8 ms·
Apparently, Betteridge's law of headlines doesn't always hold up. On a more serious note, it will be interesting to see if currently, ad-free on-demand service
by dtech 8y ago
Apparently, Betteridge's law of headlines doesn't always hold up.
On a more serious note, it will be interesting to see if currently, ad-free on-demand services will undergo the same transition.
- radicaldreamer 8y agoI could see a dual tier approach like Hulu. The ad supported tier is only $5 a month
- pacala 8y agoOf course they will.
- wnevets 8y agoNetflix is rumored to start advertising between episodes https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/22/how-to-opt-out-of-new-ad-tests-on-netflix.html https://www.cnbc.com/2018/08/22/how-to-opt-out-of-new-ad-tes...
- endorphone 8y agoThey are pushing their own programming (trying to encourage consumption of the programming that you already have access to and already paid for). I don't think it's fair to the conversation to compare it with the umbrella of commercial endorsements.
- maxerickson 8y agoIf you can't opt out of it it's pretty damn fair to make the comparison.
- seanalltogether 8y agoIt might be more fair to compare to public broadcasting stations. BBC doesn't have paid commercials but they do advertise their own programming between shows.
- endorphone 8y agoIgnoring that you can opt out, if you can't understand the difference between information and advertising that is your own failing.
- p1necone 8y agoSure I understand the difference, but that doesn't make one better than the other. Netflix interrupting what I chose to watch with something that I did not chose to watch is (in my subjective experience) pretty much equally bad whether it's information about other Netflix shows or an advert for breakfast cereal. (Also is there an actual "I don't want to see these any more, permanently" option? Or are you just talking about the ability to skip each individual one manually?) (Edit 2: also how is it not advertising? Just because it's advertising their own product doesn't mean it isn't advertising.)
- endorphone 8y ago>Netflix interrupting what I chose to watch Well no, they didn't. They put it between auto-play episodes. Auto-play, as an aside, is pushing an additional episode that you did not choose to watch. A preview of the next episode is a preview that you did not choose to watch. Both are about engagement. >also how is it not advertising? Just because it's advertising their own product doesn't mean it isn't advertising Their own product that you already have paid for and can watch at no additional cost, and at no additional incremental revenue for Netflix. Yes, they are trying to make sure that you enjoy the product and continue subscribing, but it's a world different from trying to sell you a chocolate bar or laundry soap. These discussions on HN turn absurd because people like to engage in absurd rhetoric to engage in an emotional plea to exaggerate something. It's boring.
- p1necone 8y agoWhat you're arguing seems absurd to me. Auto-play is just playing the next episode in a series, that is what I chose to watch. I don't need Netflix to "make sure that you enjoy the product and continue subscribing" by making my viewing experience worse, when I run out of stuff to watch I'm perfectly capable of browsing the library myself, or looking up suggestions online.
- wnevets 8y agoIsn't how cable networks started and people made that exact same argument on why it was ok?
- endorphone 8y agoI have no idea. I do know that the "something followed this path, therefore anything on that path is evil" argument is, and has always been, specious and a dead end.
- giancarlostoro 8y agoIt's not a rumor, they already do this. At least when you watch their original programs you see ads for more of their original programs. Thankfully you can skip them, they just try to show a trailer for one of their own shows / movies basically. Edit: I usually see it during the phase where Netflix is about to autoplay another episode, it tries to show it through then, I usually skip it cause it's stupid, I don't want to be fed the same trailer 500 times...
- jwatte 8y agoI think there is a difference between "house ads" for other content, versus Nike trying to sell me sneakers. However, I think that difference is smaller than most in house placement marketers think -- those I have talked to are genuinely surprised that I'd object to their own "programming." For me, anything that tries to force me to take an action or spend (waste) my time or attention is an "ad" and is inherently bad.
- p1necone 8y agoAs far as I'm concerned they're exactly the same. I pay netflix so I can watch shows of my choice, if you interrupt the show of my choice with something that is not the show of my choice I don't really care what the interruption was exactly, it's just bad.
- giancarlostoro 8y agoTo be fair they do it at the end of a show, while the countdown happens, I can't say it's not the best compromise because it's genius, the countdown to the next show is plain but ad-free otherwise, my issue is seeing the exact same ads overtime. If something might be interesting to me, that's what your front-page recommendations are for aka "suggested for you" maybe a new tier "Netflix Originals Suggested for You" wouldn't hurt. I'd happily opt for no ads period. Netflix should stick to advertising brands within their shows if anything, I don't mind in-show ads, as long as they're not too damn obvious. I was watching Bones once and they paused the whole premise to showcase a self-parking parallel parking car... Really?
- chipperyman573 8y agoPossibly, Hulu already does this and Netflix is rumored to start doing it soon. However, an important difference between old TV and current-day streaming is that it is much easier to pirate shows that are streaming. There is an (ad-)free alternative to Hulu and Netflix that is becoming easier to use. At some point, streaming services may have to compete by not including ads.
- jlg23 8y ago> However, an important difference between old TV and current-day streaming is that it is much easier to pirate shows that are streaming. As someone who grew up recording (and distributing to friends) one-to-many streams (a.k.a. terrestrial TV), I wonder how it got easier. Just because nobody is using personalized watermarks to prove copyright infringement yet, does not mean a redistributor today ain't going to get sued tomorrow.
- icebraining 8y agoYou can create an account with gift cards paid in cash, so I wish them good luck.
- jlg23 8y agoIn the US. Good luck in other countries[1]. [1] I've been to much more countries where the currency of choice is top-up cards for mobile phones. Master- and VISA-cards issued by local banks are usually only usable for national transactions - not to speak of gift cards, which just don't exist.
- p1necone 8y agoIn New Zealand you can buy prepaid credit cards with cash (and no personal information) that work anywhere visa/mastercard is accepted afaik.
- icebraining 8y agoI'm not talking about Master/VISA gift cards, I'm talking about Netflix gift cards. I'm not in the US, yet they are readily available. According to [1], they seem to be available at least in the US, Canada, Australia, many European countries, Brazil, Malaysia and Japan. That's far from the whole world, but quite enough as a source of potential pirates. [1] https://help.netflix.com/en/node/32950/br https://help.netflix.com/en/node/32950/br
- codezero 8y agoAmazon Prime includes “ads” for their own shows. I call them ads because they are on before the show I’m watching and I don’t want to watch them. Luckily, for now, I can still skip them.