OK then, so apparently you have already established that there is no solution except possibly to subscribe to Paramount, if that is what you wish to do. Or finish up on the Showtime anytime app before it goes away and then watch other stuff.
NO. I want Paramount+ to respond and tell me what the plans are for Showtime-only customers, and also to inform me when they will providing ROKU customers with an app so that they can sign-in using their cable provider. They don't have one for just "Paramount+" alone -- either you have to subscribe through them or via the ROKU. I'm not paying extra for their junky content.
From seeing what HBO did with Max after removing HBO Go, I'm thinking that after Showtime’s linear channel rebrands to Paramount Plus with Showtime on January 8th on all providers, which includes cable/sat/etc., the website will most likely allow you to log in through your provider as Showtime Anytime did. It would make little sense to me for them to call the linear channel Paramount Plus with Showtime and not allow you to then log into their website using your provider credentials. So just be patient as they transition.
This is what is shown now on the Paramount Plus help website,
"Can I sign in with my TV provider to stream Paramount+?
You can’t stream Paramount+ using your TV provider credentials."
https://help.paramountplus.com/s/article/PD-Can-I-sign-in-with-my-TV-provider-to-stream-Paramount
However, after using Google, I found a deep link that shows this as (potential) proof of this change on Paramount Plus, but this might be from when they originally did this before deleting this option (but why keep it unless they're planning on changing it back once the transition occurs?).
"How do I sign into Paramount+ via a TV provider?
On the Paramount+ website:
So, check back by going to paramountplus.com on or after January 8th to see if you're then able to log in through your TV provider. (They might add this sooner, so you may want to check this daily from this point on.)
If this isn't the case, you'll have to choose: if you DVR Showtime to watch your programing, then keep your linear channel subscription through your provider. If you prefer VOD (video on demand), then cancel the provider subscription and sign up with Paramount Plus with Showtime. You can also just cancel Showtime if this is too aggravating for you, or contact your provider and demand that they give you the option of using the Paramount Plus with Showtime website, else threaten to cancel Showtime.
Notes:
1) The Paramount Plus website doesn’t have DVR capabilities on their live channels.
2) You don't have the additional Showtime channels through Paramount Plus’s website, just East and West live Feeds. So, no Showtime 2, etc. (I really hope that Paramount adds these additional Showtime channels to their website, including "The Movie Channel/XTRA" and "Flix".)
3) Not everything that is on the live channels of Showtime is on VOD due to streaming rights, such as certain movies and first-run episodes, as you have to wait until the next day to stream the show.
4) FrankDuVal To delete Showtime from Roku, select the channel, tap the "star" key on your remote, and scroll to "Remove App."
5) FrankDuVal You should be able to watch your cable TV provider (which includes Showtime through them) through your Roku by adding their channel to Roku (select "Streaming Store" from the Roku menu, select "search," and either type in your provider's name or go to the "Popular Channels" category on the right of the search box and scroll through there. If you can't find your cable TV provider on your Roku device, didn't they provide you with their own Cable/Streaming TV box? If you use your Roku because your provider doesn't offer you a way to watch their content -- including Showtime on your TV, or you don't want to pay to rent their box, then perhaps it's time for you to cut the cord and sign up with a streaming TV service like Hulu + Live TV, Youtube TV, DirecTV stream, or etc., which will allow you to watch live TV including linear Showtime on your TV through your Roku without having to cast anything from your smart device. Just make certain if you do this just to cancel the TV package because you'll still need your provider for internet service, and also make certain that you're not bundled because you could be paying more for your other services without the TV package (but it might end up costing you the same since the streaming services are usually cheaper than cable TV). Most of these services also include VOD content with their channels and DVR service.
OK, I thought you had already written them off when you said: “No response.” I assume you sent them a message somehow? Maybe try a call? The paramount contact page says: 1-888-274-5343 Estimated Wait Time (when I visited) of 12 minutes.
THX. I bet it's more like an hour! I will call that number though. There are many customers who subscribe to Showtime via their cable provider. ROKU can be slow roll-out apps for those (it took them a while to provide the MAX app for subscribers such as myself).
Content creators create their own apps on Roku. Those apps have to abide with Roku’s terms, which I think involves some ad or revenue sharing, at least for channels that actually make money. I believe Max was late on Roku as a negotiating tactic because HBO/Max and Roku didn’t originally agree on terms.
On the other hand, Showtime Anytime says they are just flat-out shutting down, across all streaming platforms. So, it doesn’t appear that there is any dispute with Roku or any other platform. My guess is that some executive decided that maintaining streaming apps on around 9 different platforms wasn’t worth the revenue that Showtime Anytime added.
A couple of years ago one cable channel started their own streaming service and within weeks they were bought and the streaming was shut down because the new CEO had different beliefs about streaming.
