Online streaming video solution Ustream has put out an infographic showcasing some stats on usage of its service, including 2 billion views for 2011.
Others of note: 51 million viewers per month globally, and 49 million hours of video viewed per month.
While the early reports of last night’s BCS Championship Game ratings were delivered with a certain kind of spin — that is, the lowest they’ve been in some time — the folks at ESPN’s press center are offering lessons on how to spin these numbers to make a positive, and they’re doing so with the help of the increase of their online audience.
As indicated, when the TV numbers hit the wires, the reaction was largely negative, with the main thought being a bad game deserves lower ratings. That is, however, until ESPN got a chance to spin the numbers to their favor. It should be noted, however, that pointing out facts about the BCS Championship viewer ratings isn’t necessarily spin, either.
The title of their related press release demonstrates ESPN’s commitment to a positive light — BCS National Championship: Cable’s Second Biggest Audience of All Time — as does the content:
ESPN’s telecast of the Allstate Bowl Championship Series (BCS) National Championship – Alabama’s 21-0 shutout of LSU — posted a 16.2 fast national household coverage rating, according to Nielsen, representing an average of 16,072,000 households, the second highest of any program in the history in cable television (records go back to 1987). The average of 24,214,000 viewers (P2+) was also second best in cable. It also is ESPN’s second-highest rating of all time.
The only telecast in cable television history with a larger audience was last year’s BCS Championship on ESPN (17,718,000 homes and 27,316,000 people, based on a 17.8 rating), a 22-19 Auburn victory over Oregon decided by a field goal as time expired.
To all the naysayers, downplaying the TV ratings, take that. While the viewer reception of the broadcast can be spun to represent both positive and negative reactions, one place where spin isn’t necessary is when dealing with ESPN’s online audience, otherwise known as the folks who watched the game on their PC, laptop, or other mobile device. As is the case with CBS’ March Madness On Demand, ESPN experienced a ratings increase for their online broadcast of the BCS Championship Game:
Across all WatchESPN platforms – computer, smartphone, tablet, Xbox – the average minute audience for the BCS National Championship game totaled 261,000 people, up 40 percent over last year’s game, and a record for college football on ESPN’s digital platforms. More than 523,000 people watched the game on WatchESPN.com, generating 39.6 million minutes and an average minute audience of 227,000 people, which is up 20 percent compared to last year [Emphasis added]
Not only did ESPN experience a noticeable ratings increase for their BCS Championship online broadcast, their audience for the entire BCS Bowl Game slate showed substantial increase as well, showing a 27 percent increase when compared to last year.
It’s pretty clear there is a sustainable business model for online broadcasts of live sporting events, but yet, the traditional entertainment industry stalwarts, especially those that depend on an viewing audience for success, are still hesitant to embrace online distribution of new content.
Apparently, the only time CBS thinks the idea is worthy is during the NCAA Men’s basketball tournament. Otherwise, you’re stuck with reruns of episodes that have aired at least a day before they are made available online.
Although Netflix continues to bleed subscribers (and projected back a couple of months ago that they would continue to do so), a bright spot appears for the company.
Today, they announced that their 20 million streaming subscribers burned through more than 2 billion hours of movies and TV shows in Q4. Using the low estimate, that’s 100 hours of streaming per person during the quarter, or a little over an hour of streaming content a day.
Reed Hastings also announced that Netflix streamed content to 45 different countries during the period.
“In the coming months, Netflix members can enjoy complete seasons of great TV series from all the major networks and most branded cable channels as well as fantastic films like Drive, Hugo, Captain America and Margin Call,” said Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos. “The more great TV shows and movies Netflix adds, the more people watch.”
He’s right – it’s probably going to come down to content. Not only is the company working hard to secure deals with groups like Disney-ABC, The CW, DreamWorks and Discovery Communications, they will also debut some exclusive programming in 2012. The previously announced David Fincher/Kevin Spacey project House of Cards will start later this year. Netflix also just announced Lilyhammer, a Stevie Van Zandt vehicle set to kick off February 6th.
2011 was a rough year for Netflix, after the price hike and the whole Qwikster debacle. Recent consumer research suggests that they might be weathering the storm, however. In a survey of subscribers, 91% said that they were at least moderately satisfied with Netflix in the month of December. This was only down 1% from the 92% of moderately+ satisfied customers in May.
Netflix did everything they could in 2011 to piss people off. First, they messed with the subscription structures in a way that separated streaming and DVD plans into two equally priced entities (DVD used to be a cheap add-on to streaming). This, of course, turned out to be a price hike for users who wanted to keep both services – so many of them decided not to.
Netflix added new content to Netflix Instant this year, but also lost a key deal with Starz, which means the Netflix will lose important new releases from Disney and Sony.
And then there was the whole Qwikster mess, you remember, right? That’s the time when Reed Hastings thought it was a good idea to split Netflix’s streaming services and their DVD serives into two entirely separate companies. If you recall, that went over really well terribly.
Netflix’s Q3 earnings report showed that although posting record revenue, Netflix did in fact lose some subscribers as a result of these moves (as they predicted they would). Actually, they lost a lot of subscribers – about 800,000 to be exact.
Some users left Netflix all together, and some just dropped one of the services. It’s no secret that Netflix is trying to move away from physical DVD rentals – so subscriber loss in that department is really part of the plan.
New research by Citigroup suggests that Netflix might be weathering the storm.
As you can see, Netflix subscribers in May reported being “extremely satisfied” with the service at a much higher rate than respondents in December. But December saw an increase in people saying they were “very satisfied” and “moderately satisfied.” All in all, 91% in December said that they were at least moderately satisfied with Netflix, down only 1% from the 92% that answered that way back in May.
Netflix subscribers that stuck around might not be as ecstatic as they were back in May, but it doesn’t look they they are too unhappy to stay.
Here’s another chart from the survey, showing Netflix compared to other streaming video sources:
Not only has Netflix increased its reach in the online video sphere, but most of the others remain stagnant. Folks saying that they watched streaming video on Hulu dipped 4% from May.
Netflix has said that they fully expect to lose more subscribers. Can competitors actually close the gap? Or is Netflix going to weather the storm? Let us know in the comments.
You know that annoying moment when you’re watching a TV show and an actor comes across the screen that you just can’t place? You know his name, it’s on the tip of your tongue – and you know that was that guy in that one movie…gaaaahhh…the frustration is sometimes too much to bear.
Hulu thinks they have a solution for you, and they are calling it Face Match. It allows viewers to instantly learn about the actors on their favorite TV shows and movies, by simply hovering over their faces with their mouse.
All you have to do is hover over that obscure actor’s face and Hulu will pause the video and bring up a box with the actor’s name and some information about them. Right now, the info is brief and links to a larger Wikipedia entry.
To use Face Match, select the config button in the lower right corner of the video player while watching any show or clip. If Hulu Face Match is available for the video you’re watching, there will be an option to turn the feature on. You can also modify your default setting for Hulu Face Match on your personal settings page.
Remember when using Face Match, it might not be perfect – it’s still in Hulu Labs.
Currently, the Hulu content that supports Face Match includes all episodes of Glee, The Office, Wilfred, Modern Family, and Lost.
Try it out below on this episode of Modern Family:
[Note: This writer would never refer to Terry O’Quinn as obscure. How could we ever forget his masterful work in The X-Files: Fight The Future]
Netflix, despite some recent stumbles, is still the world’s top internet film subscription service. And they have just announced a move that will significantly expand their global reach.
Today, the company said that they are bringing streaming services to the UK and Ireland. The move will take place sometime in early 2012, and it appears that the model will resemble the one we see in North America – one monthly subscription fee. Details about the service, such as actual pricing and content have yet to be released.
This marks Netflix’s biggest expansion since they began streaming in Latin America in September of this year. In 2010, Netflix expanded to Canada.
It is important to note that the UK service will only involve streaming video, not DVDs.
In jumping across the pond, Netflix will find its biggest rival to be Lovefilm, a service that provides both streaming video and DVDs. Lovefilm is a big deal in the area, and is oftentimes referred to as the “Netflix of Europe.” Lovefilm was bought by Amazon in January of this year, so the Netflix-Amazon battle for streaming supremacy finds another hotspot.
As I mentioned earlier, Netflix has had a pretty rough couple of months. Recent decisions have impacted both consumer and investor confidence in the company, as they have seen their stock fall quite significantly as of late.
The pricing changes, splitting DVDs away from streaming and charging more for the former, was the first thing to really upset customers. Netflix, and especially CEO Reed Hastings, took a lot of criticism for the move as well as the way they handled it.
Things really took a turn for the worse when Hastings announced that Netflix’s DVD service would be splitting off into its own company, with the truly unfortunate name of Qwikster. That was an absolute PR nightmare, and Hastings was forced to abandon the idea and issue a public apology.
But Netflix has made some strong content acquisitions recently, including Discovery Network shows, DreamWorks animation films, and CW scripted dramas. The events of the past couple of months has no doubt injured the beast, but Netflix continues to offer a service that people want. And although they face competition in Europe, there’s little doubt that this news will be met with excitement in the UK.
Let the Netflix bashing subside for a moment – it looks like they will be adding a bunch of popular streaming content to their catalog.
They have announced a long-term deal with CBS and Warner Bros. to stream CW scripted series – that includes the hit shows The Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl, 90210, Supernatural, Nikita, One Tree Hill. The deal also brings new CW shows Ringer, Hart of Dixie and The Secret Circle.
Previous seasons of The Vampire Diaries, Gossip Girl, One Tree Hill and Nikita will will available right away, on October 15th. Previous seasons of Supernatural and 90210 will hit Netflix in January of 2012. Episodes of series currently airing on the network will be available in the Fall of 2012.
The deal stretches to the 2014-2015 seasons of the shows. And each new season of each show will be available on Netflix the Fall after it airs.
Netflix has made two other significant content acquisitions as of late. Last month they made a deal with Discovery Communications to bring in Discovery Channel content like Man vs. Wild and Deadliest Catch. Netflix also announced a deal with DreamWorks studios, the makers of films like Shrek and Kung Fu Panda, to stream their content. The only drawback to that news is that it wont be available until 2013.
Of course, any and all content acquisitions for Netflix’s streaming service is good for the company, as it is still suffering fallout from a series of big announcements – notably the price hike, and the whole Qwikster debacle.
Luckily, Reed Hastings came to his senses and dropped the whole Qwikster idea, saying that Netflix DVD services and streaming would stay under the same umbrella.
In Qwikster news, it looks like some internet denizens aren’t going to let the failed idea die. Today’s daily deal on Woot.com is a Lenovo laptop and it features a hilarious write-up comparing the product to Netflix’s Chief Operation Officer Andy Rendich. He was supposed to take over as the top guy at Qwikster.
