How to watch more TV for less

If you're sick of paying a high price to watch TV, watch out: The average monthly pay-TV bill could reach $123 by next year, and $200 by 2020, according to the NPD Group, a leading market research company.

However, some consumers aren't even sweating this news. That's because they've found ways to lower their TV costs. Wonder how they're doing it? Meet three families who are keeping their TV costs low…

Consumer #1: Combination of Aereo, Netflix, and Hulu

Cincinnati, Ohio's Andy Fortson, 28, and Marissa Hu, 27, get all the TV they need using Aereo, Hulu, and Netflix, which add up to about $25 a month.

"These three services give us access to basically all the TV we really need," says Fortson.

Aereo works through a small antenna and digital DVR (available for rent), and is controlled by the subscriber via the Internet. This gives customers access to live TV coverage from the major networks and local stations.

"For $8 a month I get live and DVR access to channels like NBC, ABC, CBS, FOX, PBS, and more," says Fortson. Aereo works on a variety of devices including tablets and laptops, and if you have an AppleTV or Roku, you can watch TV on an actual television. And that's exactly what Fortson and Hu do.

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"Usually we'll stream this through our iPhone or iPad and throw to our TV via Airplay on our Apple TV," says Fortson.

Fortson and Hu round out their TV selection with Hulu Plus at $7.99 monthly, and Netflix at $7.99 monthly, bringing their total TV costs to about $24 monthly.

Are three TV services really necessary?

Fortson says at the moment, yes, because each offers something unique.

"There are some shows on Hulu that I wouldn't be able to get on Aereo - Comedy Central for example," says Fortson. He says that Hulu Plus works with a number of channels. Fortson and Hu watch all new episodes via their Apple TV the day after the episode airs or at their own pace, and there are few commercials. And with Aereo, Fortson can watch sporting events like the Superbowl live.

Fortson and Hu like Netflix because it lets them "binge watch entire" series of shows. It also offers some great original programming, including "House Of Cards", "Lilyhammer," and" Orange Is The New Black."

"There is overlap in offerings with Netflix and Hulu and overlap with Hulu and Aereo, but for me each holds enough value that I don't mind paying $24 a month for all of them," he says.

Consumer #2: Do-It-Yourself Digital Antenna

For Brian and Cherie Lowe of Indianapolis, Indiana, a do-it-yourself mentality, Internet, and Netflix keeps their TV watching costs well under $50 a month.

To make their low-cost TV experience happen, the Lowes first tackled their Internet bill (though they don't really consider it a TV cost, since they would have it regardless).

"Our rate had been $66.95 and we called in January and bargained it down for a 6 month period," says Cherie. Their bargaining reduced their bill to $46.95 per month for high-speed Internet from Comcast.

They think it's a great deal considering they use it for a variety of activities, including work and streaming TV and movies via Netflix, which they pay $7.99 for.

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After they tackled their Internet bill, next on the list was a do-it-yourself (DIY) project.

"We made our own TV antenna for $3.49 out of a 2x4, coat hangers, washers, and some coaxial cable that pulls in all of our local channels and a few others," explains Cherie, a writer who shares her money-saving tips on her blog, Queen of Free.

She says that Brian learned to make the antenna with the help of a YouTube tutorial.

They now enjoy  local channels thanks to their DIY antenna, and TV shows and movies through their Netflix subscription.

Consumer #3: Downgrading their TV Package and Adding Netflix and Hulu

When their climbing cable TV bill reached $135 each month, Graeme Gibson and his family decided it was time for them to take action and reduce their costs.

Their first step was to call the cable company.

"I decided to try and save my family as much money as I could," says Gibson, a human relations manager in Seattle, Washington.

His goal was to keep his current package, but at the lowest cost he could negotiate. However when Gibson called to talk about downgrading his package, he was met with resistance from the customer service department.

"It was an extremely frustrating call and really I did not get anywhere until they connected me with the disconnection department," Gibson explains. At that point, Gibson expressed his desire to cut cable completely. To keep him, the representative gave him their best available option: A little-known package called "limited basic cable," which is not advertised by his service provider.

"The monthly cost is $10.95, but allows me access to all of the big network channels in HD," he says. Gibson says that the provider has since made it a requirement to have a digital box from them to receive this service, so he now pays $5.00 per month extra, for a total of $15.95.

And though they only have limited access to TV, the Gibsons are fine with it, as they supplement the limited basic cable TV service with streaming providers, Hulu and Netflix.

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"We have thousands of TV shows and movies available via Hulu, Netflix, and enough local content and sports via the basic limited package to make us happy," says Gibson.

Their monthly TV bill is $33.50 total, and is made up from Limited Basic Cable at $15.95, Netflix at 7.99, Hulu at 7.99, and includes taxes for the services.

"I now stream shows from my computer to my TV through my video game system and a ROKU," he says. Gibson uses his PS3 and a free app called Ps3 Media Server, to stream media from his computer to his television. "The cost of this is entirely free."

Gibson says the PS3 also has applications to stream Netflix and Hulu Plus, but also points out that many newer TVs can also run these applications without video game systems.

Overall, Gibson couldn't be happier with his family's new, low price.

With their previous cable bill of $135 per month ($1,620 yearly), they now save over a thousand dollars by watching TV via alternative methods.

"In total, our bill comes out to $33.50 per month, ($402 yearly) for a savings of $1,206.00 per year," he says.

"We have more than enough content to watch, and don't plan on switching back anytime soon. "

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Watch video below about cutting the cord and the rise of the internet TV: