NESN, the regional sports network of the Boston Bruins and Red Sox, put out warnings to fans that the Sony PlayStation Vue virtual MVPD has indicated it will drop the network at 5 p.m. ET today (April 19), ahead of the fifth game of the NHL Bruins' playoff series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. Here's one warning on NESN's Twitter feed:

[embed]https://twitter.com/RealJackEdwards/status/1119217463340802048[/embed]

PS Vue also carries NESN's national feed but is mostly of concern to subscribers in the six New England states minus Fairfield County, Conn., which shows Bruins and MLB Red Sox games (schedule). A NESN-sponsored tweet said the network offered a 30-day extension but PS Vue declined. (Update: the tweet was by Jack Edwards, the Bruins play-by-play announcer, and he and NESN said later the offer was for 21 days.) NESN is owned by Fenway Sports Group (Red Sox) and Delaware North (Bruins).

PlayStation Vue, Sony’s OTT-TV service, is broadening its reach by extending support to Android TVs (Android OS 4.4 or higher), with plans to add support for PC and Mac Web browsers “soon.”

PS Vue on Web browsers will include some unique features, including a “mini-player” that lets viewers shrink the player to the corner of the browser window and continue browsing the PS Vue service, Dan Myers, head of product at PS Vue, explained in this blog post.

Notably, consumers can sign up for PlayStation Vue via the web for both devices without the need of a PlayStation console, Sony said.

RELATED: PlayStation Vue Goes National With ‘Slim’ Packages

The addition of Android TVs (Sharp and Sony make them) and coming support for PC and Mac browsers, PS Vue is also compatible with PS4 and PS3 consoles, Roku devices, iOS and Android smartphones and tablets, Amazon Fire TV boxes and the Fire TV Stick, and the Google Chromecast streaming adapter.

Update: Sony confirmed that PS Vue will work with all Android TV devices equipped with Android OS 4.4 and up, including devices such as the Nvidia Shield. 

RELATED: PlayStation Vue Launches Android Mobile App

Speaking at the recent Next TV Summit in New York, Dwayne Benefield, VP and head of PS Vue, said the OTT-TV service is attracting millennials as well as families with children as it introduced a nationwide multichannel offering and as the service expands support to a broader range of streaming platforms and devices.

PlayStation Vue, Sony’s OTT-TV service that debuted in March 2015 in a set of markets, has more than 100,000 subs, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, including one that put the total at about 120,000.

Sony, the report said, has seen the rate of subscriptions rise since it launched a trio of “Slim” pay TV packages that are available on a national basis rather than limited to a small batch of markets.  Last month, Sony confirmed last month that PlayStation Vue now offers the local feeds of ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC in all of their respective owned-and-operated markets.

PS Vue recently teamed on asubscription drive promo with ESPN that’s running during the Euro 2016 soccer tournament.

While 100,000-plus subscribers doesn’t yet make PlayStation Vue a major pay TV provider, it does inch it closer to another virtual MVPD, Sling TV, which had more than 600,000 subs, per a report from The Wall Street  Journal in February. Bloomberg said that number has since surpassed 700,000.

In addition to the launch of national multichannel packages alongside some a la carte options, PS Vue has been expanding its device reach. It launched an app for Roku players and Roku TVs earlier this month, adding to existing support on PlayStation 3 and PS4 consoles, Amazon Fire TV boxes and the Fire TV Stick, iOS devices (the PS Vue mobile app), and the Google Chromecast (initially via  iOS devices). Sony is close to launching a PS Vue app for Android smartphones and tablets.

PS Vue, which offers a cloud DVR, markets three packages: Access ($29.99 per month, or $39.99 in cities with major live local broadcast stations); Core ($34.99//$44.99); and Elite ($44.99/$54.99). It also offers standalone/a la carte services such as Showtime, Machinima, Fox Soccer Plus, and “Premium Pack” bundle (Showtime and Epix Hits).

Even with its device diversity and national pay TV packages, some analysts remain unconvinced that PS Vue can rise to the level of becoming a major OTT platform in part because its offerings are not materially cheaper than services from traditional MVPDs.

Several others are developing or rumored to be developing virtual MVPD offerings, including Apple, Samsung, YouTube, Amazon, and Hulu, which plans to launch an OTT-TV service next year.

Sony PlayStation Vue is looking to change the pay TV game with this week's launch of new set of “Slim” packages that are available on a national basis.

Unlike PS Vue’s multichannel service packages offered in the offering’s initial seven markets (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Dallas and Miami), Sony’s new Slim packs don’t offer access to live local broadcast TV signals. However, Sony is trying to get around that by offering next-day VOD access to shows from NBC, Fox and ABC (with content from CBS becoming available at a later date) as it looks to hammer out deals with station groups that could eventually broaden its ability to deliver local signals.