But now Qwikster is no more, and the Woot post compares him to all of those who never got their shot –
Because you’re every kid who was open but didn’t get the ball. You’re every musician who had the chops but couldn’t get airplay. You’re Brando in On The Waterfront, you’re Dave Mustaine, you’re Takeru Kobayashi being dragged away by the cops just before the Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Contest. You were there and ready and wanted to go, but someone else took your moment before you could prove yourself.
Content acquisitions like this can do nothing but help Netflix, but it’s apparent that they are still climbing the hill when it comes to winning back their millions of users.
Netflix might be waking up to the reality that no matter what they do nowadays, it’s going to piss off a large percentage of their customers.
Remember that whole Qwikster idea? The DVD-only company that was announced last month as the branch-off from Netflix’s streaming service? Apparently that idea is dead.
CEO Reed Hastings announced the decision to drop the Qwikster plans this morning on the Netflix blog. It looks like the CEO was swayed by the massive reaction to the announcement, one of the main complaints being that the separation of the two services would just make things more complicated for users. So Hastings emphasized that DVDs will be staying on netflix.com:
It is clear that for many of our members two websites would make things more difficult, so we are going to keep Netflix as one place to go for streaming and DVDs.
This means no change: one website, one account, one password… in other words, no Qwikster.
Qwikster.com just redirects back to Netflix.com. It has up and vanished, like a fart in the wind. Nobody will even remember it, right? It’s like that awkward moment that you forget about over time – or, unfortunately for Netflix, there’s always the possibility that people will not let them live it down.
Two of the top-voted comments on Reed Hastings official blog post suggest that Hastings himself needs to relinquish his ownership of the company. One comment simply states “Reed step down, you blew it, name your next company Trickster.” Another comments suggests that Hastings be fired, and outlines how he thinks he has destroyed the company:
Here’s a great way to destroy a company:
1. Infuriate customers by nearly doubling prices at one shot.
2. Make sure that significant numbers leave. If they still did not leave because of the price hike, well, kick them out by giving them even less value for the same $ (eg they have to maintain separate lists of movies in their queue).
3. Watch the share price drop like a rock.
4. Reverse the decision with a major PR fiasco that broadcasts the total lack of leadership.rinse. Repeat.
The Facebook reaction has been mostly negative, as you can see from a random chunk of comments from the post alluding to today’s announcement –
The Twitter reaction has been nothing if not predictable –
@jsnell
Jason SnellI’ll say this for Netflix: It sticks to its guns. And then shoots itself in the feet with them. And then changes guns. And shoots again.
3 hours ago via Twitterrific for Mac · powered by @socialditto
@Tom_Bergeron
Tom BergeronIt appears Netflix management got their MBAs in A.D.D. 4 hours ago via Twitter for iPhone · powered by @socialditto
@derekwebb
derek webboh netflix, have some dignity 3 minutes ago via Twitter for Mac · powered by @socialditto
From my observations, most Netflix users think that it is the right call that they abandoned the Qwikster idea. It was a truly unpopular idea. But some users are so fed up with the totality of the recent changes – they might have completely soured on Netflix as a whole.
Not everyone is sour on Netflix, however. This post made it to the very top spot on Reddit and has hung around the front page all day. It’s being shared by quite a few people around the web today –
One thing being lost in today’s chatter is @Qwikster. I’m not talking about the defunct service’s official Twitter account, I’m talking about Jason Castillo, the soccer-loving, bong-hitting guy who found himself in with 10K new followers the morning after Netflix announced Qwikster. Will he fade from the spotlight? Will he ever get any money from his dad to buy food? We may never know. @Qwikster hasn’t tweeted since October 1st.
What do you think about today’s announcement? Is it the right call? Are people rightfully fed up with the company or are they overreacting? Let us know in the comments.
Yesterday it was speculated that DISH Network and their recent acquisition Blockbuster would be launching a streaming service to rival Netflix. Today, they did launch a streaming service, but you can’t quite call it a rival to Netflix.
During their “Stream Come True” press event today, DISH Network unveiled Blockbuster Movie Pass, which brings streaming and DVD services together at one package, available for $10 a month.
Subscribers will have access to 3,000 titles available for streaming to TV – that number jumps to 4,000 when you are streaming to a computer. The DVD service has over 100,000 titles, any of which can be returned to a Blockbuster location once watched. With Movie Pass, you can’t pick up another DVD once you return yours, however. You’ll have to wait for it in the mail. On the plus side, there will be no up-charge for Blu-rays.
Movie Pass also incorporates over 3,000 games.
Here’s the problem: It’s only available for DISH Network customers, for now. So as it stands right now, super sweet deal for DISH subscribers – but Netflix killer it is not.
If you’re a DISH subscriber, it’s pretty much a no-brainer add-on at the $10 price point. If you’re not a DISH subscriber, it looks like DISH is hoping that this is an incentive to become one. Here’s what they are offering to new subscribers –
From Oct. 1 through Jan. 31, 2012, DISH Network is offering new customers Blockbuster Movie Pass included with their DISH Network subscription for one year when they subscribe to DISH Network’s America’s Top 200 programming package or greater and commit to 24 months of DISH Network service. This is up to $360 in savings.
Movie Pass will become available for existing DISH customers on October 1st.
At least for now, it looks like DISH wants to integrate Blockbuster’s current DVD and streaming services with their pay TV structure. And at first glance, this looks like a good way to do it. Current DISH customers will be getting a lot for just an extra $10 a month.
