?

Jared Newman   |   March 6, 2026

Congrats, Paramount. You’ve succeeded in snatching Warner Bros. away from Netflix. Now what?

So far, Paramount hasn’t laid out much of a plan for Warner, aside from somehow mashing HBO Max and Paramount+ into one streaming service. Its press release mostly extolls the value of getting bigger for shareholders, while viewers seem to be an afterthought. (The deal is still subject to regulatory approval and a vote by Warner shareholders.)

All of which leaves us with a lot of unanswered questions about how the merger will affect the folks who actually watch Warner and Paramount programming. In its zeal to embiggen itself, has Paramount thought through any of this?

Read the full column →

Weekly rewind

Legacy Tablo update: It took a couple years longer than expected, but Tablo is now offering its latest app to users of its earlier over-the-air DVRs. If you’re using a Tablo Dual or Tablo Quad (and not the round fourth-gen model), you can install the new Tablo app on your streaming devices and test it out alongside the legacy Tablo app.

Why bother? Mainly because the new app doesn’t require a subscription, so you can cancel your DVR service if the new app is to your liking. It also includes a selection of free ad-supported streaming channels, many of which let you record and skip the commercials.

The new app does have some notable downsides, though: It doesn’t support out-of-home viewing, manual scheduling, or automatic ad skipping (which Tablo stopped offering to new subscribers years ago), and it’s not available on PCs or Macs. Give it a try and see if you’re willing to accept those trade-offs in exchange for subscription-free over-the-air DVR.

Roku subscription bundles? A little tidbit I missed in Roku’s letter to shareholders last month: It plans to start bundling subscriptions together later this year.

We’ve seen Amazon experiment with this sort of thing, for instance with a discounted Starz and Hallmark bundle, Apple TV has its bundle with Peacock, and of course Disney has its various bundles with other streamers (the Disney+/Hulu/HBO Max combo, the ESPN Unlimited bundles with Fox One or NFL+). There’s definitely room for more creative bundling overall, though.

More catch-up

Spend wisely

This section of the newsletter has some affiliate links, which earn me a commission if you wind up buying or subscribing to something.

Disney has brought back Black Friday pricing, but only for a few months. Sign up by March 24 to get three months of Disney+ and Hulu for $5 per month, which is $8 per month off the regular price. You can subscribe through either Hulu or Disney+ to get the deal.

This is a good time to mention that you can also use American Express’ Blue Cash Everyday to get a $7 monthly Disney service credit with no annual fee, or Blue Cash Preferred for an $11 credit (with a $95 annual fee after one year). The credits apply even when you’re getting Disney’s streaming services at a discount.

Other notable deals:

As always, I keep a full list of up-to-date deals on the Cord Cutter Weekly website.

Unclutter your inbox and Ask Me Anything

I’ve got a couple cool new things for Advisorator members this week:

  • A feature story on how to stop getting unwanted emails.
  • A fresh “Ask Me Anything” thread in the member forum, where you can get your streaming and tech questions answered.

The Advisorator membership is my way of helping folks get smarter and more confident about technology while also supporting my work. You can sign up for less than the cost of a beer in a small-to-medium-sized city.

Thanks for reading!

That’s all for now. Catch you next week.
– Jared

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