Still, PS Vue’s programming gaps (A+E Networks aren’t yet part of the mix, either) and current device limitations (it's currently supported on the PS3, PS4, Amazon Fire TV platform, an app for iPads and iPhones, and optimized for the Google Chromecast adapter, with support for additional platforms in the works) leave one analyst wondering if the OTT service will be successful in breaking out and becoming a major factor in the shifting pay TV landscape.

“To us, the biggest questions on Sony’s product remain price and the broadcast network stream outside of the initial seven market rollout,” MoffettNathanson said Monday in a blog post. “In the 203 other markets, the $30 price point looks enticing, but it does not include live broadcast network content such as news and sports or CBS on-demand content at this point in time.  At the $40 dollar offering, the offering is robust, but not materially cheaper than a traditional TV package. Additionally, in order to use Sony Vue customers need to have a Playstation 3 or 4 or Amazon Fire TV device as well as a standalone broadband subscription.  Putting this all together, we remain skeptical that Sony’s Vue will develop into a major OTT platform.”

Live locals outside the broadcasters’ O&O markets “remain the biggest holdup for a true nationwide OTT offering,” the MoffettNathanson added, noting that the pricing on the new Slim packages (Access Slim/ $29.99 per month; Core Slim/$34.99 per month; and Elite Slim/$44.99 per month) “effectively prices the live-streaming portion of the broadcast networks in the $2.50 per channel range.”

In its analysis of Sony Vue’s base package, which consists of 54 cable networks, and marrying them up to Nielsen reach data, MoffettNathanson calculates that almost 80% of the OTT-TV’s channels are in the top 50.

But the firm also point out that unlike Sling TV, a skinny-bundle OTT-TV service that starts at $20 per month, Sony’s PS Vue has some differentiators and feature advantages such, including a cloud DVR and rights for up to five simultaneous streams. Sling TV’s service allows multiple streams for some, but not all, channels in its live TV lineup.

So, it appears that PS Vue’s latest national move represents a nice step forward, but that it still has a ways to go before completing its journey to become a true threat to cable operators and other traditional MVPDs. 

Taking a page from the Sling TV playbook, Sony has been offering a free Amazon Fire TV Stick to subs who sign up for one of two PlayStation Vue multichannel packages – “Core” and “Elite.”

PS Vue extended access to the  Fire TV box and Fire TV Stick last month, and began to pitch the Fire TV Stick bundle on November 15, according to the service’s web site.

Per the fine print, new Core and Elite subs are in line for one Fire TV Stick per PS Vue account so long as they convert their free trials to paid subscriptions. Eligible subs receive a code that can be redeemed at Amazon.com for the streaming device through Jan. 15, 2016. Of course, they’ll also need have an account with Amazon.

Sony, which has not released PS Vue subscriber figures, also recently cut the price of its Core and Elite packages by $5 per month. Core currently sells for $54.99 per month, while Elite fetches $64.99 per month. PS Vue’s entry-level Access tier (steady at $49.99 per month) is not part of the Fire TV Stick promo.

But the Fire TV Stick tie-in is another example of how a new class of virtual MVPDs are bundling their services with streaming devices.

Sling TV, Dish Network’s OTT-TV service, is currently offering $50 off an Amazon Fire TV box or a Roku 3 player or a free Roku Streaming Stick to new subs who prepay for three months of service, which starts at $20 per month.

Sony PlayStation Vue has added another streaming platform to its lineup as it followed through with anticipated support for Google’s Chromecast streaming adapter.

Sony said PlayStation Vue, its over-the-top multichannel pay TV service, is initially offering support for Chromecast via compatible iOS devices.

Sony announced planned support for the Chromecast in November as it extended support for PS Vue on the Amazon Fire TV box and Fire TV Stick. PS Vue is also offered on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4 consoles and via an app for iPads and iPhones.

Sony, which recently struck an important carriage deal with Disney-ESPN, has not released subscriber figures, but said that PS Vue’s daily average viewership currently exceeds five hours.

A Sony official also noted that 75% of PS Vue subs are 18-34 years old, and that the average time spent “per play” (selection of content) on PS Vue is now 45 minutes, a figure that plays on the platform’s personalization and discovery features.

Sony PS Vue currently offers multichannel pay TV packages (with a cloud DVR)  in Dallas-Fort Worth; Miami-Fort Lauderdale; Chicago; Philadelphia; Los Angeles;  New York City; and San Francisco.

PS Vue’s three multichannel packages are: Access ($49.99 per month); Core ($54.99 per month), and Elite ($64.99). Sony has recently reduced the price on its Core and Elite packages by $5 per month, according to the service’s Web site.

PS Vue also offers select a la carte programming on a national basis, including Showtime’s OTT service, Fox Soccer Plus, and a new premium TV channel from Machinima. Epix Hits, a new channel that is paired with a VOD library, is also available on PS Vue as a premium pack with Showtime for $13.99 per month (or $11.49 for PlayStation Plus members), and in the PS Vue Elite tier, or as an add-on to the service's Access and Core packages.