But until Movie Pass becomes available to everyone, it’s hard to truly think of it as a Netflix competitor.
It looks like Blockbuster might be jumping into the subscription streaming market, adding another player into a growing field that is getting more crowded by the minute.
Of course Netflix is the biggest player when it comes to streaming video subscriptions, but you also have players like Hulu and Amazon stealing some of the pie. Apparently, Blockbuster thinks it can compete, because according to CNN Money, they plan on announcing all of this on Friday.
Blockbuster, which was purchased by DISH Network back in April, is set to hold a press conference tomorrow entitled “A Stream Come True.” Here, they are widely expected to unveil their new streaming service.
If true, Blockbuster has picked a rather interesting time to announce all of this. The past few weeks have been hell for Netflix, as a series of changes and announcements has shaken investors and customers alike.
On September 1st, the new pricing structure went into effect. No more $9.99 plans that include unlimited streaming and 1-DVD-at-a-time service – those plans are now separate and both cost $7.99. That drew some backlash, to say the least.
Just this week, CEO Reed Hasting posted a public apology to the Netflix blog, stating that they had made mistakes with how they handled the changes. The only problem was that enveloped in the apology was the news that Netflix is splitting off its DVD service entirely, into another company called Qwikster.
Between those events, Netflix announced that they would be losing all their Starz content after renegotiations failed.
Apparently, Blockbuster wants to try and swoop down when the beast is vulnerable. It wouldn’t be the first time, although this announcement would be significantly bigger than any other opportunistic moves they have made in the past.
After Netflix announced their price hike in July, Blockbuster went on a campaign, complete with a blog post called “Blockbuster Rescues Furious Netflix Customers.” They offered their Total Access DVD subscription as a free trial for those who wanted to abandon Netflix.
Blockbuster has never offered a streaming subscription. They have their aforementioned DVD subscription service called Total Access, and they stream movies via their website as well – but on a pay-per-view basis. A flat-rate unlimited plan would put them in direct competition with Netflix.
Now, if only Blockbuster could combine their upcoming streaming plan with their DVD plan as a bundle for, let’s say, $9.99?
Finally, there’s some (decently) good news for Netflix. They have announced that an agreement has been reached with Discovery Communications to “renew and expand” their streaming content contract.
This means that Netflix streaming customers will have access to past seasons of shows from the Discovery Channel, TLC and Animal Planet. Note – “past” seasons, not the most recent seasons. The release mentions that the highlights from this agreement are popular shows like Man vs. Wild, Say Yes to the Dress and River Monsters.
Unfortunately for Netflix, this new deal is unlikely to completely reassure customers who have been rattled by the series of changes that Netflix has already enacted or announced. It is a significant content acquisition for Netflix, however. Until now, Discovery shows like Man vs. Wild, Deadliest Catch and Dirty Jobs weren’t available at all to watch instantly. This is a pretty nice catalog of TV to add to the watch now collection.
The agreement will also add content from the Investigation Discovery, Science and Military Channel.
“Netflix is pleased to announce the renewal and expansion of our relationship with Discovery,” said Netflix chief content officer Ted Sarandos. “With television shows playing an ever more important role for Netflix, Discovery is one our finest suppliers of top quality programming. We look forward to bringing our members the wide range of the additional episodes and series covered in this deal.”
As far as content for their streaming service, the last big announcement that Netflix made was that they were losing all of their Starz programming. Unable to negotiate a new deal, Starz Play will vanish from Netflix streaming in February 2012. This is huge loss for Netflix, as Starz provides a lot of the new release content as well as films and shows from Walt Disney and Sony.
This new content won’t make up for that, but it definitely shows that Reed Hastings wasn’t lying when he said that the money saved from the Starz agreement would be put to good use finding more content.
The somewhat bad side of this for Netflix is that the agreement is only a “two-year non-exclusive licensing agreement,” which definitely shows Discovery’s hesitancy.
From the Wall Street Journal –
“We don’t know” yet what will happen as a result of the Netflix deal, Discovery Chief Executive David Zaslav said, although he acknowledged that the deal includes “meaningful economics” for the owner of the Discovery Channel, TLC and Science.
Of course, the tumult at Netflix regarding the recent split of the streaming and DVD services in two companies (the Qwikster thing) has many people worried about the future of Netflix.
Moving forward, will other content providers be hesitant when it comes to agreements with Netflix? That’s yet to be determined, but for today, chalk this one up as a win for Netflix – albeit a decidedly minor win.
UPDATE: @Qwikster responds to his new fame.
Imagine a couple – a nice couple that truly loved each other and shared a virtually drama-free relationship. We will call them Bob and Jessica. Now imagine that one day, Bob dropped a bombshell on Jessica. Perhaps, “I slept with you sister,” or something like that.
What if the Bob returned a few weeks later to apologize – not for the original transgression, but for how he handled the situation. Unfortunately, it just made Jessica more pissed off because Bob announced something new during the apology, something that just added salt to the wound.
“I’m sorry how I dealt with that whole cheating on you thing. I should’ve handled it better. Oh, and I also sold your car on Craigslist.”
This overwrought analogy sums up how many feel about Reed Hasting’s announcement yesterday that he will be splitting Netflix’s streaming and DVD services into two distinct entities.
