This is what's killing the US, Corporate GREED and Apple is just another part of it.
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Netflix Starts Booting Subscribers Off Cheapest Basic Ads-Free Plan
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Yeah, shows how little people value their time. If I can't watch commercial free, I don't watch. I have better things to do with my time. Also, when I say commercials I'm talking about ED ads sprinkled throughout the show, not pre-rolls about another show. The later gives that settle in time like in the theater.
Price Gouging at work. I pity those poor addicts who can't do without their Netflix fix.
Why? Everyone here has different entertainment needs. For as much as people dislike Netflix, never want to utilize the service they still have the largest group of subscribers out there. They are like a massive amount of content substitute channel to use when there is nothing to new to view, or most OTA channels lack interesting content which happens a lot during the day. I can only relate to USA market, other countries could present different situation.
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Thank you for proving my point in my first post.Times change, look at what has happened to ad-free vs add supported. A couple years ago I read that the streaming companies were making more money off of cheaper plans with ads then more expensive subscriptions with no ads. I still pay to avoid ads, but most people per these trends that have abandoned cable/satellite TV are quite OK with them.
Understanding Consumer Ad Choice Segments
Ad-supported plans have rapidly become an important part of the streaming video market, currently accounting for 25% of all Premium SVOD subscriptions. And they are especially critical to acquisition: ad-supported plans now make up nearly one-in-three new sign-ups.www.antenna.live
Paid, Ad-Supported Streaming Subscriptions Reportedly Surpass Ad-Free Signups in November
For the first time, ad-supported streaming plans attracted more customers in a month than ad-free plans did in Nov. 2023.thestreamable.com
People need to grow a spine to these companies.
I'd dump Netflix but it does have an extensive kids library that keeps my children entertained. They never got into Disney content.
But Netflix is soon going to price itself out of business if this keeps up.
But Netflix is soon going to price itself out of business if this keeps up.
Probably because a lot of the times (but not all), when something is the underdog, it still has a semblance of humility and a strong ethical compass attached to it.
But power and success corrupts... so the backlash begins.
In the early days of Netflix streaming, they did have Disney content. But Disney pulled out at the end of the agreement because they wanted to start Disney+ and didn't want consumers to expect their content anywhere else. So far Disney+ has not been profitable for Disney.
Not only Disney owned content, but BBC/ITV (Britbox), CW content, ABC Content, Paramount (CBS), and Comcast/Universal (NBC). All of that was yanked back to promote all those content producers VoD subscription services. Additionally various Anime, Animations, and WB (Max) and Sony Content. Everything that is on Netflix now is stuff they produce/license exclusivity from world wide sources. Netflix also has partnered with a lot of Korean content providers, some Japanese partners also. Content from Norway, Poland, Turkey, Romania, Ireland, UK is also seen frequently. This all presents a different Netflix for some USA/Canada viewers compared to years back. Particularly for people not fans of non-english language content that is usually presented with subtitles. That is pretty common with sites that cater to Asian content which Netflix is one example.
I agree underdogs tend to be humble, but that tends to not be from choice. That’s just a natural outcome of their position (ie. it looks very odd when the occasional underdog shows hubris). But I don’t think there is any tendency for underdogs to have a particularly strong ethical compass. It seems to me people just want to give them the benefit of the doubt and project ethics onto them because of their humble position (underdogs may even take advantage of this)—and the opposite for those in power.
Is Tim Cook moonlighting as an advisor for Netflix?
Amazon Prime is the worst. They've put the price up AND imposed ads. I only stay with them because we need the free delivery on Amazon products.
If there is something on Prime now I just "acquire" it on the Mac and stream it to the Apple TV.
Amount of guilt felt: zero.
If there is something on Prime now I just "acquire" it on the Mac and stream it to the Apple TV.
Amount of guilt felt: zero.
If I'm going to either pay insane prices or have ads, I'd rather stick with TubiTV and PlutoTV, which are free with ads.
I will say it was inevitable, and we should have known that those low prices were never sustainable to begin with. Kinda like when Uber first started out. You knew they weren't making a profit, and everyone still flocked to their service regardless because on an individual level, you would be a fool to not take advantage of those low starting prices while they lasted because everyone else would either way.
So in a way, we always end up being our own worse enemies.
In fairness, I would say that corporate greed is one of the things that also built the US (and the rest of the world), but it certainly does seem like it is losing any sense of balance lately.
What does corporate greed have to do with subscription plans becoming end of life after so much time that consumers knew they would end? Rates change, they are never forever. Want a bad guy then thats a business that does its best to pretend to be helping you change or cancel a plan talking to them in store or by phone. You know these companies, they try their best to pitch other plans, given more discounts, do everything but listen to what you want to do. Netflix you just change plan or cancel. It's done, there is no argumentative representative trying his best to psych you out from any changes. If you wish to discuss corporate greed, it's seldom with these online subscription services. Don't like it, hey it's immediate good bye. How many other businesses out there are a lot more aggressive and greedy.
I had free Netflix combo'd with T-Mobile paying to get the old basic SD one user no ad plan. I was fine with it.
I heard you could keep it if you paid for it. I tried contacting T-Mobile and Netflix to disconnect my account and leave things alone. They both ignored me, gave me the runaround, and eventually changed my account to 2 user ad supported etc. for free, covered by my T-Mobile plan against my will.
I promptly cancelled Netflix. I don't even want it for free. When you are ignored and treated like this, I refuse to do business with you. I will never enter into an agreement like this again due to this treatment.
I heard you could keep it if you paid for it. I tried contacting T-Mobile and Netflix to disconnect my account and leave things alone. They both ignored me, gave me the runaround, and eventually changed my account to 2 user ad supported etc. for free, covered by my T-Mobile plan against my will.
I promptly cancelled Netflix. I don't even want it for free. When you are ignored and treated like this, I refuse to do business with you. I will never enter into an agreement like this again due to this treatment.
They are better because data shows most people will pay when the price (and the UX) is right.
Pretty much this. Imagine ever participating in that platform.
And yet everybody is giving them their money cause they don't want to miss a show, a song or a movie. A friend of mine subscribed to Netflix most expensive plan after buying a huge 4K UHD tv. "I didn't buy such a TV to watch HD shows. I want it all". Says it all also.
You'd think a company like Sony would be similarly trusted, but they tried to pull a fast one, because they no longer wanted to license the content that people "owned digitally".
It's literally what is taught in business school, at least in the US. The job of the CEO is to maximize shareholder value. That's it.
So they keep going and going and going until it breaks.
At least shareholders got paid though, and the CEO got richer. CEOs don't even care now, the get golden parachutes even if they fail.
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One of my coworkers from India brought this up. They had rapid piracy and stopped it by making DVDs affordable, it didn't make sense to buy the crappy pirated copy when you could get the real thing for a little more.
In reading how questionable accounting is for movies too, I don't feel bad for them. They are very flexible about if a movie was profitable or not.
After the whole thing decades ago about CD prices being jacked up when it cost like $0.50 to make and artists were being screwed by contracts, I had no sympathy when file sharing sites came up. The record companies made their money, and I never got a discount for rebuying the same albums I had prior on cassette or record.
Sorry but the industries screwed themself, and Netflix is going in the same direction.
Exactly. I can deal with ads if it's free because, well, it has to exist somehow.
Otherwise I'd just rather go to the library for DVD, CDs and *gasp* actual books.