Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018 • Hacker News Board

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#31

Post by smacktoward » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:32 PM UTC

kodablah wrote: post #3

I wish they would spend more money on finding old films and digitizing them. There have to be vaults of old Italian films that don't have significant licensing costs. Sure, I may represent a small segment of their paying customers, but I find myself using Amazon's video service more and more because of this. To me, a newly released old movie has similar value to a newly released new movie, and I bet the former can co…

The problem is that there is also a vanishingly small audience of people who want to watch old Italian films (or old films from anywhere, really).

The mass audience only cares about the new releases. This has been true since the dawn of home video; anyone who ever browsed the shelves of a Blockbuster store will remember how lopsided the selection was -- entire walls filled with copies of the latest releases, a few shelves with movies released over the last ten years, practically nothing farther beyond that. They didn't stock that way because they wanted to, they stocked that way because recent movies where what their customers wanted to rent.

Even universally-acknowledged classics are hard to market to the mass audience -- there are tons of people who flat out refuse to watch anything in black and white, for instance.

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#32

Post by TallGuyShort » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:33 PM UTC

wmf wrote: post #22

dcole2929 wrote: post #15

I think it's important to note that this is not by choice, but rather the only path left to Netflix now that studios have realized the value of their catalogs to streaming. Netflix originally made a bunch of content deals that made them the sole streamer of entire backlogs of syndicated material. It worked out great for them and pretty decently for the studios too, but after Netflix's success the studios now realize…

At least you can aggregate most of the streaming "channels" though Amazon so you don't have to use a bunch of different apps.

As long as the service doesn't start sucking (like other monopolies and government services), I think there are a lot of benefits to being able to stream through an established player: it's not just about licensing all the content people want to watch. Supporting a lot of devices (I care about Linux support, A LOT), having agreements to cache content locally with ISPs to ensure performance, etc. I wouldn't mind having a different 4-5 apps for different shows, or switching services every few months. But if everyone went solo and they were all still figuring out how to support everyone's device and how to scale? Not gonna bother.

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#33

Post by smacktoward » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:35 PM UTC

JustSomeNobody wrote: post #7

I get why they feel they need to do this, but I hate the trend of everyone taking their ball and going home. I loved how with Netflix, I had most of the content I would want right there on a single service. Note to content providers: I'm not going to have Disney, Netflix, HBO, CBS, Hulu, etc subscriptions. It's just not going to happen. I'll do without first.

> Note to content providers: I'm not going to have Disney, Netflix, HBO, CBS, Hulu, etc subscriptions. It's just not going to happen.

The history of cable TV, in which people happily paid $100+ for a bundled content package, suggests otherwise.

My guess is that eventually streaming content will go the same route. When the providers realize that there's not enough dollars out there to support everybody having ten $10/month content subscriptions, they'll start merging and there will be a race to see which one can put together the first bundle that most people will consider "good enough."

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#34

Post by dagw » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:36 PM UTC

natoliniak wrote: post #25

JustSomeNobody wrote: post #7

I get why they feel they need to do this, but I hate the trend of everyone taking their ball and going home. I loved how with Netflix, I had most of the content I would want right there on a single service. Note to content providers: I'm not going to have Disney, Netflix, HBO, CBS, Hulu, etc subscriptions. It's just not going to happen. I'll do without first.

I sense a resurrection of torrenting and ironically enough, DVD rentals. BTW, Netflix still has a very rich library of streaming content, but in other world regions. A good global VPN service and some DNS tweaks will unlock a ton of streaming content.

A good global VPN service and some DNS tweaks will unlock a ton of streaming content.

Can you recommend something the works? I used to have a couple of different ones, but Netflix got really good a blocking VPNs a while back so I kind of gave up.

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#35

Post by andrewla » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:39 PM UTC

wmf wrote: post #22

dcole2929 wrote: post #15

I think it's important to note that this is not by choice, but rather the only path left to Netflix now that studios have realized the value of their catalogs to streaming. Netflix originally made a bunch of content deals that made them the sole streamer of entire backlogs of syndicated material. It worked out great for them and pretty decently for the studios too, but after Netflix's success the studios now realize…

At least you can aggregate most of the streaming "channels" though Amazon so you don't have to use a bunch of different apps.

Hulu has started offering this as well -- HBO, in particular, doesn't really care about the streaming platform per se so much as making the content available. I think this is likely to be a path that others will take to take advantage of the fact that consumers may have a preference, and HBO would prefer to offer a nice standalone app, but perfectly happy to let customers choose Amazon/Hulu etc., for customers who prefer a different or integrated experience.

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#36

Post by AFNobody » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:42 PM UTC

Afforess wrote: post #29

dcole2929 wrote: post #15

I think it's important to note that this is not by choice, but rather the only path left to Netflix now that studios have realized the value of their catalogs to streaming. Netflix originally made a bunch of content deals that made them the sole streamer of entire backlogs of syndicated material. It worked out great for them and pretty decently for the studios too, but after Netflix's success the studios now realize…

You're right, but I am not sure this is the end. We are entering a "streaming content desert" where every content-maker tries to make their own Netflix. Consumers will buy subscriptions to the top 3, at best. Most probably won't go beyond Amazon Prime and Netflix. In five or ten years, when the data finally rolls in that these disparate services are not making anything, have shoddy reviews from hastily-coded backends…

The hilarious thing is this is going to drive people back to engaging in piracy on various levels (i.e. ripping streaming shows for personal use and/or organized piracy groups).