Of course, all of this stems from Netflix’s decision to break up their streaming and DVD services in July. During his apology for how Netflix handled that controversial price change, Hastings announced the formation of “Qwikster.” Qwikster will now handle the entire DVD service, and the streaming service will operate under the Netflix name.
Naturally, there are many questions that arise from this decision. For instance, why would they change the name of the DVD service, the part that put them on the map? Why would they split the services, so that they are now disintegrated? Payment info, ratings and queues are now going to be completely separate. Of course, this all becomes less confusing if you believe that Netflix wants to rid itself of some dead weight.
But for many on the internet today, the big question is this:
“Qwikster?”
Yes, the name is an odd choice – especially considering the track record of companies that end in “ster.” Hastings says that the new name refers to “quick delivery.” Twitter seems to think differently –
@millsks
Kaylan“Nap” RT @mbaratz: Companies that end in ‘ster’ end badly: See “Friend,” “Blockbu,” “Dog,” “qwik,” #science 8 hours ago via UberSocial for BlackBerry · powered by @socialditto
@saschasegan
saschasegan“Qwikster” is Netflix-speak for “oh, just go away already.” 1 hour ago via TweetDeck · powered by @socialditto
@TedNope
Ted Nope“We chose the name Qwikster because it refers to quick delivery.” Correction: it refers to qwik delivery. 1 hour ago via Twitter for iPhone · powered by @socialditto
And then there’s this. Man, somebody should totally do that –
@MattDudleyTN
Matt DudleyImagine if @Netflix and Qwikster combined services… unlimited DVD rentals and streaming. Now THAT would be awesome. 57 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
It also turns out that @Qwikster already exists on Twitter. Unfortunately for Netflix, the account doesn’t belong to anybody associated with Netflix.
@Qwikster
Jason CastilloBored as shyt wanna blaze but at the same time I don’t ugh fuck it where’s the bowl at spark me up lls 88 days ago via Twitter for BlackBerry® · powered by @socialditto
@Qwikster
Jason CastilloDon’t bother telling me who my ex is now dating ! Cuzz now I feel bad for the bitch that has my sloppy seconds 🙂 110 days ago via Twitter for BlackBerry® · powered by @socialditto
@Qwikster
Jason CastilloIma about mad as shyt I hit my head wit this wrench at my bros House haha n instead of being concerned he laughs :I wat a bro 142 days ago via Twitter for BlackBerry® · powered by @socialditto
Nice. I’m sure that the new delivery envelopes will look great with the new Elmo-smoking-a-joint logo. That’s just what the DVD viewing crowd wants to see. For your information, @Qwikster has gained about 200 new followers in the last hour.
What do you think of the whole Qwikster thing? Let us know in the comments.
Today, Netflix sent out a letter to its shareholders that discussed Q3 expectations. In that letter, they announced that they are lowering their domestic subscriber estimates.
By one million users.
And the bulk of those users that Netflix expects to flee are subscribers to the DVD service. There, they project a lost of 800,000 subscribers. As far as streaming service subscribers, they project a loss of 200,000.
It’s pretty easy to draw a connection between this new projection and Netflix’s big move back in July to split the streaming and DVD plans into two separate entities, basically raising the prices for anyone who wanted to keep both. That plan went into effect September 1st.
That decision sparked an internet freak-out, as people took to blogs and social media and swore to the heavens that they would be cancelling Netflix and wishing a plague on the house of Reed Hastings. The backlash was severe, to say the least. An independent analysis group guesstimated that this move could cost Netflix 2 to 2.5 million subscribers.
And now we see Netflix lowering its domestic projections by about 4%. Is this really nothing to worry about, or has Netflix screwed itself?
Apparently, investors aren’t too thrilled about the new estimates. At midday today, NFLX stock dove 17%.
Here’s the letter to shareholders (Thanks Hacking NetFlix)
On the day that the new prices went into effect, Netflix dropped another bomb: They will be losing all of their Starz content early next year. Negotiations to renew that contract stalled as Netflix refused to give Starz a tiered subscriber format within their service.
Are you one of the 64% of people who watch online video while at work?
If you are, it’s more likely that you are a man and according to figures, you are most likely watching news clips.
That’s the basic takeaway from this infographic, provided by the folks at Wistia. Other than the revelation that almost half of us are sneaking off to the john to watch stuff on our computers or mobile devices, the most interesting part of the infographic is probably the “what are they watching” segment.
Apparently, 3% of Americans reported streaming porn while they were at work. Of course, if anything was going to be under-reported, that would be it. Even more interesting than that are the 4% of people who reported watching feature length films at work.
Seriously? A YouTube video here and there, maybe a highlight from last night’s big game – but a full-length motion picture? Apparently we have some incredibly easy jobs on our hands – that or some people are just incredibly distracted.
Check out the full infographic below –
Infographic by: Wistia
UPDATE: According to Netflix, this error message is a glitch, not a representation of a policy change. Netflix VP of Communications Steve Swasey had this to say in an email to GigaOm –
No Netflix member is limited to less than two concurrent streams. A few Netflix members have heard differently from us, which is an error that we are correcting.
ORIGINAL ARTICLE: On September 1st, those pesky Netflix price changes went into effect, changing the popular $9.99 streaming + one-DVD-at-a-time plan into two separate, $7.99 plans – ultimately upping the price $6 for the same service.
On that same day they announced the end of their deal with Starz, as negotiations to renew the old 2008 contract failed. This means that in February, Netflix will lose all of its Starz new releases from people like Sony and Walt Disney – as well as the Starz Play streaming content, all of which accounts for about 8% of viewed content according to CEO Reed Hastings.
