3 ms·

NetFlix Everywhere: Sorry Cable, You're History

13 points by raghus 17y ago

DannoHung 17y ago
Netflix instant watch is such a killer feature. If they could arrange concurrent live broadcasts through Instant Watch, I'd even consent to watching commercials.
- smokinn 17y ago
  With a combination of Hulu for TV and Netflix for movies, live broadcasts are the only thing cable has left going for it. Once sports events are broadcasted over the internet as well cable TV will have been thoroughly supplanted.
  - mikeryan 17y ago
    Roku already did a deal to get MLB. Unfortunately they're the only major sport that kept their rights to broadcast over the internet when they did their broadcast deals.
  - wmf 17y ago
    HBO/Showtime are also a problem if you're into that sort of thing.
    - philwelch 17y ago
      People already pay extra for HBO and Showtime. I really don't see any barrier to having people pay to stream HBO and Showtime rather than add it to their cable bill.
      - wmf 17y ago
        Sure, if that was offered. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118008861.html http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118008861.html "Pay TV outlets have responded by ramping up their proprietary video-on-demand services and keeping a tight rein on the availability of their shows on outside platforms. They aim to get subscribers hooked on the ease and convenience of using their services ... and keep them hooked." Translation: You want HBO, you must have cable. Bummer.
prat 17y ago
I think if the cable industry had a platform for developers to make apps (like on iphone/android etc), the cable software could have been much better. Look at time-warner/comcast/at&t interface - they all suck so much yet there is no one to tell them the first thing about good design or functionality. I think it is inevitable that this would change in the next few years (with entrants like apple or google in cable business) and you would have all the functionality of netflix on cable. This would be the end of dvds altogether and netflix would die as a business model just like blockbuster is dying today and video tapes died back in time.
- mikeryan 17y ago
  They do, there are two but they're just starting to get traction. tru2way is a standardized Java stack for set top boxes. EBIF is a scaled down interactive TV software for legacy boxes that can't do a full java stack. It's just starting to get deployed. Actually and Verizon is doing their own Lua based widget platform. But tru2way and EBIF are standardized so those will be run on multiple cable co's.
- dasil003 17y ago
  If you think the Cable companies can't design a good UI wait until you see their attempts at an SDK. Big telecom couldn't do what Apple does in their wildest dreams.
samg 17y ago
One thing I'm struck by is how willing Hastings is to kill a a feature or product that isn't quite ready. They wait until the timing is right and then change the game. "No" (or, "not yet") is often the better answer.
mikeryan 17y ago
The Roku box is flat out an awesome deal. That being said there's a whole next generation of TV's with internet access where you don't even need another box. I have a new LG that has both Netflix and Vudu (pay per play on-demand service). It also has the new Yahoo Widget engine and can connect over my home network to watch videos off my media server. On Thursday at the Intel Developer Forum they are going to be announcing some really cool advances on the TV front.
- wmf 17y ago
  TVs last 10 years; do you want to bet that "Yahoo Widget engine" will still be awesome in 2019? I'd rather have the box.
  - SwellJoe 17y ago
    I doubt current generation TVs will last 10 years. They are now more like computers than traditional home electronics, and the computer life cycle is dramatically shorter. I'd be surprised if TVs bought today average even seven years. It'll probably be about five. They're getting cheaper, bigger, more efficient, and more capable, with every generation. Then again, 1080p is likely to be the maximum useful resolution for at least ten years (since most current "HD" content sources are actually 480 or 720), so maybe things will slow down once everyone has 1080p-capable TVs.
    - wmf 17y ago
      I doubt current generation TVs will last 10 years. And that's a bad thing that we shouldn't encourage IMO. I intentionally bought a "dumb" 1080p TV so that it would last. Since an "obsolescence inside" warning label for smart TVs isn't likely to catch on, maybe the cheaper/dumber TVs should be marketed as "future-proof" or "built to last".
      - SwellJoe 17y ago
        I made no judgment call on whether it's a good thing. I don't think it is, but what I think is good isn't generally what the market does (otherwise everyone would be vegetarian, never wear baseball caps except when playing baseball or driving an 18-wheeler, and "Hummer" would not refer to a vehicle). I just think technology in televisions have evolved to be more like televisions, and the cost/capability curve is shaping up somewhat similarly (I guess more similarly to computer monitors, but those still evolve much faster than TVs and are upgraded far more frequently; I replace my monitor about every 36 months, which is slightly less often than I buy a PC and about the same frequency as I replace my laptop).
mrshoe 17y ago
Like most people here, I would love to cancel my cable TV and TiVo subscriptions and just get all my content on demand. However, aside from streaming every movie and TV show, Netflix/iTunes/whatever also needs to nail these two features: 1) Live events. Sports, breaking news, presidential inaugurations, etc. 2) Same day for new TV episodes. I don't want to find out what happened in The Office at the water cooler the next day. The other hurdle is that the cable companies practically have a monopoly on broadband in many areas. I can already see how the call to Comcast will go. "You're on the special TV+internet plan, which is $99/month." "OK, I just want internet now, so cancel the TV portion." "No problem, that brings your monthly bill to $98/month." .... Wonderful.
- SwellJoe 17y ago
  "You're on the special TV+internet plan, which is $99/month." "OK, I just want internet now, so cancel the TV portion." "No problem, that brings your monthly bill to $98/month." This is actually accurate. My cable Internet plan is $68 per month with Comcast. To get basic cable television would cost one dollar more (and yet I still don't want it, since I don't own a TV; which was stunning to the salesperson). I hate Comcast.
  - jsares 17y ago
    That's because if they charge you the extra dollar they get to count you as a customer to the advertisers.
- elai 17y ago
  If you use bit-torrent & RSS you can get #2. #1 tends to be covered by "Youtube live broadcasts", ESPN360 ( http://espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index http://espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index ) and other special streaming services. It would literally just be a matter of signing contract to achieve it. It's already here in a way.
- hippee-lee 17y ago
  You can cancel cable/satalite and still get local/national news and most sporting events. I use a $35 antenna. All the sporting stuff is in hd now the other content is hit or miss. When i get some extra cash i am going to get a mac mini for the tv shows i like and the downloadable neflix media. I was also able to get a naked dsl line from qwest for A decent price.
SwellJoe 17y ago
I just signed up for NetFlix this past weekend, and set it up on the XBox I bought to play Rock Band. It's dead awesome. The instant stuff is mostly what convinced me to sign up (though the availability of some stuff that can't be streamed anywhere currently is also a benefit). I've been using Hulu and Amazon Unbox (both of which I wish would come to XBox!) and love them both. Netflix doesn't quite match the Amazon experience, as far as video quality goes, but the selection is getting better (I'd canceled NetFlix about 1.5 years ago, because I wasn't watching DVDs anymore, and the streaming selection was dramatically worse than Hulu, but that lack of content begun to change).
nobody_nowhere 17y ago
The irony is that Netflix sees its top near-term competitor as RedBox, not the cable companies. Netflix has effectively eliminated (or at least hamstrung) Blockbuster and all of the other rental stores as predicted, and now they're going head to head with a kiosk company going after the value-conscious segment of the market. I find that fascinating. Slay the giant, and a little micro version of it pops up to nip at your heels.

