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So your complaints are that you couldn't use your preferred commercial services on an open platform. But if you zoom out to Smartphone Global Scale, the vast m

So your complaints are that you couldn't use your preferred commercial services on an open platform. But if you zoom out to Smartphone Global Scale, the vast majority of people don't use those services anyhow. Netflix has 155 million total subscribers globally, which means it doesn't have about 3,745 million other Internet users. Smartphones are far, far more about communication and collaboration than passive content consumption. 'Functioning' in our digital society isn't about everyone individually watching the same movies on a 5" screen on the bus. Most people use their phones as a glossier smartphone with navigation capability and that's just fine.

_bxg1 8y ago
"the vast majority of people don't use those services anyhow." You use Netflix as a stand-in for all "commercial services". The majority of smartphone users in the world may not have Netflix on their phones, but the majority of Americans - the largest market by value - do. And more importantly, I guarantee you that the vast majority of smartphone users worldwide regularly use Facebook and/or WhatsApp. Those are commercial services. I personally have trouble staying in the loop at work without Slack on my phone. That's a commercial service. Plenty of mobile, commercial services are truly essential to modern life. Singling out Netflix is a straw-man.
- feanaro 8y ago
  > The majority of smartphone users in the world may not have Netflix on their phones, but the majority of Americans - the largest market by value - do. Maybe Americans are the largest market by value. Are they larger than the sum of all other markets, though? Will they be in 5 years? What about 10? Regarding WhatsApp and Facebook, let's just remind ourselves they did not exist ~10 years ago. Any argument based on their size should only serve to remind us that such a dramatic change is possible over a period of 10 years.

_bxg1 8y ago

"the vast majority of people don't use those services anyhow." You use Netflix as a stand-in for all "commercial services". The majority of smartphone users in the world may not have Netflix on their phones, but the majority of Americans - the largest market by value - do. And more importantly, I guarantee you that the vast majority of smartphone users worldwide regularly use Facebook and/or WhatsApp. Those are commercial services. I personally have trouble staying in the loop at work without Slack on my phone. That's a commercial service. Plenty of mobile, commercial services are truly essential to modern life. Singling out Netflix is a straw-man.

feanaro 8y ago
> The majority of smartphone users in the world may not have Netflix on their phones, but the majority of Americans - the largest market by value - do. Maybe Americans are the largest market by value. Are they larger than the sum of all other markets, though? Will they be in 5 years? What about 10? Regarding WhatsApp and Facebook, let's just remind ourselves they did not exist ~10 years ago. Any argument based on their size should only serve to remind us that such a dramatic change is possible over a period of 10 years.