MY question remains the same: Will Paramount+ provide an app to ROKU for people who subscribe to Showtime via their cable providers? Unlike MAX, which added content from different networks, but didn't absorb an entire network, Paramount+ has been a separate, and distinct entity, with it's own line-up of programs (both new & old). Paramount+ has absorbed the whole of SHOWTIME, which complicates things for those people who have subscriptions for one but not both.
I don’t see much ambiguity in their statements, so I’d say the answer to your question is: No. But if they get enough calls, maybe they will reconsider.
it isn't just Vachon. I also pay for Showtime through my cable TV provider. I'm not paying double just to stream Showtime.
I'm investigating "casting" from a tablet to my Roku TV, since I can get Showtime on tablets, computers, etc, just not the ROKU TV!
So when does the now annoying Showtime app on my Roku TV go away? I can not seem to delete it myself.
Sadly, I can no longer get Showtime on my laptop, and I assume that will also hold true for apps on my my iPad. I think we are out of luck until the companies involved decide what to do. My cable provider doesn't offer Paramount+. And, since Showtime no longer exists as a separate entity except as a "cable channel," I think for the foreseeable future we'll be plum out of luck, or be forced to subscribe separately to Paramount+ (IMHO--I have zero interest in their content; only SHOWTIME's and I do not see why I should pay for content I do not want).
I did see January 8 somewhere in something I read. I'll see if ROKU has a revised app then. Here's to hoping!
Vachon321 You should check to see if your provider has an app you can use to watch Showtime as well as everything else through them on your laptop and iPad. If they don't and you want that option, unless you have a fabulous bundle with your internet and phone service, perhaps you should consider cutting the cord (with your TV service since you want to keep your internet and phone service) and going with a streaming provider (see my prior post for examples) in which you can watch live channel content on all devices. Or you may just want to wait until this rebranding nonsense with the channel formerly known as Showtime is over, in which you may then be able to use your credentials to log into the Paramaount Plus with Showtime website before making a drastic change.
But for around the same fee (or less) that you're paying monthly to your provider for television (unless you have a fabulous bundle), wouldn't you want the option to be able to stream your live TV from any device that you want instead of relying on third-party apps like Showtime Anytime that end up abandoning you without any help from your provider? Perhaps you should call your provider and demand that they give you this option to be able to watch TV content from your devices, or else threaten to cancel your TV package because there are so many other options out there that can give you what you want for the same price or less.
They do not.
Vachon321 wrote:I do not see why I should pay for content I do not want).
This has been a feature of cable TV for years – channels merged/made deals/bought each other and presented themselves to cable systems only as package deals. Its sad, though not surprising, that they are doing the same thing to streaming customers.
Unfortunately, this may not be the answer you're looking for as Verizon Fios doesn't have a Roku channel app, but surely Verizon provides you with a TV box to watch Showtime linear and perhaps even VOD content on your TV. But regardless of not being able to use a Roku device, after publishing my prior post, I have further researched this and have found that Verizon Fios does offer the ability to watch their content on your computer and iPad, which should include their Showtime channel, and any included Showtime VOD content. It might not be as good as Showtime Anytime was on your Roku device, but at least you can still watch Showtime on your TV (provided that Verizon Fios gave you their own TV box), computer, and iPad directly through Verizon Fios.
Unfortunately, instead of being able to directly access Showtime like before, you'll now have to use Verizon Fios and go through the channel guide to watch live Showtime or go through a few steps to find Showtime VOD content. If the VOD content is severely lacking on Verizon Fios, then unfortunately it's a wait-and-see game if Paramount Plus will allow you to access its website with your TV credentials.
Watch Fios TV Everywhere | Verizon TV Support
Fios TV Mobile App | Verizon TV Support
Fios On Demand and Pay Per View | Verizon TV Support
I'll wait until January 8. There are only two apps on the ROKU currently for Paramount+--one a direct subscription with P+; the other a subscription via ROKU. To be completely honest, I'm baffled as to why one would subscribe via ROKU--the price is the same. Neither app offers you the option of signing in with your cable provider.
GRRR.
Using your Verizon FIOS credentials to sign into the Paramount Plus website may happen sometime after January 8th. Who can tell? Fingers crossed is all I can say. I see with Hulu, the add-on still named Showtime as of 1/7/24 is raising its rates to match Paramount Plus on 1/11/24, so some providers may be added at different dates, or perhaps it will all happen tomorrow, or maybe it won't happen at all.
