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Joe in Dacula, Georgia listens on AM920 “The Answer” and asked: "I'm seeing a lot of these IPTV platforms at a very low cost, anywhere from $15 to like $25. I wondered how good those services were and if it was OK for the consumer to use those. I'm currently using one and like it, but don't want to get in trouble with anybody investigating these as pirating or something. And what is the best good platform for IPTV - like the difference between DirecNow, YouTube TV, Hulu, Sling TV. What is the best bang for your buck? And one other question - is it better, to stop buffering, to move your modem and WiFi closer to your TV?"

 

Joe, If those are the IPTV platforms you’re questioning the legality of, you don’t have to worry. All of the services you mentioned are fully legal.

These companies are not violating copyright laws, they’re just delivering their content through a platform that passes part of the cost of delivery onto the consumer. In other words, they send it to you through the internet, and the infrastructure to get it into your home is up to you not them.

As for which one is a best value, that’s up to you really. They all offer about the same service, but there can sometimes be small differences in the channels offered. It’s mostly down to which one has the content you want. Hulu does have one advantage over the rest - which is one reason why that’s the service I use at my home - which is that for the same price they all seem to roughly charge, you also get access to Hulu’s huge streaming library. Other than that, they’re all comparable. They usually all offer online DVR services, they all offer live local channels.

With regards to your buffering question, yes moving your TV and WiFi access point closer together can get rid of some buffering issues if they’re caused by interference, plugging a wire directly to your TV or other streaming device can even help more.

Eliminating interference won’t get you more speed than you’re paying for though, you may need to rethink your internet plan if it’s not keeping up.

 

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