The main reason for piracy's decline is $20/month for a couple streaming services is less hassle for most people in the 1st world. They are restoring the incentives that led to its rise. Its quite hilarious.

I mean if eztv hadn't been taken over I'd be going to them right now because I'm tired of the balkanization of streaming services now that even Hulu is getting knifed in the back like Netflix is. As the knives come out and the backstabbing continues because "its worth money", people will be pushed back into doing that.

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#37

Post by kodablah » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:42 PM UTC

smacktoward wrote: post #31

kodablah wrote: post #3

I wish they would spend more money on finding old films and digitizing them. There have to be vaults of old Italian films that don't have significant licensing costs. Sure, I may represent a small segment of their paying customers, but I find myself using Amazon's video service more and more because of this. To me, a newly released old movie has similar value to a newly released new movie, and I bet the former can co…

The problem is that there is also a vanishingly small audience of people who want to watch old Italian films (or old films from anywhere, really). The mass audience only cares about the new releases. This has been true since the dawn of home video; anyone who ever browsed the shelves of a Blockbuster store will remember how lopsided the selection was -- entire walls filled with copies of the latest releases, a few sh…

I agree the audience is currently small, but I don't agree it is getting smaller. People rediscover eras and genres.

The good part for Netflix vs Blockbuster is that this is a one-time cost and it will be digitized forever. You don't have to market it to a mass audience or attempt to determine the number of VHSs you'd have to create. I don't think they need to market it at all. Just do it. Surely it is only a fraction of the cost of having Will Smith in a Police-Alien movie and it'll boost your catalog.

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#38

Post by dx420 » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:43 PM UTC

Afforess wrote: post #29

dcole2929 wrote: post #15

I think it's important to note that this is not by choice, but rather the only path left to Netflix now that studios have realized the value of their catalogs to streaming. Netflix originally made a bunch of content deals that made them the sole streamer of entire backlogs of syndicated material. It worked out great for them and pretty decently for the studios too, but after Netflix's success the studios now realize…

You're right, but I am not sure this is the end. We are entering a "streaming content desert" where every content-maker tries to make their own Netflix. Consumers will buy subscriptions to the top 3, at best. Most probably won't go beyond Amazon Prime and Netflix. In five or ten years, when the data finally rolls in that these disparate services are not making anything, have shoddy reviews from hastily-coded backends…

Disney owns Hulu FYI https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hulu#Business_history

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#39

Post by dewey » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:44 PM UTC

kodablah wrote: post #28

nathan_long wrote: post #18

Online movie services are a disappointment because the selection is terrible. Go to IMDB.com. Pick a random movie. Click on the director to see more movies by him or her. Choose one. Click the lead actor to see more movies with him or her. Choose one. Click the studio to see more movies by them. Choose one. Why can't I do this with any streaming service? There's no decent search and filter ability because there's not…

I regularly use https://www.justwatch.com for looking up movies. But its scraping abilities leave a lot to be desired; they are often wrong. And the data is not very transparent (e.g. historical data). I have considered creating an alternative. And have the client choose the streaming services they have like JustWatch. However, for unavailable movies, have a "I'd watch this if it were streaming for me" button. Then I…

> But its scraping abilities leave a lot to be desired; they are often wrong.

If you spot any mistakes, especially ones that are consistent and happen frequently (wrong price on a provider,...) feel free to email us at data-police@justwatch.com and we'll take a look. We are very responsive when it comes to that and are constantly improving our scraping infrastructure to stay as accurate as possible. Unfortunately it'll always be a bit of catching up if you scrape hundred of third party providers in more than 30 countries that constantly change their APIs or websites :)

As for the "notification" system. That's definitely something that we think about, stay tuned!

Disclaimer: I work on the JW scraper

Re: Netflix plans to spend $8B to make its library 50 percent original by 2018

#40

Post by ocdtrekkie » Mon, Jan 22, 2018, 10:54 PM UTC

hyperhopper wrote: post #12

ocdtrekkie wrote: post #2

This is something I expect them to reach fairly quickly, not necessarily through new content: Netflix has steadily carried less and less content from other companies as long as I've been a subscriber. They carry least-common-denominator content in the back catalog plus a few limited time recent movies to keep people hooked. What I've realized is most well-regarded, award-winning film cannot be found on Netflix. They…

The problem is though, is that by doing this it is no longer the service that originally attracted many users: a one stop service to watch the things I want to watch. It is just becoming the internet equivalent of an unlimited on-demand cable channel.

True, but the reality is: Disney is going their own way. HBO, DC, CBS are all going their own way. The idea of a "one stop shop", also known as a monopoly doesn't make sense as soon as the market is large enough for multiple players.

Netflix doesn't want to pay the prices they'd have to in order to remain a one-stop shop, it certainly isn't practical at $9.99 a subscription.

There's no way the $100 a month cable subscription was suddenly going to be replaced by a $10 a month subscription. Now you can get CBS All Access, Netflix, Hulu, HBO GO, the new DC comics streaming service, the new Disney streaming service, a couple more probably, and you'll still be paying $100 a month... just a la carte for the channels you want.