And as the first week in September comes to a close, Netflix has done something else to likely piss off their subscribers.
Netflix is cracking down on the sharing of memberships, disallowing multiple streams from the same account.
Of course, Netflix has always said that it’s against the rules to stream different content to different devices at the same time with only one streaming plan – but they never really stopped anyone from doing it. I could always login to my account via my Xbox and watch something while someone else used my account to watch something different from their computer.
But apparently, multiple streamers are now receiving this message when logging in to the same account –
If this crack down holds up, that means people wanting to stream more than one program at a time will have to buy another streaming subscription or increases the number of DVDs they can receive at a time. To get two streams, you’ll have to pay $19.98 a month for the two-DVD subscription, three DVDs (three streams) will be $23.98 and four DVDs (four streams) will be $29.98.
Like I said before, this has always been in the rules, just rarely enforced. This is from Netflix’s Terms of Service –
Some membership plans allow you to watch simultaneously on more than one personal computer or Netflix ready device at the same time. If you are on the 1 disc out at-a-time plan [or stream-only plan], you may watch only one device at a time. If you are on the 2 discs out at-a-time plan, you may watch on up to two devices at the same time. Members on the 3 disc plan can watch on up to three devices. The maximum is four devices simultaneously, and that is available for members on the 4 or greater discs out at-a-time plans.
Price hike, content loss and a crack down on streaming – all in the same week. It looks like Netflix is really testing the ol’ customer loyalty. What do you think of all these changes? Let us know in the comments.
[Via Stop the Cap]
Two interesting things just happened in the world of Netflix. First, those much-talked-about and generally despised price changes went into effect. Second, Netflix lost all of its Starz content.
Starz called off talks in the contract renewal process, leaving Netflix without one of its largest providers of newer content. This collapse in negotiations takes away Netflix’s ability to offer newer movies from Walt Disney Co. and Sony, both of which have their distribution controlled by Starz.
According to the Wall Street Journal, an inside source claims that Starz wanted Netflix to pay them 10 times the licensing fee that Netflix paid them in 2008. Netflix offered the premium TV network $300 million plus a year to renew the agreement, but Starz declined.
What do you plan to do to meet your streaming video needs, now that Netflix has changed their prices and lost Starz? Let us know in the comments.
Apparently, what Starz wanted was a tiered pricing system which would have Netflix customers pay more than the baseline $7.99 streaming price in order to access additional content from Starz. No dice, said Netflix.
Here’s what Starz said about the failed negotiations in a release –
Starz Entertainment has ended contract renewal negotiations with Netflix. When the agreement expires on February 28, 2012, Starz will cease to distribute its content on the Netflix streaming platform. This decision is a result of our strategy to protect the premium nature of our brand by preserving the appropriate pricing and packaging of our exclusive and highly valuable content. With our current studio rights and growing original programming presence, the network is in an excellent position to evaluate new opportunities and expand its overall business.
Netflix CEO Reed Hastings talked to Business Insider about the deal, saying that he “regrets their decision to let out agreement lapse.”
He went on to say that Starz doesn’t account for that much of Netflix’s content anymore –
Because we’ve licensed so much other great content, Starz content is now down to about 8% of domestic Netflix subscribers’ viewing. As we add a huge more content in Q4, we expect Starz content to naturally drift down to 5-6% of domestic viewing in Q1. We are confident we can take the money we had earmarked for Starz renewal next year, and spend it with other content providers to maintain or even improve the Netflix experience.
Shares of Netflix fell 10% Thursday night before closing.
The price change that went into effect on Sept. 1st, the same day of the collapse of the Starz deal, splits up the streaming service and DVD-delivery service into two different plans, both costing $7.99. That’s a total of $15.98 if you want to keep both plans. Before, streaming was $7.99 but the 1-DVD-at-a-time service was only a $2 add-on to that package, making it $9.99 total.
This announcement back in July didn’t go over too well, as the internet community threw a collective fit.
So, the most basic description of the day’s events is as follows: Netflix upped their prices and lost content at the same time. That’s a bummer, right?
The Reed Hastings argument, basically, is that the loss of Starz isn’t going to hurt Netflix at all. If Starz only accounts for 8% of the content that subscribers are watching on a regular basis, it’s true that Netflix isn’t going to be absolutely crippled by this loss. That statement becomes even more compelling if his projections are correct and Starz ends up accounting for only 5-6% of viewed content in Q1 2012.
But you have to consider what Netflix loses when it loses Starz: newer releases – Disney and Sony stuff. This is not the kind of stuff that resides in the outer regions of the library or stuff that will collect dust in a queue for months – this is popular stuff that people want to watch.
And even if Starz didn’t provide the most premium content, subscribers may have a legitimate reason to be perturbed. Isn’t any loss of content, especially 8% of the content watched, unacceptable?
Hastings said that they will take the $300 that they were going to give to Starz and use it to snatch up different content. But do subscribers want new content to replace lost content? Or do they want new content to add the all the existing content. I think I’ll bank on the latter.
It is important to remember through all of this, that the price you pay for your Netflix subscription doesn’t have to increase. If you choose to go streaming only, your monthly fee will actually go down. It’s only if you really want the physical DVDs that you’ll see a real price hike.
But on a day where many existing Netflix users feel forced into a streaming-only decision, Netflix announces that a lot of important streaming content (all the Starz play stuff) will be going away.
