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admitech

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FUN QUESTION. For us Geeks that like Sports: Best way to get free local and sports live and legal?

I encounter this question ALL the time just because of "association in IT". From what I am told ANY streaming is legal. Downloading and Distro is the illegal part? I live in NY btw. What is your guys take?
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☠ MASQ ☠

>>What is your guys take?
On whether streaming from illegal sources is OK or where to get the legal streams?
The first one is pretty simple but I'd be interested to know who's telling you this...
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@MASQ based on that response I am assuming it is all illegal other than "paid for"?
" interested to know who's telling you this..."
A network consultant. Which spurred my curiosity as to IF streaming such programs is legal in NY?
Hearing about a lot of people "cutting the cord" but would rather not do so if I am going to have the men in blue show up, etc!
Streaming is not inherently illegal, the question becomes whether the streamer is authorized to stream the content. Bear in mind, that streaming is retransmitting content. The key is whether there is consent to do so from the owner of said content. Personal use of something you own in private is one thing. For business purposes or public display is a completely separate matter, and that's where things tend to get thorny. Really, the problem in streaming surrounds violation of copyrights moreso than the act of streaming itself. But in those instances, the legal problems hit the party streaming the content, not the parties viewing the content.

If all streaming were legal as the consultant claims, then Aereo would still be in business.

The broadcast networks to some extent do live streaming, as do the Twitter and Turner Sports. But these are authorized and violate no copyrights whatsoever.
@masnrock:
Good explanation! People that ask these questions are personally attempting to get around paying the good ole cable bill. Good to have a clear answer when responding....
You can certainly cut the cord legally. You have Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon Prime to name a few streaming services. Even Sling. Then you have all the authorized online sources for watching live content. Netflix and Hulu have the Showtime add-on. Even local stations are streaming online. So it's not a question of whether or not you can watch streamed content, just a matter of watching who you choose to watch said content from. A number of unauthorized sites probably to stream data and serve up malware in the process.
@masnrock. Very true. For those of us that love sports the streaming sports side is a little more difficult to find (legally). Even subscribing to ALL of those you listed including Playstation Vue still don't let you stream sports and you CAN pay for streaming for MLB and/or NFL but you still get blackouts and miss out on the local stuff typically (Yankees, Bills/Giants, etc in NY)
many TV networks and specialty TV stations (National Geographic, etc) allow you to stream progtams and many films and TV programs are available via YouTube
Ok so we've got the movies, tv, and specialty channels covered (legally). What about local and sports live still (without cable of course)?
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Paul Sauvé
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Get Sling if you want those. Sling will let you get live TV in some markets, plus I remember that they actually have ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, FS1, FS2 and several other cable channels. You'd have to get the Orange + Blue plan, which is $40/month.
I just remembered that Hulu is supposed to have a deal with ESPN and some broadcast networks that starts next year as well. Plus they'll be getting access to channels like ABC, Fox, CNN, TNT, and TBS. Not sure how much that plan will cost, but I hear it's like $40/mo.
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Good comments all around. I think from a free and live perspective sling is probably the way to go. Yeah not EXACTLY free but still probably cheaper than a cable bill! Thanks to all....
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Thanks masnrock! Going to research Roku/Slingbox. Roku's I've used in past for corporations. Slingbox I've never tried. Seems like all have pros and cons and after you up your internet connection seems like the price still balances itself out. Then it comes down personal preference....
Thanks guys! Good discussion!