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Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

media.netflix.com

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Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#411

Post by wtmt »

nitin88g wrote: post #367

Atleast in India, it will not take off. Present internet facilities in India will not be able to serve this. At an avg HD streaming of a movie in netflix for 2hrs takes around 3GB bandwidth. In India, except Hyderabad, any major city the internrt charges are so high that no one adopts it. For ex: in Bangalore, for 2000rs, you get 20mbps connection capped at 50Gb and after that its 8mbps only. If I take BSNL, for 2000…

Are you living in an area with bad connectivity and very few providers or just a single provider? Even 8Mbps is a great speed for streaming HD videos. If the high speed data cap is your limitation, then you should consider airtel or ACT. For the last few years, they have had plans that provide a whole lot more for the amount you quote and at speeds ranging from 16Mbps to 100Mbps.

Also, the basic Netflix subscription is only for SD quality, which can easily take off (heck, people have been watching crappy quality videos on 2G for many years). As others have pointed out, Netflix does not need a lot of bandwidth. Of course, the quality will vary, but you definitely don't need a 40Mbps or 100Mbps connection.

Pricing, however, is a huge factor. Having people put in 500 or more a month for a limited set of content is going to be a challenge for Netflix.

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#412

Post by thesimon »

dopu wrote: post #405

This headline reminded me of Smartflix [0] -- lets you access the entire Netflix catalogue, regardless of your location. Surprised that Netflix lets something like this exist. [0]: https://www.smartflix.io

>Netflix lets something like this exist

It's not like they can ban Chrome or VPNs

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#413

Post by nordify »

thegenius2000 wrote: post #409
sailfast wrote: post #43

What is missing in a lot of these comments is acknowledging that Netflix may become the largest global "television" network in the world as adoption increases. They have original content lined up and control those rights, and they will continue to expand their reach with that content. Whether they add the "same" streaming content as they have purchased from other providers in the US is not the point here - the big im…

I agree with what a lot of people have mentioned, though not focused on: Netflix needs to add sports if they want to really dominate at a global level. As an example, consider Africa (I'm Kenyan): the Barclays Premiere League is watched in virtually every country, but provided by one company, known as MultiChoice. Because almost everyone wants to watch football, and there is only one option, if they can afford it, th…

Counterpoint: nobody really cares that much about footy around here. Furthermore sports are quite useless as on-demand content. Netflix isn't synonymous with live TV.

Why waste a lot of money on very expensive content that does not scale and does not fit the Netflix profile?

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#414

Post by prostoalex »

jsmeaton wrote: post #334
LordKano wrote: post #260

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I'm of the belief that the better actors are paid far too much The market decides these things. It's difficult to argue that there isn't enough profit on a movie that has grossed over 1.5 billion dollars in three weeks to pay A-list actors A-list salaries. A-list actors don't make that kind of money because movie studios are generous. They make it because their presence puts butts in seats. Sure, the "Star Wars" name…

> The market decides these things Right, and I think the market is unfairly inflated at the moment, and has been for a long time. Movie ticket prices have more than doubled in the last ~ 10 years. The presence of streaming new blockbuster movies is likely to disrupt the traditional cinema if it is allowed to get off the ground . And that's basically the point I'm trying to make. If movies were to transition into the…

> viciously increasing cycle of actor demands more -> prices go up -> more gross is made -> actor demands more.

That's not exactly how movie economics works. The script calls for a male character, 30-40 years old, good-looking as he's the subject of romantic story. The casting operation calls a few agents and comes back with data that Tom Cruise will want $3m, Ryan Philippe will want $2m, some known actor who's currently in a TV series wants $500k, or a no-name actor showing promise will do it for $80k.

It's up to the studio heads and producers to circle down on an option they consider reasonable. They are aware that a portion of movie revenues is generated by having a brand-name actor, i.e., there will be 200,000 extra tickets sold if Tom Cruise's name is on it. Tom Cruise is also aware of this dynamics, which explains the premium.

But it's also not that simple. Actors like to pretend they're in this industry for the sake of "art", not "money", which means that if you have an interesting script and an "artistic" director with a potential of making to Sundance or Cannes, you might then get a brand-name actor for essentially free (you'll have to pay some union-mandated salary). Every big name actor has this "artistic" no-budget movie in his belt, to showcase their "range" and to signal to public that it ain't about the money, which leads to more public attention and larger check for the next franchise movie, as the actor is still "hot".

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#415

Post by thesimon »

the_mitsuhiko wrote: post #159
charlesdm wrote: post #131

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maestro isn't a credit card, it's a debit card. Probably worth getting a decent credit card !

Maestro can also be used online though. There is a credit card number on the back of it. But barely anyone supports it.

Depends on the country where the card is issued.

Most of the shitty German banks issue a German domestic card with a Maestro cobranding, but don't allow Card-not-present transactions so they can upsell credit cards.

I agree though that not a lot of online shops support payment with Maestro, MasterCard Debit, Visa Debit and to a lesser extend Visa Electron are used a lot more than Maestro.

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#416

Post by c3o »

antman wrote: post #152

Somebody should tell Netflix that the EU is a unified market by law that does not exempt any digital service. So they had to sell to all EU countries right from the start. At least the whole story with the vpns can stop. (Unless you live in Greece...) http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/shopping/buyi... ""For these types of services, and others, you have the right to buy from a service provider located in…

"the EU is a unified market by law"

Unfortunately, copyright is not unified in the EU. VOD companies need to clear the licenses of every single bit of copyrighted content 28 times to be able to legally offer something on the "unified market" online.

The European Commission has announced they want to improve the "digital single market" and are reviewing copyright, but unfortunately the copyright industry is completely blocking any meaningful harmonisation. The publishing and film industries are literally arguing having 1 EU copyright would instantly kill the EU creative economy and cultural diversity as a whole, so politicians dare not make a move – and the anachronism of digital borders will persist.

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#417

Post by prostoalex »

sorich87 wrote: post #410
prostoalex wrote: post #408

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why is HBO a follower here? They did original content for as long as they existed, and HBO Now has been available globally for a while now.

How can I access HBO globally? I see at the bottom of their website "HBO NOW is only accessible in the U.S. and certain U.S. territories where a high-speed broadband connection is available."

My bad, when it first came out all my foreign friends were raving at availability of Game of Thrones. Looks like they all had a proxy setup.

Grandparent comment is right, Netflix is the trailblazer.

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#418

Post by jon-wood »

Cymen wrote: post #110
rconti wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Netflix's catalog(ue) is a shadow of its former self. I'm a Netflix subscriber, and can pretty much guarantee that any movie I attempt to watch will NOT be available on Netflix streaming. I have somewhat better luck with the previous episodes of American TV shows.

My theory is we, as subscribers, have hit rock bottom or close to rock bottom in terms of content on Netflix that is not produced by Netflix. This is okay with me. I like Netflix content. But I think Netflix original content is a stick that is useful. It proves Netflix itself can survive without licensing content, that globally available content is useful (see all the people trying to use VPNs to get content availabl…

It's not included for free on prime, but you can get House of Cards and some other Netflix produced shows on Amazon video if you're willing to pay for it.

Re: Netflix Is Now Available Around the World

#419

Post by c3o »

jakozaur wrote: post #2

Oh, yeah! I just wonder if movie selection is the same, or if in some countries there are more titles. Anyone got information on that? I pay for proxy service just to "pretend" to be in USA and than pay the Neflix regular price. I believe a lot of ppl will subscribe to Netflix once no additional tricks are required.

The territoriality of copyright (and movie industry business models) prevents them from offering the same selection for anything but their self-produced content: Rights need to be cleared separately for every country, and global licenses are pretty much unheard of today.
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