DIRECTV vs. Disney: Why You Should Cancel DIRECTV Stream – Now!

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.

TV Answer Man, I have DIRECTV Stream and the Disney thing has me worried. Should I stay with Stream and risk not having ESPN for college football?! What would you recommend? — Gene, Tulsa.

Gene, if you love ESPN, ABC and Disney, I recommend that you cancel DIRECTV Stream. Immediately! Before I explain why, a little background on the DIRECTV-Disney situation.

Bloomberg reports that DIRECTV could lose the entire suite of Disney channels, including ESPN and ABC affiliates in seven markets, as early as Sunday, September 1 if the two companies don’t reach a new carriage agreement by then. Any blackout would also affect DIRECTV Stream, DIRECTV Via Streaming and U-verse. And that’s why I say you should cancel DIRECTV Stream today.

When you cancel DIRECTV Stream, you are required to keep the service (and pay) for the remainder of the time left in your billing cycle. For example, if you cancelled today, and your next DIRECTV Stream monthly charge is September 5, you would keep your service until then. (This is true regardless of when the next billing day is.) But if DIRECTV Stream loses the Disney channels on September 1, you wouldn’t have to pay for the service after September 5. This would allow you to use your next DIRECTV Stream monthly payment to subscribe to a different service that carries Disney and ESPN.

However, if DIRECTV and Disney agree on a new contract, you could just resubscribe to DIRECTV Stream on September 5 and carry on with your service.

If you don’t cancel prior to the end of your billing cycle, you will be on the hook for another month and that could be another month of no Disney, ABC and ESPN.

Now there is a slight loophole to this argument. Let’s say your billing cycle ends before September 1; for example, Friday, August 30. If you cancel DIRECTV Stream now, your subscription would end before you know if a blackout occurs.

So I suggest you cancel anyway and get a free trial from Fubo or YouTube TV. If there’s a blackout, you could then stay with one of those services. (They both have the Disney channels.) If there isn’t, you could then resubscribe to DIRECTV Stream, if you prefer.

Unfortunately, the cancellation option probably won’t work with DIRECTV’s satellite service or DIRECTV Via Streaming; both require two-year agreements with termination penalties so you would have to pay up if you’re still in one.

Gene, hope that helps. Happy viewing and stay safe!

The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.

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