Stream On

Cord-cutters get another option as YouTube TV expands to Dallas-Fort Worth

Dallas-Fort Worth gets another streaming option.

Courtesy of YouTube TV

YouTube has expanded its internet-based television service to Dallas-Fort Worth. On Thursday, owner Google announced the expansion of YouTube TV to the Big D and nine other new U.S. markets, including Houston.

For $35 a month, with no contract required, subscribers can get more than 40 channels plus live local feeds from all major broadcasters, including CBS, FOX, and NBC Dallas affiliates. In DFW, ABC coverage is restricted to on-demand prime time programming, minus the local news.

Other favorites include popular cable networks ESPN, AMC, FX, E!, Telemundo, the CW, IFC, BBC America, Bravo, the Disney Channel, FOX News, and MSNBC (CNN is notably missing). Local sports networks from NBC Sports and Fox Sports are also included.

The other cities getting the recent full service are Atlanta, Phoenix, Detroit, Minneapolis-St. Paul, Miami-Ft. Lauderdale, Orlando-Daytona Beach-Melbourne, Charlotte, and Washington, D.C.

Aimed at cord-cutters, the service first launched in April in New York, Los Angeles, the San Francisco Bay Area, Philadelphia, and Chicago. It competes with such services as Dish’s Sling TV, AT&T’s DirecTV Now, Hulu’s live TV service, and Sony’s PlayStation Vue. Neilsen data reveals that half of YouTube TV's viewership is millennials aged 18-34; half of traditional TV viewers are over age 49.

Other YouTube TV features include:

Can be watched on any screen—mobile, tablet, or computer—and can be easily streamed to a TV with Google Chromecast or Chromecast built-in TV.
Works on both Android and iOS. YouTube TV recently enabled AirPlay support so Apple TV owners can stream on the big screen.
Includes a cloud DVR with no storage limits, so you can stream recordings on any device at any time. It also enables you to record live TV and never run out of storage space, plus record shows simultaneously without using data or space on your phone. Each recording will be stored for nine months.
Can watch up to three concurrent streams at a time.
Six accounts allowed per household.

Party Is Over

Party City chain to close all stores including 9 in Fort Worth

Party City

A chain of stores where the party is always going on is closing down: Party City will close all of its stores and has initiated layoffs, effective immediately. According to CNN, CEO Barry Litwin told corporate employees that Party City has to “commence a winddown process immediately,” and that Friday would be their last day of work for the company.

However, the actual store locations, including those around North Texas, will be open until February 28.

Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, Party City is largest party goods retailer in the U.S. — the go-to destination for every type of celebration, with more than 700 company-owned and franchise store locations across North America selling home decor, candles, balloons, wrapping paper, tableware, bulk candy, baking supplies, and more.

A typical Party City store ranges in size from 10,000 to 12,000 square feet and carries approximately 30,000 items. Halloween accounts for as much as one-quarter of yearly sales, but they celebrate all seasonal holidays, from New Year's Eve to the Fourth of July to Father's Day to Super Bowl Sunday, and offer a wide array of merchandise for birthday parties, bar mitzvahs, wedding and bridal showers, and baby showers.

Party and costume merchandise has become more competitive in recent years, with companies like the budget-focused Spirit Halloween expanding beyond its Halloween pop-ups into “Spirit Christmas” stores, as well as competition from Amazon and other online retailers.

In 2023, the chain filed for bankruptcy, then emerged with a plan that included transitioning into a privately held company and canceling nearly $1 billion in debt. At that time, there were approximately 800 U.S. stores.

There are 64 stores in Texas, with 9 in the Fort Worth area, as follows:

Arlington
Burleson
Denton
Euless
Fort Worth
Hurst
Lake Worth
Mansfield
Watauga

Dallas-Fort Worth stores have already started sales between 5 and 50 percent off.

holidays closings