I'd like to see a live comparison of content available on Amazon Prime (free streaming) versus Netflix, Hulu and any other subscription services. Has anyone built such an interface? Am I just describing something that Boxee/XBMC arleady does?
Netflix Isn't Doomed
21–30 of 38 posts
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#22I'm not long on Netflix, and here's why: 1. Netflix is at the mercy of media companies that control the content. Media companies can basically charge whatever they want for their content on Netflix. If Netflix can't afford it, they'll let their contracts expire and people will no longer get to see the movies and shows they want to watch. Unfortunately, the pricing hikes made consumers realize that it was extremely ex…
I doubt that anybody 'doubled up' and now pays for both the DVD and streaming option. The reason for the DVD service to exist at all is to do with Hollywood accounting and the way the licenses are counted - the idiocy of this has been discussed here before. The studios can't start their own streaming service simply because they do not have the branding they think they have. This isn't the 1950s, nobody thinks "I must…
I lowered my DVD plan to keep the streaming option (or make it more affordable).
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#23The fact that media companies are unwilling to let any one company have a full listing of all movies is one of the major failings of the industry. The videogame industry has the same fundamental problem but the near monopoly of the Steam service actually does them some good in my opinion. The problem I think is rooted in piracy, at least as it is practiced in first-world countries where convenience is worth more than…
I thought the same thing when I read this:
"[...] in which all the stuff we want comes from one source at one price.
Forget about it. That world isn't coming. The hidden lesson of Netflix's fall from grace is that content markets will remain fragmented."
As you point out, that's simply not true, thanks to piracy. Not only can I find "all the stuff [I] want [...] from one source at one price", but that price is free (with the exception of site donations I guess). Not having to deal with DRM and the resulting uncertainty of ownership and crippled access from all devices, incomplete libraries, poor/uncertain quality and unreasonable prices are all icing on the cake.
Netflix could be to movies and tv shows what iTunes is to music and Steam is to games, but the content owners are fighting that every step of the way. Sadly, Netflix doesn't seem to have the power to push the content owners around like Apple does.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#24The fact that media companies are unwilling to let any one company have a full listing of all movies is one of the major failings of the industry. The videogame industry has the same fundamental problem but the near monopoly of the Steam service actually does them some good in my opinion. The problem I think is rooted in piracy, at least as it is practiced in first-world countries where convenience is worth more than…
The problem I think is rooted in piracy, at least as it is practiced in first-world countries where convenience is worth more than price. Piracy has several built-in practical issues, because it is frankly inconvenient to be conducting illegal business, and DRM provides another inconvenience. But despite these endemic problems with piracy, it does offer a huge convenience: universality. The legal movie market is frag…
>(not to mention there are some people in the world who aren't completely amoral and as such wouldn't)
You're implying that everyone follows the same code of ethics. You might not agree with it but for some people it's not in the slightest bit amoral to pirate a movie.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#25Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another good thing about Amazon is that, via Prime, you also get awesome shipping. So for the cost, it is hard to beat. But, UX-wise, Amazon has a lot of issues. With their streaming movies, if you leave a program half-way and come back later, you have to search for it all over again to find it and resume the program. There isn't a "recently viewed" section or any of that. The site is also very static (pretty lame co…
I couldn't agree more. The current experience of watching movies on Amazon is horrible . They basically bolted a substandard YouTube like player onto the existing Amazon storefront UI. It's a horrible combination for watching movies and I tend to avoid it when possible. I'll check Netflix and see if they have what I want before I ever go to Amazon.
I just became a paying Prime member, so I got the streaming included now. I agree, it doesn't feel like a "premium" service. Your description of bolting a crappy player to the storefront is dead on. If it wasn't included with my Prime membership, I don't know if I'd pay for access at any level. Hopefully that experience gets better, having more players in this field sure wouldn't hurt.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#26The fact that media companies are unwilling to let any one company have a full listing of all movies is one of the major failings of the industry. The videogame industry has the same fundamental problem but the near monopoly of the Steam service actually does them some good in my opinion. The problem I think is rooted in piracy, at least as it is practiced in first-world countries where convenience is worth more than…
I think you hit all the points exactly.
What I think these companies need to realize is that they're completely wasting their money not capitalizing on revenue streams. For new movies, sure, theaters only. For newly released DVDs, sure, stores and/or rentals only. But 6 months to a year after release, I expect every company to put their content online so that it's convenient for people to watch instead of relying on the $5 bargain bin for revenue. That's what makes sense to me yet it doesn't happen. They pull content left and right for what? So Netflix can't be the sole provider of the content? What makes sense to me is AMC putting the first several seasons of "Breaking Bad" on Netflix so that all can watch it to catch up to the current season on air. Do other programs expect people to purchase DVDs for a single view to catch up?
Ideally for me there should be company B and company C to compete with Netflix, each with its own set of exclusives from different companies, each with a ~$10/month no contract charge for viewership. I'll end up with ~$30/month cancel anytime for all content and stream it all off of a single convenient box. That sounds better to the status quo to me.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#27Earlier quoted context omitted.
I doubt that anybody 'doubled up' and now pays for both the DVD and streaming option. The reason for the DVD service to exist at all is to do with Hollywood accounting and the way the licenses are counted - the idiocy of this has been discussed here before. The studios can't start their own streaming service simply because they do not have the branding they think they have. This isn't the 1950s, nobody thinks "I must…
> I doubt that anybody 'doubled up' and now pays for both the DVD and streaming option. I did/do.
Me too. As the WSJ column says, the streaming catalog just isn't adequate yet.
I tried it for a few weeks, but then gave in. But I mostly hang out on the long tail; almost nothing I wanted to watch was available for streaming. My wife, on the other hand, streams a lot.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
I doubt that anybody 'doubled up' and now pays for both the DVD and streaming option. The reason for the DVD service to exist at all is to do with Hollywood accounting and the way the licenses are counted - the idiocy of this has been discussed here before. The studios can't start their own streaming service simply because they do not have the branding they think they have. This isn't the 1950s, nobody thinks "I must…
Isn't HBO already in the "writing and supporting software player" business with its HBO Go apps? It's already circumventing business like Netflix today.
HBO is also coming to Roku as a separate pay channel.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#29I'd like to see a live comparison of content available on Amazon Prime (free streaming) versus Netflix, Hulu and any other subscription services. Has anyone built such an interface? Am I just describing something that Boxee/XBMC arleady does?
It's not exactly what you're looking for, but Clicker.com is probably the closest.
Re: Netflix Isn't Doomed
#30Earlier quoted context omitted.
Another good thing about Amazon is that, via Prime, you also get awesome shipping. So for the cost, it is hard to beat. But, UX-wise, Amazon has a lot of issues. With their streaming movies, if you leave a program half-way and come back later, you have to search for it all over again to find it and resume the program. There isn't a "recently viewed" section or any of that. The site is also very static (pretty lame co…
I couldn't agree more. The current experience of watching movies on Amazon is horrible . They basically bolted a substandard YouTube like player onto the existing Amazon storefront UI. It's a horrible combination for watching movies and I tend to avoid it when possible. I'll check Netflix and see if they have what I want before I ever go to Amazon.
I agree that Amazon's site is pretty terrible at finding what you want or discovering new content, the player isn't too bad itself though. I especially like the pop-out feature which lets me resize the video window exactly how I want it.