13 points by raghus 17y ago

Netflix instant watch is such a killer feature. If they could arrange concurrent live broadcasts through Instant Watch, I'd even consent to watching commercials.

smokinn 17y ago
With a combination of Hulu for TV and Netflix for movies, live broadcasts are the only thing cable has left going for it. Once sports events are broadcasted over the internet as well cable TV will have been thoroughly supplanted.
- mikeryan 17y ago
  Roku already did a deal to get MLB. Unfortunately they're the only major sport that kept their rights to broadcast over the internet when they did their broadcast deals.
- wmf 17y ago
  HBO/Showtime are also a problem if you're into that sort of thing.
  - philwelch 17y ago
    People already pay extra for HBO and Showtime. I really don't see any barrier to having people pay to stream HBO and Showtime rather than add it to their cable bill.
    - wmf 17y ago
      Sure, if that was offered. http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118008861.html http://www.variety.com/article/VR1118008861.html "Pay TV outlets have responded by ramping up their proprietary video-on-demand services and keeping a tight rein on the availability of their shows on outside platforms. They aim to get subscribers hooked on the ease and convenience of using their services ... and keep them hooked." Translation: You want HBO, you must have cable. Bummer.

prat 17y ago

I think if the cable industry had a platform for developers to make apps (like on iphone/android etc), the cable software could have been much better. Look at time-warner/comcast/at&t interface - they all suck so much yet there is no one to tell them the first thing about good design or functionality. I think it is inevitable that this would change in the next few years (with entrants like apple or google in cable business) and you would have all the functionality of netflix on cable. This would be the end of dvds altogether and netflix would die as a business model just like blockbuster is dying today and video tapes died back in time.

mikeryan 17y ago
They do, there are two but they're just starting to get traction. tru2way is a standardized Java stack for set top boxes. EBIF is a scaled down interactive TV software for legacy boxes that can't do a full java stack. It's just starting to get deployed. Actually and Verizon is doing their own Lua based widget platform. But tru2way and EBIF are standardized so those will be run on multiple cable co's.
dasil003 17y ago
If you think the Cable companies can't design a good UI wait until you see their attempts at an SDK. Big telecom couldn't do what Apple does in their wildest dreams.

samg 17y ago

One thing I'm struck by is how willing Hastings is to kill a a feature or product that isn't quite ready. They wait until the timing is right and then change the game. "No" (or, "not yet") is often the better answer.

