2015 is quickly shaping up to be the year of the cord cutter, with various media companies finally warming up to the concept of offering live streaming content. In the wake of Dish Network announcing a streaming cable service called Sling TV and Sony unveiling a similar platform in PlayStation Vue, NBC has decided to stream the Super Bowl and all of its festivities online.
Before we get to all of the many ways you can stream Super Bowl 49 between the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks in Glendale, Arizona online, let's get NBC's estimated schedule out of the way first for Sunday, February 1st, 2015.
- 12:00 PM (ET) - Together We Make Football
- 1:00 PM (ET) - Pregame: Super Bowl XLIV
- 4:00 PM (ET) - Interview with President Obama
- 6:00 PM (ET) - Super Bowl XLIV
- 6:30 PM (ET) - Kickoff
- 8:00 PM (ET) - Halftime Show
- 8:30 PM (ET) - Second Half
- 10:00 PM (ET) - Postgame: Super Bowl XLIV
Watching from Your Computer
If you're using a PC, Mac, or Linux machine, watching Super Bowl 49 will be incredibly easy. Not only will NBC be streaming the game itself, but a full 11 hours of Super Bowl festivities will be broadcast live over the Internet. Just head to NBC Sports Live Extra, then click the Super Bowl banner near the top of the page.
The web version will have different Super Bowl commercials than the live TV broadcast, so the folks who usually tune in just for the ads will be disappointed. However, NBC will be uploading the ads to this Tumblr page immediately after they air.
If you have a display-out port on your computer, connect it to your TV to bring the game to your big screen. If you have a Chromecast and a solid internet connection, you can even try casting the tab that's showing the game using Chrome's Cast extension.
Watching from Your Mobile Device
This one's a bit tricky, since Verizon owns the exclusive rights to live NFL games on smartphones. On the other hand, this agreement does not extend to tablets, so there are two ways to watch on mobile devices.
First, if you're a Verizon Wireless customer, you can stream the game on your Android, BlackBerry, iOS, or Windows Phone smartphone using the NFL Mobile app. Smartphone users on other carriers do not have access to this service, but Android users with Adobe Flash installed can stream via the NBC Sports Live Extra site.
Similarly, Android users can try loading up the stream in "Desktop mode" to fool the site into thinking that you're browsing from a computer. Then, if your device supports it, you can mirror your display to your Chromecast or Miracast-enabled streaming hardware.
Simply hit the "Cast screen" option, either from your notification tray, or from Settings -> Display.
If you plan on watching from your iPad, iPod touch, Android tablet, or Windows 8 device, Verizon's exclusivity agreement does not apply to these devices. This means that you can simply download the NBC Sports Live Extra app to view the same stream offered through the website.
Watching from Region-Locked Countries
Folks who reside outside of the U.S. will more than likely be blocked from viewing NBC's stream, but that doesn't mean you don't have options.
UnoTelly will be offering free, no-strings-attached access to their popular Smart DNS service during the Super Bowl. To get started, head to this link, then provide an email address and create a password. If you already have an account, just log in.
From here, just scroll down the page a bit and find the setup instructions. Click the icon for your particular operating system, then UnoTelly will guide you through the process of unlocking the Super Bowl stream in your area.
How will you be watching the Super Bowl this year?
Images via NBC Sports Live, NFL, and Verizon Wireless
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