We recently switched from AT&T to Sonic and were very unpleasantly surprised to find out that we could no longer watch ESPN3. I was surprised to find out about the per customer charge. However, I don't think ESPN is entirely to blame for this trend. I recall reading a few years ago about how ESPN had started striking deals with ISPs because several of the larger ones were blocking access to their site and other ones that "used a lot of bandwidth." I believe that is how the so-called "slippery slope" started. While I do agree that people should not be charged for services they don't want or use, I wish that it were available for the rest of us.
The main reason we switched from AT&T was the data cap imposed by AT&T. We do not subscribe to pay TV and get most of our entertainment content through streaming internet service. The increased download speeds and the lack of data caps, with a phone line included, for a price significantly lower than AT&T's were very appealing. However, I'm not sure my husband would have agreed to the switch if we had known ahead of time about the inability to access ESPN3, since our main goal in switching was to be able to get more streaming content.
We use a Roku box and I'd really like to see ESPN offer a channel on there. I will suggest it to them. I do think the Roku offers a good opportunity for "a la carte" streaming internet channels. However, I also think it would be wonderful if Sonic were able to figure out a way to strike some sort of deal with ESPN to make it available to us. I would be willing to pay the suggested $5 more per month for it.
The main reason we switched from AT&T was the data cap imposed by AT&T. We do not subscribe to pay TV and get most of our entertainment content through streaming internet service. The increased download speeds and the lack of data caps, with a phone line included, for a price significantly lower than AT&T's were very appealing. However, I'm not sure my husband would have agreed to the switch if we had known ahead of time about the inability to access ESPN3, since our main goal in switching was to be able to get more streaming content.
We use a Roku box and I'd really like to see ESPN offer a channel on there. I will suggest it to them. I do think the Roku offers a good opportunity for "a la carte" streaming internet channels. However, I also think it would be wonderful if Sonic were able to figure out a way to strike some sort of deal with ESPN to make it available to us. I would be willing to pay the suggested $5 more per month for it.