With your other question, I think it's nice that Roku and other providers also offer Paramount Plus because of redundancy reasons. For instance, it's impossible to change your subscription date with Paramount Plus (website) without canceling the service and re-subscribing. Let's say one subscribed on the 5th and they want to move this back to the 1st. Instead of having to cancel and not have it for that many days, one could cancel with Paramount Plus's website, and sign up through Roku on the 6th. Then on the 1st, one would sign back up with Paramount Plus (website) and cancel with Roku with a few days overlap. Another nice thing one can do is to take advantage of all the special promo offers for returning subscribers by leaping from one provider to the next that offers Paramount Plus, but I'm not sure how well this works as I haven't done this myself.
None of this is helpful if you want to sign up with the Paramount Plus website through your Verizon FIOS credentials, which is what I want to do with a provider, especially if I can pay the same price for Paramount Plus with Showtime through that provider and get all of Showtime's (and Paramount Plus's) live channels and perhaps a DVR option for the live channel content, which I think I can do through YouTube TV even without the base plan. I just have to wait till this rebranding occurs before making my next move, but I would also want to be able to use that provider's credentials to log into the Paramount Plus website, so I could have the best of both for the same price of paying directly for one.
So there's nothing yet when I looked at the Paramount Plus website's log-on page to see if there was a way to log in with provider credentials, but this article looks promising: Paramount+ is Now Free For Cable TV & Streaming Customers Including Spectrum & Hulu, Who Pay For Paramount+ with Showtime Network | Cord Cutters News (https://cordcuttersnews.com/paramount-is-now-free-for-cable-tv-customers-including-spectrum-who-pay-for-paramount-with-showtime/).
Won't help me. Verizon doesn't offer Paramount+ and I only subscribe to Showtime through Verizon Fios.
Presently, Verizon doesn't include Paramount+ with your linear Showtime subscription, but this won't last very long since Paramount has rebranded Showtime as Paramount+ with Showtime, which means that Verizon will soon have to offer you this. Just like Verizon FIOS, Hulu also doesn't yet appear to offer Paramount+, but they were mentioned in the article, meaning both will soon be rebranded to include Paramount+. It's just a matter of time.
Even though the article doesn't specifically mention Verizon FIOS, this doesn't mean that it won't soon appear on the list of providers on the Paramount Plus website. I'm hopeful that YouTube TV will show up on the list as I saw that they have rebranded the network formerly known as Showtime, yet still have the same $10.99 per month fee (and the base plan isn't required).
There's no way to log in through any provider as of yet, but if the article is accurate, this could all change sometime soon -- perhaps as early as tomorrow (1/11/24) which is when Hulu Showtime's price will increase to be the same as Paramount Plus, and perhaps YouTube TV and all the rest will follow suit.
If Verizon FIOS doesn't show up on the list, whenever that list happens to appear, then call them to find out when this will happen. If you aren't subscribed to Showtime through a tier, and you're paying the full $10.99 for it, then once this list appears and if Verizon FIOS isn't included, but if YouTube TV is included, you may want to consider canceling Showtime from Verizon and adding it through YouTube TV since you wouldn't have to pay extra for YouTube TV's base plan and could keep your Verizon FIOS plan. I haven't yet tried YouTube TV, but what I understand is that (unlike Hulu) you would be able to use their DVR service to record the live Showtime (and Paramount+) channels and perhaps also have the option to log into the Paramount Plus website. Paramount+ with Showtime through YouTube TV has a 7-day free trial, so you could try it out to see if that would work for you. However, you should wait until YouTube TV appears on the Paramount Plus website as one of the providers (if Verizon FIOS doesn't appear). Even though everything is currently up in the air, I've written this to show you that you do have options on how you can subscribe to Showtime, as you don’t have to continue subscribing to Showtime through Verizon FIOS if they aren't giving you what you want for (around) the same price you could be paying another provider – unless you're locked into a tier.
Unfortunately, this won't help you now, but hopefully, soon you'll be able to use Verizon FIOS to log into the Paramount Plus website. You should call them about this, especially if you could do this with Showtime Anytime. Perhaps in a month, more providers including Verizon will be added -- just keep checking back. So as of today (1/8/24), this is what I found:
The link itself: https://www.paramountplus.com/link
Update: One option you have would be to cancel Showtime through Verizon and sign up for Paramount+ with Showtime through Hulu (Showtime has been rebranded as of 1/8/24), but then you would have to pay $7.99 extra for a Hulu account, and Paramount+ through Hulu is now $11.99 a month. I'm unsure if you would want to pay $19.98 to be able to do this though. Another option, if you already have an Amazon Prime subscription (after canceling Showtime with Verizon FIOS) is to add Paramount+ with Showtime as a Prime Video Channel and then link your Amazon account with the Paramount Plus website (or you could altogether cancel Verizon FIOS and instead subscribe through DirecTV or DirecTV stream since you can now sign up with the Paramount Plus website through them as of 1/15/24). However, if none of these options work for you, your best bet is to call Verizon and work this out with them.
