3 ms·

I sort of agree, but I believe Netflix is legally obligated to do this due to licenses/copyright laws that they have. So they probably have to put in some legal

by skizm 9y ago

I sort of agree, but I believe Netflix is legally obligated to do this due to licenses/copyright laws that they have. So they probably have to put in some legally defined amount of effort into combating people "cheating" or working around the regional licenses. Their hands are tied. That's my guess at least.

confounded 9y ago
They optionally sign contracts which contain geo-fencing clauses. There’s no law that says content must be geo fenced, and that suspicion of proxy use, for any purpose must result in denial of service.
- jimbobimbo 9y ago
  There's no law, but then there's no content, which Netflix needs to serve their users. Netflix is a business, not an entity set up to fight Internet freedom.
  - confounded 9y ago
    So before Netflix introduced a VPN ban, Netflix didn’t exist? Same for Amazon, Apple, etc. etc.? No. Rights holders groups asked for it, and they said yes to increase their margins.
    - jimbobimbo 9y ago
      Sure. And if they said "no" to rights holders, rights holders would pull the licenses. Whether the move increases Netflix or not - doesn't matter really. As long as they license someone else's content, they have to play by someone else's rules. If this play also increases Netflix's margins, so be it - all I care about is having access to movies.
      - confounded 9y ago
        You have an awful lot of certainty about the positions of both parties in these contract negotiations. It seems more likely to me that Netflix would simply have to pay more. I’m sure Netflix could pay less in exchange for the IP and email addresses of people watching in real-time, too, but that doesn’t mean it’s either inevitable or desirable. I imagine that Netflix as a distribution platform may wield more power than you imagine.
        jimbobimbo 9y ago
        I guess we'll agree to disagree. I'm pretty sure we can safely say that neither of us was privy to the contract negotiations between Netflix and studios. :)

by skizm 9y ago

confounded 9y ago

They optionally sign contracts which contain geo-fencing clauses. There’s no law that says content must be geo fenced, and that suspicion of proxy use, for any purpose must result in denial of service.

jimbobimbo 9y ago
There's no law, but then there's no content, which Netflix needs to serve their users. Netflix is a business, not an entity set up to fight Internet freedom.
- confounded 9y ago
  So before Netflix introduced a VPN ban, Netflix didn’t exist? Same for Amazon, Apple, etc. etc.? No. Rights holders groups asked for it, and they said yes to increase their margins.
  - jimbobimbo 9y ago
    Sure. And if they said "no" to rights holders, rights holders would pull the licenses. Whether the move increases Netflix or not - doesn't matter really. As long as they license someone else's content, they have to play by someone else's rules. If this play also increases Netflix's margins, so be it - all I care about is having access to movies.
    - confounded 9y ago
      You have an awful lot of certainty about the positions of both parties in these contract negotiations. It seems more likely to me that Netflix would simply have to pay more. I’m sure Netflix could pay less in exchange for the IP and email addresses of people watching in real-time, too, but that doesn’t mean it’s either inevitable or desirable. I imagine that Netflix as a distribution platform may wield more power than you imagine.
      - jimbobimbo 9y ago
        I guess we'll agree to disagree. I'm pretty sure we can safely say that neither of us was privy to the contract negotiations between Netflix and studios. :)