Many people must have noticed that there is a widening variety of streaming platforms. Netflix proved that customers want streaming and now all the media companies want to get in before it’s too late. Many are already in.

Let’s be honest – almost every household has a provider giving them cable tv, phone, and internet. Most commonly the same company provides all 3 services and a household has only a few companies to pick from. This could all change with 5G technology.

I expect the cost of the 3 services (cable tv, internet, and phone) to stay the same but will migrate into a single product possibly data consumption based. Essentially, a household only needs internet. A cable box is basically a computer and a drive at this point anyway.

As wireless become faster and faster a household could possibly have the same performance compared to a wired setup. The home/business internet router will become the go to, most powerful, and relied upon device in a home and business. The device will need to be very secure. People come home and connect to their house and when they go out they also want to stay connected via video cameras and more.

A consumer should really think about the major players that come up when thinking about what companies are already connected in your home. Comcast , Google , Amazon , AT&T , Verizon , Century Link, and more.

On to the streaming wars.

Cable channels are becoming Apps and those apps are available on any device a consumer chooses. So, wait a moment and think, how long will it be before someone can go anywhere and literally log in and get all their services like at home? Your channels, apps, lock codes, and Alexa even knows you’re away and keeps you in sync with your home. A hotel, rental, Airbnb , and even work office could be a real home away from home. In 5 to 10 years this scenario may be expected by a consumer – imagine seeing ‘HomeConnect’ as a feature at a hotel or vacation home.

A consumer has so many options but it is becoming a fee for this one, that one, and the one your wife wants, and the one your kids want. Sure enough a consumer has multiple streaming services connected and paid for – locked in at a monthly rate most people forget about. Hey, 10 bucks a few times is better than a big line item from a cable provider bundled services cost. But, wait, that cost is still there too!! Cable providers will need to bring their base costs down and break out individual app costs to retain the same revenue from their customers.

The Most Popular Show – the new Power Player. Just don’t forget about the 3 players you are already hooked on that will serve up your show – Google’s YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon’s Prime Video.

It’s no mystery why Roku is so valuable – they have the next cable box and it fits in your pocket. Amazon has the fire TV device. Major cable providers will very likely slim down their device size in the next few years. Expect external storage devices to be a required item for a household… possibly per person. A household will need to buy/rent one from their cable provider or purchase on their own. Every home will have some kind of data warehouse and/or a cloud data warehouse.

I expect there to be a massive series of acquisitions placing many streaming services into bundled packages. Unlike traditional cable bundles these newer bundles will be much more customizable. If internet streaming service and connections in general do become fast enough then services could be fully streamed and paid for by usage. For example, “you watched 4 hours of Peacock this month out of your 8 hour package”.

Breakdown

People need TVs, monitors, tablets, and phones. No change there except that many people may have one or more of each device.

People need internet. This comes to a home and directly to a connected device. Major cable/internet providers. Major wireless providers.

People need their shows, music, social networks, news, and work/personal schedule constantly available on their device.

People need secure storage. People need accessible from anywhere storage more and more.

People need network security.

People want it all and they want it now.

More and more people may need glasses at an earlier age. Or a really big TV.

Overall, I expect Amazon to remain strong and be relied on by people for multiple services. All major internet providers stand to become stronger. Wireless internet quality is currently very reliable and because of this I don’t expect a single wireless provider to rise above other providers. All streaming services stand to gain as long as prices to consumers go down instead of up. A streaming service increasing costs could set itself up to fail.

Google , Amazon , Roku , and Apple should be watched very closely. These power players will likely be leading the acquisitions and they have the cash to do it.