How do you feel about Netflix losing it’s deal with Starz? Do you think that it will have a significant negative effect on the company? Let us know in the comments.
Here at WebProNews, keeping you abreast about the goings-on in the tech industry is job one, but we’re also here to inform and, in some cases, remind people of upcoming changes. With that in mind, here’s our public service announcement for today:
The oft-discussed and ridiculed Netflix price changes are going to go into effect in two days. That’s right, those of you who want both streaming and DVD rentals, on September 1st, be prepared to pay more for these services. In case it slipped your mind, here’s a refresher concerning the Netflix price changes:
Plan 1: Unlimited Streaming (no DVDs) for $7.99 a month
Plan 2: Unlimited DVDs, 1 out at-a-time (no streaming), for $7.99 a month.
That’s all fine and good, but to have both streaming and rentals, the price goes up to $15.98 a month. For those of you who are like me and have both options, it means you’ll either:
A. change your plan to either streaming or DVDs, or,
B. prepare to pay more the for the ability to have both.
Needless to say, when Netflix announced these adjustments, the proverbial poop hit the fan all over the Internet. Netflix’s Facebook page was inundated with replies–most of them negative–as was Netflix’s blog post that announced these changes.
To date, the Netflix Facebook discussion as reached over 80,000 comments. The blog post in question quickly hit the 5000 comment threshold, and there are an additional 12,000-plus comments from the Facebook/Blogger plugin that allows users to comment on a post via their Facebook account.
That’s almost 100,000 responses to the Netflix price hike, courtesy of social media, and I haven’t even included anything from Twitter, which would undoubtedly push this total well over the 1 million comments mark. That’s a lot of feedback, and most of it was not in agreement with Netflix’s decision.
Is the price hike and subsequent backlash the very definition of a first world problem? Perhaps, but people love their movies, and they don’t like price increases. Considering the social media world we live in, such reaction was inevitable. With that in mind, allow us to end where we began:
The Netflix price changes will be arriving in two days, or, depending on when you read this, September 1st. Much like daylight savings, don’t forget to adjust your account accordingly, unless you want to get snagged by unwanted increases on your debit/credit card.
There is a fundamental distinction between Netflix users and Hulu users, and it goes far beyond who has more allegiance to 30 Rock.
Netflix and Hulu users differ greatly in both how they stream their content and what content they are streaming.
Nielsen conducted a survey and found that 89% of Hulu users report streaming their video directly to their computers. Only 42% of Netflix users said that this is how they watch stuff. Of that 89% of computer-streaming Hulu users, only 20% said that they connect their computers to their TVs.
The majority of Netflix videos are being enjoyed on people’s televisions. Whether that be through the Wii, Xbox360 and PS3 consoles or internet-enabled devices like Roku and Blu-Ray players, chances are good that if you’re streaming Netflix, you’re taking it in on a bigger screen.
One of the most surprising figures to me is the Hulu/Xbox Live stat. Of the 12,000 people that Nielsen asked, only 2% stream Hulu via their Xbox360s? That’s only shocking to me because I remember how excited people were when Hulu announced it was coming to the Microsoft console.
Nielsen also looked at what users are watching on each service. 53% of Netflix users are watching movies while only 11% say they exclusively watch TV shows. 36% said they watch both equally.
When it comes to Hulu, a whopping 73% said that they primarily view TV shows on the service and only 9% said that they primarily view movies. 18% said that they watch both equally.
Does this some something to do with the people? Probably not, as it most likely has more to do with the catalogs. The recent Netflix price hike outrage might cause a significant number of members to say goodbye to their subscriptions, but would they give their money to Hulu Plus instead? It sure seems that at least right now, the two services aren’t competing with each other for the same type of content and user.
As the fallout continues from Netflix’s decision to split up its streaming and DVD services and charge more for DVDs, many are wondering if and how that anger will translate into losses for the company. Sure, people are outraged, that is clear. But will people walk the walk when it comes down to it? Will they actually drop Netflix or are they just bitching about it now?
Blockbuster thinks that this climate of frustration could be good for their business, and have said so in a release posted to their official blog –
The post is actually titled “Blockbuster Rescues Furious Netflix Customers” and here’s a what it says –
Blockbuster L.L.C. today began rescuing upset Netflix customers by launching a limited time, nationwide promotion for all Netflix customers who switch to Blockbuster Total Access.
Blockbuster Total Access provides benefits Netflix doesn’t offer: availability of many new releases 28 days before Netflix; unlimited in-store exchanges; games for Xbox 360, Playstation3, and Nintendo Wii, and no additional charge for Blu-ray movies.
As part of Blockbuster’s ongoing efforts to provide the ultimate in convenience, choice and value, Netflix customers who switch to one of Blockbuster’s two most popular Total Access plans will receive a 30-day free trial. After the free trial, customers will continue to receive Total Access for a new everyday price of only $9.99 per month for “1 Disc” at a time or $14.99 per month for “2 Discs” at a time.
They then go on to talk about all the furious “Screw Netflix, I’m going to Blockbuster” tweets. In my experience I saw more “Screw Netflix, Hello Redbox” tweets but I’m sure some people mentioned Blockbuster.
So, if I understand this correctly, Blockbuster is going to charge $9.99 for the 1-DVD-at-a-time deal, whereas Netflix is going to charge $7.99. For that extra two dollars, customers would get new releases earlier, games and blu-rays included in the deal. When you look at it that way, it sounds like a solid option.
