Streaming was supposed to make our lives easier. Not only would it give us greater choice while simultaneously cutting down on the clutter of having a DVD or CD collection, it would also do it at a fraction of the cost of building that collection.
But there is always a catch. When you bought a physical product such as a movie or an album, you owned it, and no one could take it back. But what happens when your favourite music or film disappears?
The early warning signs were there. Remember when Amazon caused an uproar by removing a copy of George Orwell's 1984 from customers' Kindle devices? It caused uproar, despite the fact that Amazon did so because it discovered it had no rights to sell the book and the deletion had been accompanied by a refund for affected customers.
That disquiet was justified. For the first time people realised that the deal they had signed for the digital copies of their books had a catch.
Amid the backlash, Amazon promised never to repeat the move, although it wasn’t the first time it had removed content from devices. Other services have largely avoided the same pitfall though. The other great controversy that springs to mind was around a service giving away content rather than taking it back (remember the U2 album row?)
Binge watching
Relying on digital services means we are also reliant on the various agreements the services have signed – including with its customers. How many times have you seen the warning on Netflix that a particular programme will be leaving the platform in a few weeks? It usually happens just when you are halfway through a show and don't have the time or the energy to binge watch the remaining 50 episodes in a very short space of time.
Trying to keep up with who currently has the rights to what series is almost a full-time job. Still, it is a trade-off we have largely made in favour of the convenience of having access to thousands of movies and TV shows at the touch of a button.
Which brings us to the great tradition of Christmas movies. Years ago, we had to watch the holiday favourites on (horror) broadcast TV, at a time not of our choosing, unless you owned those movies on DVD or video. The Christmas TV schedules would be scrutinised and the favourites noted. If viewing preferences clashed, then the parents' choice overruled everyone – two TVs, multiroom viewing and second screens were a long way off – and you just sucked up the disappointment. If you missed it, you missed it.
This year though, things may be be a little different. We have streaming services that mean you don’t need to gather in front of the TV to watch your favourite movie at a set time, but unless you have the right subscription, you won’t be gathering at all.
Home Alone, for example, is only available on Disney+. It’s not being shown on broadcast TV at all. If you try to get it on demand from Sky, you’ll find the movie is only available to buy or rent from the Sky Store, and instead you’ll have to make do with Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (acceptable) or Home Alone 3 (not even a Christmas movie, don’t even go there).
So what streaming services are worth their subscription costs this Christmas? And what exactly is on offer to Irish customers?
Netflix
The streaming service that spawned its own euphemism, Netflix has built itself quite a subscriber base over the years. The sheer breadth of content has made it worth the subscription price alone, although the price increases have been received with varying degrees of disquiet.
The company has been ploughing money into producing its own original content, and it has had some success over the years.
Aside from some good Christmas classics, Netflix also has its own line of Christmas movies, of varying quality. Some highlights over the years were Klaus, and The Christmas Chronicles 1 and 2, which saw Kurt Russell starring as Santa alongside Goldie Hawn for the second instalment. Among this year's offerings are Jingle Jangle and a Boy Called Called Christmas.
There are also plenty of instantly forgettable Christmas-themed rom-coms that will fill in the gaps between dinner, second dinner and that late-night snack that looks something like dinner. The much-derided Castle for Christmas should provide light entertainment for unintended reasons, and there is always a Vanessa Hudgens Christmas-themed effort thrown in for good measure.
How much it costs will depend on what type of account you have, but at a minimum, it’s €8 a month.
Now TV
If you want access to Sky’s content without a year-long contract or someone to slap a digital dish somewhere on the outside of your house, Now TV’s streaming stick is the one to go for.
That is, of course, provided you have decent broadband. The stick connects to your home broadband hub and gives you access to Sky’s movie, sports and entertainment channels, as long as you sign up for the relevant passes, and you don’t have any waiting period before your service is active.
If you sign up for the movies package, you’ll get access to Sky’s extensive Christmas movie content, both live and on-demand.
Sky also recently added Peacock to its content line-up for both its pay-TV customers and subscribers to its Now TV entertainment package. The streaming brand, which is owned and operated by Sky's US sister company NBCUniversal, is only getting started here, but it has a range of content that includes archive series and film, along with series such as Saved by The Bell, Rutherford Falls and reality series Vanderpump Rules. Upcoming content includes the adaptation of the Joe Exotic tale that gripped us all on Netflix, a Battlestar Galactica reboot and new drama The Missing.
The costs will depend on the passes you choose and the offers you sign up for, but both Cinema and Entertainment cost €15 each.
Disney+
The home of all things Disney, as the name suggests, Disney's streaming service is also where you'll find Home Alone. If you want to see Macaulay Culkin run rings around two of the worst burglars ever, while hitting them with irons and taking a blowtorch to one of their heads, you'll have to pay for a subscription.
You may already have done so; Disney+ launched in Ireland in March 2020, just as we were all getting to grips with the implications of the pandemic. At the time, the fee seemed like a bargain for those of us with small children at home who were demanding entertainment and home schooling.
Fast forward almost two years and Disney’s content has expanded. The introduction of Star to international subscribers in February brought more adult-focused content to the platform – Family Guy, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, films such as Deadpool – but it also brought a price increase of €2 per month to €8.99.
It still seems like a bargain though. Christmas content on Disney+ includes the usual Disney content – Muppet Christmas Carol, Nightmare Before Christmas, more Mickey Mouse-themed Christmas movies than you knew existed and The Santa Clause franchise. You can also watch Die Hard, the movie that divides us into those who feel it's not Christmas until they've seen Hans Gruber fall from Nakatomi Tower, and those of us who think that just because it's set at Christmas that doesn't make it a Christmas movie.
Amazon Prime
Amazon streaming video service has access to thousands of TV shows and movies in its catalogues, including some well-loved Christmas movies.
There is a catch, however. While the range of content looks great, you’ll often find that titles are not available in your area, or that certain titles are only available to buy or rent, meaning an extra fee.
The former is an issue that can often be solved with the use of a VPN service such as Express VPN or Nord VPN, but it’s an additional step for people who may just want something simple.
Still, the Amazon original content such as Wheel of Time, The Man in the High Castle and the Marvellous Mrs Maisel, while not Christmas-themed is worth paying to watch – at £6 for video only and £8 when included with your Prime membership.
Apple TV
The Apple TV app has two elements. There is the Apple TV+ streaming service, which costs you €5 a month after your trial period is over. That includes content such as Ted Lasso, The Morning Show and The Shrink Next Door.
This year's Christmas content includes the new instalment of Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas special, dubbed The Magic Continues; documentary 'Twas the Fight before Christmas, and the original A Charlie Brown Christmas.
Then there are movies in the Apple TV app that you would previously have bought or rented through the iTunes app – new releases available for rent such as No Time to Die, the Paw Patrol movie and Dune, older films that you can buy and download to watch whenever you want.
It’s also where you can find old Christmas classics, such as Santa Claus the Movie, downloadable for less than the price of a sandwich, and yours to watch through your Apple account.
