> It's not because I don't want to pay for the content, I'd happily pay 2-3x under the right circumstances. It's because no one wants to take my money and provide the content I want without bundling it with drm, ads, dark patterns, insane region segmentation.

Can't help you with movies/Netflix, but in the case of Spotify, you could go back to buying mp3's. Google Play, Amazon, iTunes (aac format), etc will all sell you DRM Free tracks at $1.30 a piece, and the ad-free songs become yours forever to listen to however you wish.

> hostile subscription service experience on Spotify

???

I pay $14.99 a mo and my wife and I enjoy as much music as we can stomach. It's the one subscription I never even think about. Their service never goes down and they are constantly trying to improve the product.

> Sonarr + Couchpotato + Plex + Subsonic is somehow a more consumer-friendly experience than their 'legitimate' counterparts.

???

If you have the time to configure all of that stuff (and support it, and find pirated content) you need to seriously up your billable rate and reconsider the value of your time.

Then again if you just enjoy doing it yourself and running your own gear, that is fine too, but admit it. I don't think this has anything to do with the market being hostile.

Spotify is a great way to discover and browse music; but it kind of goes with the nature of streaming services that your access to their content is neither as reliable or as anonymous as playing files you’ve downloaded. Then again, major labels now provide lossless DRM free files through Qobuz, Juno Download, Beatport etc (although some region localisation still exists, but once you’ve bought the file that no longer affects you). Smaller labels operate through these platforms as well, and through Bandcamp (which is my favourite platform for buying music). So I do think the situation when it comes to legal access to digital music is much better than it ever was.

Bandcamp is definitely my favourite platform for buying music. No DRM, flac format available if that's your thing. Artists can put up both digital and physical merch.

Wish they had a more fully-featured experience for streaming music on PC. Downloading to play in foobar is a bit of a faff sometimes!

>> I have found myself flying the black flag again

I'm in the same boat(no pun intended), and also still pay for the subscriptions. I thought that more streaming services and more maturity(time passed) meant this situation would be improving - not degrading.

Physical media still exists for a lot of music, but I know first-hand that some music, collections/anthologies/compilations and playlists containing some original content are becoming increasingly digital-only. Check for an artist's profile on a music service that allows you to purchase and download the content. Bandcamp (no affiliation) is one such service. Then you can make your own physical or digital backups external to the service.

This is less than ideal, but it works for now.

So... I had a Spotify family subscription for me and my wife (2 persons... of course living under the same roof). Suddenly my wife lost her spotify premium functionality and asked me if I had cancelled.

Turns out Spotify invalidated her as part of my family plan and asked me to add her again. Cool.... I go to the config to add her and Spotify asks for her address and does not let me add her when putting her/my address... I don't remember what address did I enter when I opened spotify more than 5 years ago, and the stupid thing does not let you see your address (like, 1 field in a database, how hard is that?)

https://community.spotify.com/t5/Accounts/How-can-I-check-my...

Needless to say, I cancelled Spotify Family premium and went to Google Play Family plan. Great deal if you tell me.

There is so much good CC music out there, I don't feel the need to pay for a music service. Amongst Soundcloud, the Free Music Archive, Bandcamp, and Jamendo there are lifetimes of new music available for enjoyment out in the Creative Commons. When I find artists I truly enjoy, I prefer to support them directly.

I'm curious; what's the hostile subscription service experience you've encountered with Spotify?

I canceled Netflix a few months ago. Their catalog is really garbage now.

Feels great flying the black flag again with Plex.

Apple music is pretty good. Has basically everything I want, and you can add your own music via icloud too.

For movies, criterion collection is coming out with a streaming service, if that's your thing. I don't have netflix but I will have that.

> It's because no one wants to take my money and provide the content I want without bundling it with drm, ads, dark patterns, insane region segmentation, and manipulative cross-sell tactics.

I'm not sure if they'd satisfy these requirements, but I generally open paid Hulu more than I do Netflix. Google Play Music seems to cover everything Spotify does and there is no free option (so there are never ads), but it's Google, so it could go the way of Reader at any point.

I mean they’re obviously tracking your every move but I’ve subscribed to Google Music for years and never had any problems. Use it every day.