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Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

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Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#301

Post by SilverRed »

BeFlatXIII wrote: post #209
cletus wrote: post #148

Here's the framework I use: "tech companies" are those where tech still plays a significant factor in the growth of the company such that it's important to an executive level. Example: Google is still a tech company. As much as some might view search as "solved" (just like it was when Google was founded I might add), search continues to get better. Tech still plays a significant role in the actual core business (ie a…

> search continues to get better Many here would dispute this claim. However, it may be that SEO spam has caught up and we're merely at the old equilibrium rather than worse than before the peak of Google usefulness.

SEO has gotten so bad. One other factor was the majority of the old internet was hand made. Someone took the time to either build the page from scratch or to type it in to some blog software. While now when you search for something very particular, you get pages with identical keywords but you click on them and they are auto generated and show generic content not exactly what you wanted.

It would be an almost impossible task to filter these out because they are specifically generated to look exactly like the content you are looking for.

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#302

Post by jamesfinlayson »

spoonjim wrote: post #196
cletus wrote: post #148

Here's the framework I use: "tech companies" are those where tech still plays a significant factor in the growth of the company such that it's important to an executive level. Example: Google is still a tech company. As much as some might view search as "solved" (just like it was when Google was founded I might add), search continues to get better. Tech still plays a significant role in the actual core business (ie a…

There is probably still a lot more AI/ML work to do at Netflix. For example if you are browsing through standup comedy specials and you see the trailer joke, and you skip to the next one, they know exactly where in the joke that comedian bombed for you. So for other people like you, they can show a different joke from their special, and for you they can build a profile of the kind of humor you like. Then if you start…

Agreed - the tile for Brooklyn Nine Nine when I'm signed in is Jake Peralta but for Mum it's Rosa Diaz.

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#303

Post by ipaddr »

ativzzz wrote: post #168
coding123 wrote: post #163

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If it's solved, why is the UI for any other content streamer as seamless on my roku as the Netflix one. All the others, I might as well be using a 13 channel rotary dial still. Even Prime sucks, just try rewinding or fast forwarding a minute and see how frustrating that is.

The problem is, for consumers, these minor technical issues don't matter as much as the content on the platforms. Yes, Netflix works much more smoothly than HBO, but we don't choose Netflix over HBO because of the quality of the video streaming app, but for the shows we actually want to watch.

But we do. There are a lot of shows I didn't see last time I subscribed to hbo that I would love to but selecting the next episode involved going through the UI over and over again it becomes an active activity. There is nothing I want to see on netflix but I keep it and end up watching something because the ui is a lot easier to start and keep watching something.

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#304

Post by ipaddr »

jamesfinlayson wrote: post #290
fshbbdssbbgdd wrote: post #286

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That feature can be oppressive. You can disable it if you log in to the website (you may need to sign out and back in on your streaming device for the setting to take effect). My guess is that it appeals to the average “turn on the TV and watch whatever is on” consumer, and Netflix probably prioritizes retaining them.

I discovered that setting by accident on the website - pretty annoying that you can't set it through the TV (but more views is better so make it hard to change).

Are more views better? They cost more money but provide advertising. People paying monthly and churn is more important.

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#305

Post by wrs »

crazygringo wrote: post #172
wrs wrote: post #138

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So you and the author have exactly opposite perceptions of what is “table stakes” (tech or content) and where the strategic advantage in the streaming business lies… Perhaps one missing piece is that there is a first-mover advantage to being the tech disruptor, but in many cases the tech quickly becomes “table stakes” and the strategy goes back to where it was.

Netflix figured out data-driven streaming better than anyone. That's its competitive advantage, full stop. It purchases content based on unparalleled data analysis, i.e. big-data tech . They often don't even order pilots (previously unheard of), they're so confident in their statistics. A useful contrast is with HBO. Yes HBO has a streaming service and app... but its competitive advantage is in prestige content peopl…

That is an interesting point but now we need a different metaphor…the table stakes are different for each player at the table?

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#306

Post by mikeryan »

jen20 wrote: post #190
cletus wrote: post #183

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I wonder if that commenter meant HBO Go? HBO tech has had an interesting history. First came HBO Go. This was the online streaming for those with HBO as part of a standard cable package. Apparently it was built on a .Net stack and had huge problems. HBO Now is the service created for standalone sales of streaming. Apparently it had a completely different tech stack because of issues with HBO Go. Apparently it came fr…

The UI of HBO Max on an Apple TV is entirely befitting of AT&T - it makes me want to watch anything else because of how bad scrolling is because they insist on using their own crapware instead of the platform-native software.

Warner Bros and therefore HBO Max bought a company called You.i that built their own React Native Rendering engine for low end OTT devices I don't know if they use that engine for mobile or the native RN engines.

Last I heard their whole ecosystem is now based on this.

But if there's scrolling issues and some others, its likely because they're literally trying to run one codebase across everything including OTT devices.

https://www.youi.tv/

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#308

Post by jboy55 »

bradknowles wrote: post #282
jboy55 wrote: post #247

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As someone who seemingly in the past 6 months has subscribed to them all. The worst technically (Hulu on Android TV), has got the most interesting content, and has just passed Netflix as my go-to streaming channel. HBO, Prime, Disc+, Hulu, Vudu, Apple TV, they might as well use the same software.

Hulu is only of interest to me if it is truly ad-free, a feature that I willingly pay for. If I pay for ad-free and then they serve me incessant ads anyway, I get really pissed off. So, I don’t watch Hulu. If something is only available on Hulu, then I just don’t watch it. I’ll happily watch Disney+, though.

I pay for no-ads, and I can't recall seeing any ads.

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#309

Post by wheelinsupial »

Jensson wrote: post #189
auggierose wrote: post #118

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Everybody I know considers a car company a tech company. I think there exists a strange Silicon Valley definition of tech out there. But maybe my German bias shows. I mean, most of the stuff in SV barely qualifies as tech.

> Everybody I know considers a car company a tech company I have never heard that. Car companies are mostly manufacturing, that is the major part of their organizations and what drives their decisions. They have big engineering teams, but they have way bigger teams working at factories. If you had a company just creating car designs and selling those to manufacturing companies it would be a tech company, but the curr…

I suppose it depends on the car company, but a lot of them are logistics companies coupled with assembly plants.

When I visited our customer auto assembly plants the only actual manufacturing going on at was the frame and paint. The rest of the parts were shipped in from other manufacturing facilities.

The auto company did design the parts and send them to contract manufacturers, which is what I worked at. Again, I’m sure this depends on the vertical integration and supply chain relationship of each company, but I think there is less manufacturing than assembly going on.

Re: Netflix is not a tech company (2019)

#310

Post by conductr »

r00fus wrote: post #198
conductr wrote: post #192

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This are highly subjective design choices. Hence why they are perpetually unsolved. For me, Netflix on fire Tv is by far the worst experience I encounter lately. I had to relocate the icon because if I accidentally click into it, it takes me 5 minutes to get back to Home Screen. Yes I timed it. Amazon has given apps ability to control the exit app UI and naturally apps do not want to let you exit. They hide and make…

Perhaps you need a new streaming device. My 3-year old AppleTV4 it's near-instantaneous. Both Netflix and Disney+ are great, even Prime is good.

I’d blame the device if other apps weren’t noticeably faster with similar UI/features. But it’s mostly that they’ve hijacked system level defaults, like what the intent of a remote control back button push is and obviously make it difficult to escape the app. Performance is salt in the wound.
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