sundancetv.com
Sundance is an American cable television network that features classic movies and TV shows. I have been watching it since I was a kid, and I can't imagine my life without it.
Today, Sundance remains one of the most consistent cable networks and also one of the most consistent streaming sites on the web. Offering a classy, user-friendly site that makes it easier than ever to enjoy all of the excellent Sundance content you like, whichever and whenever you like, SundanceTV.com is a must-see streaming site for any cable customer.
This excellent movie and television streaming site, Sundance, has a long history of providing some of the best content to air on cable television as well as being known for its annual film festival. The Sundance Film Festival is one of the most acclaimed and highly regarded celebrations of independent film in the United States and is held annually in Park City, Utah; Salt Lake City; and at the Sundance Resort.
So, what came first, the independent film festival or the television channel that aired it? The answer is that the Sundance Film Festival predates both. In fact, it started out as a way to showcase independent films exclusively on television, and has since grown into one of the most prestigious film festivals in the world.
Perhaps no cable TV channel has passed the test of time so easily as Sundance Channel. This is due to many factors, to be sure, but I would say that it boils down to a commitment to quality content. When you focus on primarily airing content that is timeless, well, you are bound to stick around, as far as I am concerned. But it was not only Sundance Channel?'s fastidious nature that kept them in the cultural conversation decade after decade, well into the 21st century. It was also their willingness to adapt to the times.
Had Sundance TV not been willing to adapt and embrace the digital world, they would have faded away into obscurity. However, because they were so eager toaccept the current digital world, they rebranded as Sundance TV and created one of the best premium streaming sites for cable subscribers today.
With Sundance TV, users can enjoy both on-demand movies and live TV streaming. This site offers both options so that users can have the best of both worlds. With on-demand streaming, users can watch anything that they have rights to at the moment. Additionally, live TV streaming gives viewers the ability to tune into what's currently playing on the Sundance channel.
History
Redford's career was on the decline at the time, and he had been passed up for partner at IFC. As a result of this disappointment, he decided to launch the Sundance Channel in 1996 with Showtime Networks and NBC Universal as partners.
Sundance Channel had a modest start, only airing in 5 key demographics at first: New York City; Los Angeles, California; Alexandria, Virginia; Chamblee, Georgia; and Pensacola, Florida. It began as a premium channel, often offered as a part of a bundle with Showtime and its sister channels, The Movie Channel and Flix.
The owners of rival network IFC were not happy to see Sundance coming after their viewers, though. So, once again, IFC swooped in to screw over Robert Redford. They acquired Sundance on May 7, 2008 for a reported $496 million. It was not all bad, though, because this acquisition also came the introduction of original programming on the Sundance Channel.
On January 27, 2014, the Sundance Channel announced that it was changing its name to Sundance TV. This change became official on February 1, 2014. 2014 was a big year for Sundance TV's original programming.
The Sundance Channel released its fourth original miniseries (The Honourable Woman) and its second original scripted series (The Red Road). Additionally, in 2014, the Sundance Channel introduced its first two reality series (Loredana and ESQ) while also bringing back new seasons of The Writer's Room, Rectify, and The Returned.
As of 2021, SundanceTV's list of original programming is extensive and diverse, offering a wide variety of series for all walks of life.
Design
The Sundance TV website design is respectfully sparse. It has a very classy and stripped down feel to it. This is something that I always look for in good website design - minimalism - and I think that Sundance TV has pulled it off flawlessly. In a word, this website is sparse, in the best way possible.
When you land on the home page, a very large banner will greet you. This banner will be advertising some kind of featured content (when I visited, it happened to be the latest season of a Sundance TV original reality series called The A Word about a family raising an autistic child). Scroll down and find a smattering of Sundance TV's Latest Episodes, which come fully equipped with the usual side-scrolling browsing function (a la Netflix and Hulu).
Now you can choose from a gallery of featured shows, each of which presents itself in a larger thumbnail than the aforementioned side-scrolling menu. The site showcases its dynamic and responsive user experience by showing off its expansion when you hover your cursor over a thumbnail.
Content and Features
As I mentioned earlier, Sundance TV is known for providing classic television shows and movies. When I visited the site, I browsed through titles that were available on-demand. Some of the titles that were available to stream included The Andy Griffith Show, Colombo, Perry Mason, Hogan's Heroes, Basic Instinct, Along Came a Spider, and Jerry Maguire. This should give you a good idea of the kind of content you can expect to find on Sundance TV.
Sundance TV allows users to watch its programming live, schedule their viewing in a way that best suits their time zone, and access extras and behind-the-scenes content not available on other platforms.
Mobile and Desktop Experience
Not every cable channel TV streaming site has cross-platform availability. However, Sundance TV is one of the most widely accessible ones there is. You can enjoy Sundance TV on iOS or Android devices, so that you can take your TV and movie streaming with you no matter where you happen to be. You can also take advantage of the Sundance TV app on Roku, Fire TV, and Apple TV as well.
Pricings and Plans
The biggest downside of Sundance TV, according to me, is that you need to be a customer of a cable company in order to access it. When you attempt to sign into Sundance TV, you will be prompted to find your cable provider; the only way to sign in is with your cable login info. This, of course, severely limits who can use Sundance TV - which is a shame, because it seems like such a promising streaming site.