Here’s the problem: Blockbuster doesn’t offer a streaming subscription, and most people value that option. That means that they are likely to keep their Netflix streaming service. People who don’t value DVDs and new releases as much will most likely chose to forgo the $7.99 DVD plan offered by Netflix. And they probably won’t want to have another monthly charge from Blockbuster either.
Going forward, it seems like the most popular option will be to keep the $7.99 Netflix streaming service and just hit the Redbox for any new releases that you can’t find on Instant.
And of course there’s the download option, which this funny little flow chart captures beautifully. Enjoy –
Today, Netflix dropped the bomb that it was doing away with its unlimited streaming / DVD combo plan in favor of separate plans for each service. Users (myself included) that want unlimited streaming options as well as 1-DVD-at-a-time rental enjoy a $9.99 a month plan at the time. Soon, that option won’t exist.
Moving forward, Netflix users will have the option of a $7.99 unlimited streaming service. instead of paying $2 extra for the one-at-a-time unlimited DVD service, users will now have to pay another $7.99 a month for that. This basically means that the $9.99 service was just increased about 60% to $15.98 a month.
If I had to sum up the initial reaction to this announcement in a few words, I think I might use “aw hell no.” Maybe just the world “indignant.”
What will Netflix users do now? The twitterverse is sounding off, and I will use varying tweets to discuss possible outcomes of this new pricing structure.
First, will users jump ship from Netflix to other content providers? Will Redbox, Hulu, and even cable companies benefit from the Netflix backlash?
@hayofray
Jeffrey ThomasSo wait, I pay @netflix $6 more per month starting September 1? Hello, @redbox, it’s nice to meet you & you live only a block from my house. 25 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
@nmuldoon
Nicholas Muldoon@wikiwikichowski Yea, I honestly am thinking of doing so as well, specially now that Hulu is on Xbox as well, no reason to stay with Netflix 24 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
@stevenjayl
Steven LevyBasically, Netflix is handing cable co’s a huge gift, as its subscribers may bolt and buy on-demand from cable. 44 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
Let’s break this down. Redbox: I get it. No commitment, $1 rentals. Roughly sixteen films from Redbox in one month would equate to the new streaming & DVD Netflix subscription. Users will have to determine whether or not thy can continue to extract enough value out of Netflix to justify the increased cost. Both Netflix and Redbox, however, have deals in place with most studios that make them wait a month before distributing new releases.
As far as Hulu goes, their streaming service is also $7.99 per month. Like Netflix, it too is available on Xbox360. Switching from one to the other doesn’t seem like it’s doing anything except changing the specific content you have access to.
The argument that cable companies will benefit from this pricing shift is one that fails to make sense to me. Using a cable provider’s on-demand service, rentals can run anywhere from $3 to $8 depending on whether or not it is in HD. Rent two or three of those and you are well over $16 for the month. Plus, subscription services like HBO and Showtime aren’t cheap either. The only draw I can see is that on-demand tends to make new releases available earlier than Netflix.
Will users make a choice and simply drop their streaming or DVD plans?
@UncleGramps
UncleGrampsOkay, Netflix, I guess I won’t be getting DVDs or Blu-rays from you anymore. I’ll go streaming only if that’s how you wanna do this. 36 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
@chrisneetch
NeetchI guess since I’ve had my most recent Netflix DVD rental since February I could probably do without the DVD plan. Streaming only for me! 38 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
If users choose to drop either DVD or streaming, then their Netflix bill will actually be a little cheaper than before (considering they had both services to begin with).
But of course the streaming and DVD parts of Netflix are yin & yang, peanut butter & jelly. Streaming provides users with content instantly while the DVDs provide users with the content that isn’t offered via instant streaming.
To assuage the angry masses, Netflix should make a few more deals in the coming months to bring more content to streaming. That might help some people cope with the subscription changes.
Is the price increase really that big of a deal?
@BenKuchera
BenKucheraIf an extra $6 a month for streaming and DVDs from Netflix affects your budget in the slightest way you’re doing something terribly wrong. 59 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
Suck it up, you whiners. That is one way to interpret the backlash. An extra $6 a month, when extrapolated over the course of a year only totals an extra $72. To someone willing to pay $120 a year for their Netflix experience, is $192 going to break their bank?
And if that answer is no, then is it just about the principle of the thing? People get pissed when something that they come to take for granted is taken away from them. You are used to both streaming and DVDs for a low price? Too bad, says Netflix. It doesn’t “make great financial sense,” as they say on their blog today.
And if the answer is yes, then maybe switching to just one of the two services and paying roughly $96 a year could actually be beneficial.
Screw it, I’m just going to download everything.
@mattarena88
MattWhat the fuck Netflix is revamping their pricing? I gotta pay $16 now? I’m THIS close to going back to pirate-only…. 51 minutes ago via web · powered by @socialditto
Will this pricing change put more people back on torrent sites? It’s not that everyone ever really left them – filesharing still exists (duh). But Netflix and Hulu serve as a companion to filesharing to some.
Will people that choose to only keep their streaming Netflix service simply revert to the internet to get the new releases that they want to watch? It’s definitely possible. And before you say anything, no, I’m not insinuating that Netflix is now responsible for increased piracy.
There’s no doubt that the new subscription structure will affect how people use the service that they love. On a final note, is it crazy to wonder if Netflix is simply taking their first step in completely weeding out physical DVDs from their service?