Sling Letting Non-Subscriber Sample Shows, Buy Channels Like Showtime à La Carte

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Sling TV is letting non-subscribing Roku users sample shows from Showtime and other suppliers without giving up a credit card number.

Using the Sling Channel within the Roku ecosystem, viewers can watch single episodes of series including Showtime’s “Shameless,” “The Affair,” “Billions” and “Ray Donovan,” as well as select shows from other suppliers, without offering up a credit card or email address.

Of course, this is a mere enticement. Users get to see one episode under these free and easy terms. If they want to binge on what they just saw, they have to pull out a credit card and sign up for a free Sling TV trial.

Sling TV is also allowing non-subscribers to sign up for a la carte subscriptions to Showtime and NBA League Pass, as well as SVOD channels like Curiosity Stream and Docurama. The virtual MVPD also says non-subscribers have access through its platform to pay-per-view programming, such as UFC events.

Dish Network’s Sling TV ended the third quarter with 2.237 million users, making it the largest virtual pay TV service. Subscriber growth, however, has slowed significantly of late. 

Daniel Frankel
Daniel Frankel

Daniel Frankel is the managing editor of Next TV, an internet publishing vertical focused on the business of video streaming. A Los Angeles-based writer and editor who has covered the media and technology industries for more than two decades, Daniel has worked on staff for publications including E! Online, Electronic Media, Mediaweek, Variety, paidContent and GigaOm. You can start living a healthier life with greater wealth and prosperity by following Daniel on Twitter today!