CNN+ launched Tuesday bringing the news brand into the streaming arena as a paid service for the first time. The $5.99 per month service is offering users an early bird discount of $2.99 for life if they sign up now, so if you are a big CNN head keep that in mind. What does one get if they sign up for the service? A little bit of new and a lot of archived content.
The service as of today presents a lineup of live original news-based programs along with access to CNN’s many documentaries and specials. The service has almost a time capsule feel with numerous episodes of Larry King live available alongside memorials for fallen leaders. If someone was relevant for almost anything during his time on CNN Larry King interviewed them which means that the service could almost be used as a reference book for a student trying to learn more about a famous person from the past.
But when the service was launched a lot of people thought it would serve as a cord cutter option for CNN, in the way that HBO Max and HBO Now allowed cord-cutters to see everything that was on HBO without having cable. This is not the case with the service. While there are numerous shows with well-known CNN personalities and even a newcomer to the company, Chris Wallace (formerly of Fox News), the streamer is not a cheap alternative way to tune in to Anderson Cooper 360, or Erin Burnette in the evening. The new content is produced for CNN+.
There is a way to access the company’s traditional news feeds including CNN, HLN, and CNN International, but it requires user authentication through a traditional style paid TV service. This includes Hulu with live TV and YouTube TV, but no other cable substitutes.
The service advertises availability on Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV, Roku and Samsung TV. At launch we could only access it on Fire TV despite updating each of our other platforms. CNN+ is also available via its website.