mikeryan 17y ago

The Roku box is flat out an awesome deal. That being said there's a whole next generation of TV's with internet access where you don't even need another box. I have a new LG that has both Netflix and Vudu (pay per play on-demand service). It also has the new Yahoo Widget engine and can connect over my home network to watch videos off my media server. On Thursday at the Intel Developer Forum they are going to be announcing some really cool advances on the TV front.

wmf 17y ago
TVs last 10 years; do you want to bet that "Yahoo Widget engine" will still be awesome in 2019? I'd rather have the box.
- SwellJoe 17y ago
  I doubt current generation TVs will last 10 years. They are now more like computers than traditional home electronics, and the computer life cycle is dramatically shorter. I'd be surprised if TVs bought today average even seven years. It'll probably be about five. They're getting cheaper, bigger, more efficient, and more capable, with every generation. Then again, 1080p is likely to be the maximum useful resolution for at least ten years (since most current "HD" content sources are actually 480 or 720), so maybe things will slow down once everyone has 1080p-capable TVs.
  - wmf 17y ago
    I doubt current generation TVs will last 10 years. And that's a bad thing that we shouldn't encourage IMO. I intentionally bought a "dumb" 1080p TV so that it would last. Since an "obsolescence inside" warning label for smart TVs isn't likely to catch on, maybe the cheaper/dumber TVs should be marketed as "future-proof" or "built to last".
    - SwellJoe 17y ago
      I made no judgment call on whether it's a good thing. I don't think it is, but what I think is good isn't generally what the market does (otherwise everyone would be vegetarian, never wear baseball caps except when playing baseball or driving an 18-wheeler, and "Hummer" would not refer to a vehicle). I just think technology in televisions have evolved to be more like televisions, and the cost/capability curve is shaping up somewhat similarly (I guess more similarly to computer monitors, but those still evolve much faster than TVs and are upgraded far more frequently; I replace my monitor about every 36 months, which is slightly less often than I buy a PC and about the same frequency as I replace my laptop).

mrshoe 17y ago

Like most people here, I would love to cancel my cable TV and TiVo subscriptions and just get all my content on demand. However, aside from streaming every movie and TV show, Netflix/iTunes/whatever also needs to nail these two features: 1) Live events. Sports, breaking news, presidential inaugurations, etc. 2) Same day for new TV episodes. I don't want to find out what happened in The Office at the water cooler the next day. The other hurdle is that the cable companies practically have a monopoly on broadband in many areas. I can already see how the call to Comcast will go. "You're on the special TV+internet plan, which is $99/month." "OK, I just want internet now, so cancel the TV portion." "No problem, that brings your monthly bill to $98/month." .... Wonderful.

SwellJoe 17y ago
"You're on the special TV+internet plan, which is $99/month." "OK, I just want internet now, so cancel the TV portion." "No problem, that brings your monthly bill to $98/month." This is actually accurate. My cable Internet plan is $68 per month with Comcast. To get basic cable television would cost one dollar more (and yet I still don't want it, since I don't own a TV; which was stunning to the salesperson). I hate Comcast.
- jsares 17y ago
  That's because if they charge you the extra dollar they get to count you as a customer to the advertisers.
elai 17y ago
If you use bit-torrent & RSS you can get #2. #1 tends to be covered by "Youtube live broadcasts", ESPN360 ( http://espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index http://espn.go.com/broadband/espn360/index ) and other special streaming services. It would literally just be a matter of signing contract to achieve it. It's already here in a way.
hippee-lee 17y ago
You can cancel cable/satalite and still get local/national news and most sporting events. I use a $35 antenna. All the sporting stuff is in hd now the other content is hit or miss. When i get some extra cash i am going to get a mac mini for the tv shows i like and the downloadable neflix media. I was also able to get a naked dsl line from qwest for A decent price.

SwellJoe 17y ago

I just signed up for NetFlix this past weekend, and set it up on the XBox I bought to play Rock Band. It's dead awesome. The instant stuff is mostly what convinced me to sign up (though the availability of some stuff that can't be streamed anywhere currently is also a benefit). I've been using Hulu and Amazon Unbox (both of which I wish would come to XBox!) and love them both. Netflix doesn't quite match the Amazon experience, as far as video quality goes, but the selection is getting better (I'd canceled NetFlix about 1.5 years ago, because I wasn't watching DVDs anymore, and the streaming selection was dramatically worse than Hulu, but that lack of content begun to change).

nobody_nowhere 17y ago

The irony is that Netflix sees its top near-term competitor as RedBox, not the cable companies. Netflix has effectively eliminated (or at least hamstrung) Blockbuster and all of the other rental stores as predicted, and now they're going head to head with a kiosk company going after the value-conscious segment of the market. I find that fascinating. Slay the giant, and a little micro version of it pops up to nip at your heels.