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Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

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Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#71
post #68
post #55

Y'all would be shocked if you knew how many new and upcoming blockbuster movies are mastered at 2K even though you can buy them in 4K or watch them in IMAX.

Yeah, it's pretty sleazy that movies were shot on 2K Alexa and then upscaled to 4K. If your movie isn't 4K, just let it be what it is. Don't sell me a 4K Blu-ray with upscaled content.

[deleted]

Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#72
post #51
post #9

Baffles me why all these streaming companies are shooting themselves in the foot. For about 18 months there was a golden age where it was easier to pay for things than to pirate. Now we’re in a situation where it’s even /harder/ than it’s ever been. People will pay for media if it’s easy and a good experience. The barrier to piracy is non-existent these days and you actually get a far better experience.

It's not that baffling. For a time, they were trying to grow their subscriber base and luring them in with low prices. Now that they have their subscriber base, they want to get back to the revenue they were getting before. Realistically, entertainment companies weren't going to accept lower revenue than they previously had for their product. As the industry transitions from physical media and cable TV to streaming,…

> It isn't harder to pay than to pirate.

lmao, you've obviously never watched anyone over 50 try and use streaming services in 2023.

If I had a one use time machine, fuck killing Hitler, I'm using it to go to the day I taught my parents about Netflix.

Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#73
post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's not that baffling. For a time, they were trying to grow their subscriber base and luring them in with low prices. Now that they have their subscriber base, they want to get back to the revenue they were getting before. Realistically, entertainment companies weren't going to accept lower revenue than they previously had for their product. As the industry transitions from physical media and cable TV to streaming,…

> It isn't harder to pay than to pirate. It's just getting more expensive. No, it's harder too. Shows I want to watch bounce between the various silos of un-indexed content, without notice, as licenses shift and expire. Each silo behind their own separate paywalls. New ones pop up and shut down. Their feature matrix changes. They introduce geo restrictions, device restrictions, they force you to sign in from your 'ho…

I only recently got into this pirating thing. I was completely willing to have a Netflix subscription, and Amazon Prime, and HBO/Max. Now I feel like I am being milked. So screw it, I literally spent money on some stream pirating software, going hog wild. I have JustWatch and spreadsheets. My targets are listed and I knock them down. Sure, I'll do your service for a whole month, during which I will slurp down the TV shows (anywhere from two to twenty) I want for myself, my mother, and some friends. Then move on to the next. If I do my homework beforehand, that week-long free trial is all I need most of the time. Track movies that are coming on whatever service that month, grab what I can get. I'll manage all of that later. Tubi, despite the low-res films, is the great equalizer, but Roku and Freevee don't hurt either.

I would have been fat, dumb, and happy at a hundred bucks a month but they can't resist The Squeeze. We're dropping the resolution. We're limiting the number of simultaneous screens. We're tightening out catalog. We're putting out Originals, locked to us, instead of your old favorites. Just another two bucks a month. We're introducing ads into your tier. Any and every kind of shrinkflation, with a service almost like you're used to just another few bucks a month away. They can't help it, they just see it as leaving money on the table if they can't tighten the coils just a little bit every year.

"Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag, and begin slitting throats."

Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Imagine being the person who took a rock solid brand like HBO and flushed it down the toilet…

There was another really good New Yorker piece recently about Howard Schultz (the Starbucks CEO responsible for elevating the company into the juggernaut chain it is today) and his insistence on rolling out these Oleato drinks that are literally just coffee with olive oil drizzled in. Granted, I don't think Oleato is enough to kill Starbucks, but my takeaway of the whole thing was that sometimes these C-suite guys en…

I've loved the Oleato drinks that I've had, although they are very caloric

Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#76
post #23

Who here actually has and uses a 4K device? I still haven't gone higher than 1440p, and even on that, I don't mind if my content is 1080p. I rarely even notice. (I also hate >60 FPS, for what it's worth.)

I have a 4k TV with Max. I am not sure I can clock the difference.

You may have a quite small TV, or seat quite far from it, or need to get your sight checked. Perhaps it’s time to wear glasses or changes your glasses.

I used to not care about 4K but after I got my eyes sight fixed, 4K against fullHD is quite easy to distinguish. I’m not sure it’s worth the price bump though.

Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#77
post #9

Baffles me why all these streaming companies are shooting themselves in the foot. For about 18 months there was a golden age where it was easier to pay for things than to pirate. Now we’re in a situation where it’s even /harder/ than it’s ever been. People will pay for media if it’s easy and a good experience. The barrier to piracy is non-existent these days and you actually get a far better experience.

I've often pondered the idea of a pirating site that lets you donate to specific individuals/teams of the production. For example, if you particularly liked the movie's animation but hated the writing, your donation would be sent to the animators. Basically a cinema meritocracy.

I can't quite put my finger on it, but this sounds legally problematic. Maybe even for the receiving party as they may be violating their contract by accepting the money.

Re: Max is taking 4K away from its legacy ad-free subscribers

#80

Who here actually has and uses a 4K device? I still haven't gone higher than 1440p, and even on that, I don't mind if my content is 1080p. I rarely even notice. (I also hate >60 FPS, for what it's worth.)

Plenty of people have 4k screens on their computers. Even my laptop has one and it wasn't super expensive. I wouldn't go back below 4k for working, but I don't really care much for it when watching movies.
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