Fox Begins Live Streaming Its Programming

Fox this week attempted to change the network programming game by becoming the first broadcast network to live stream its entire prime-time programming schedule. Beginning on Monday night, July 11, Fox began streaming its programming in all television markets nationwide in the United States.

The move is significant because no other broadcast network has yet made its prime-time programs available for live viewing everywhere in the country. Fox programming is now available for live streaming on Fox.com and through the Fox Now app on mobile devices and set-top streaming boxes. That arrangement distinguishes Fox's plan from those such as CBS All Access, a service that gives viewers access to CBS programming but that requires a monthly subscription fee. There are limitations to the Fox service, however; the programming is only accessible to verified cable TV subscribers, and sports programming will not be live streamed through the same channels.

Still, Fox's initiative looks like the first step toward live, all-access streaming of network TV, a situation that would finally make the online, on-demand streaming experience comparable to old-fashioned broadcast and cable TV.