TV As We Know It Is About To Change Forever

Nickelodeon announced Thursday that it will soon offer a streaming-only service, joining several other networks in the trend of unbundling from cable and offering content over the internet instead.

Viacom, Nickelodeon's parent company, didn't give too many details on the subscription service, but said more will come when it starts pitching to advertisers at upfronts in February.

Now you can add Nickelodeon to the growing list of networks that plan to offer over-the-top subscription services in 2015:

• HBO plans to break out its HBO GO service as a standalone service later this year. However, HBO hasn't said when the subscription service will launch, how much it will cost, or what features it'll have. (There's a chance you won't be able to watch everything HBO subscribers can today.)
• CBS will offer a streaming service later this year that costs $5.99 per month.
• DISH now offers a streaming live TV service called Sling TV. Sling TV lets you stream ESPN, TNT, TBS, and a handful of other cable networks for $20 per month. You don't need a cable or satellite subscription to use it.

This is a big story in the future of TV. Now that younger generations prefer to watch video online, big cable networks are figuring out ways to unbundle themselves from cable and offer programming over the web instead.

In the long run, this is good for you. Cable and satellite packages force you to pay for tons of channels you don't want to watch. With over-the-top subscription services, you can make sure you only get the programming you want to watch.

Plus, unbundling gives you more ways to watch your shows - on TVs, phones, tablets, computers, and whatever other gizmo you have that can connect to the internet.