Sony rolls out Vue, its own cord-cutting service, but no ABC or ESPN

The wheel is slowly, but inevitably, turning. Things started off with YouTube, then Netflix and House of Cards. Amazon rolled out Prime Video with original content like Transparent. More recently, we’ve seen the FCC move on net neutrality, rumors about a bundling service from Apple, HBO Now, and now Vue from Sony. Cord cutting is becoming easier and, I suspect, inevitable.

Sony Vue is limited to PlayStation 3 and 4, and is currently only available in Chicago, New York and Philadelphia. More interestingly, check this out:

For $50 a month, you’ll get 53 channels, including CBS, Fox, NBC, Bravo, CNN, Comedy Central, the Food Network, MTV, Nickelodeon and TNT. At $60 a month, you get access to a small handful of local sports networks, including New York’s YES and the Big Ten Network. And for $70 a month, you’ll be able to stream 26 more channels, such as FXM, Logo and Sprout.

Notably, Disney (DIS)-owned channels, including ABC and ESPN, are not currently available on the PlayStation.

That’s right, ABC and ESPN are not part of the package. As I argued in yesterday’s Amplified podcast, the days of network television ruling the roost are over.

We’re starting to see signs of splintering, with NBC said to be not yet part of Apple’s projected offering and now ABC being left out of Sony’s offering. To me, this fragmentation is the beginning of the end. A network without its constituent parts cannot stand.