The newest Emmy nomination list is out, and following last year’s breakthrough success, Netflix is winning even bigger this year, with a total of 31 nominations compared to last year’s 14. Besides various expected nods for its acclaimed series House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, it also scored a surprise nomination for Ricky Gervais for Lead Actor in its new original comedy series Derek. Overall, premium cable company HBO still dominating the field with most number of nominations. But Netflix’s consecutive success in winning critical acclaims nicely echoes their recent “TV is getting better” native ad, signaling the continuous rise of the OTT content providers in the market.
Tag: netflix
Who is Leading In OTT Video Market?
Amazon, Netflix and Hulu are undoubtedly the top three players in today’s over-the-top video streaming market, but which one of them is taking the lead? According to a recent study conducted by Piper Jaffray & Co., Netflix is certainly winning in the general content-licensing front, which continues to outpace Amazon’s subscription-video service. But when it comes to TV shows, Hulu Plus remains ahead of Netflix, delivering “nearly three times as many recent top-rated shows as Netflix”. But Amazon still have the secret weapon of exclusive quality content, especially with its recent deals with HBO and CBS. Xbox recently lifted its limitation of access to both Hulu and Netflix, signaling a deeper integration and wider infiltration of the SVod services. All in all, they are all flawed winners in this fast-growing market. And together the internet-based content provider will continue to take over the content market from the traditional providers, even after the recent supreme court ruling on Aereo.
Xbox To Remove Gold Requirement For Netflix & Hulu
As has been rumored for some time, Xbox is going to remove the paywall for streaming media services on the gaming device. Xbox 360 and Xbox One users will no longer need a paid subscription to Xbox Live Gold to get to Netflix, Hulu, and others. Apparently Xbox will put some other services behind the paywall to make up for it, perhaps content like the new TV series that have been promised for months now. That said, this move is a clear concession to the fact that Xbox wants users to stay on their device while streaming in the living room, and having a paywall between a service that is free to use on other devices only served to drive consumers away. Free access to Netflix and Hulu means that Xbox is officially competing with both Nintendo and Sony for consumer access to games and streaming content, as well as against the host of media boxes that have begun to infiltrate more and more living rooms.
New Study: Cord Cutting Population Grows
Many suggest that more and more cable users are cutting the cord, and moving towards other streaming solutions to satisfy their TV content needs. Now, a new report from Experian Marketing Services looks at exactly how far that trend has progressed, and the answer is actually farther than most would think. Experian defines cord cutters as people with high-speed Internet who have never subscribed – or stopped subscribing – to cable or satellite. That number has risen by 44% in just three years. In 2013, 6.5% of total households across the country could be classified as cord cutting in this way, up from 4.5% in 2010. The most telling statistic, though, is for houses who have Netflix or Hulu; nearly one fifth of Americans who subscribe to these streaming services don’t subscribe to cable at all. And of households within the age bracket of 18-34 who subscribe to Netflix or Hulu, one quarter of those don’t pay for TV. As far as trends go, this one, then, is pretty well defined as young Internet users – i.e. Millennials – who are finding their services online, rather than on TV. As these young adults age, they could very well become the ruling majority rather than an increasing minority.
Netflix & Comcast Sign Web Traffic Deal
Thought the recent net neutrality rulings wouldn’t have rapid ramifications? Think again. Today, Netflix and Comcast announced a deal that would see Netflix pay the ISP to remove a bottleneck that slowed the video provider’s traffic. The deal is designed to provide ideal capacity for Netflix’s service, which has seen a dip in service after the landmark net neutrality ruling which allowed ISPs to throttle traffic. Nevertheless, Netflix now has a long-term agreement in place with Comcast – and likely, by extension after their merger, Time Warner – that will see their traffic issues fixed. Not coincidentally, Verizon has released a statement that they expect Netflix to pay them, too, if they want to see an improvement in service. The key, for many, is whether these new costs will be passed on to consumers, and if this happens whether those consumers will balk at higher prices.
Netflix Promises To Protest Net Neutrality
While Netflix announced it’s Q4 2013 earnings, which were very positive, the company made headlines for its take on the Net Neutrality ruling. In a letter to shareholders Netflix bemoaned the decision, saying that, “In principle, a domestic ISP now can legally impede the video streams that memebrs request from Netflix, degrading the experience we jointly provide.” Netflix is imagining the scenario thought up by many, wherein the company would have to pay fees to ISP’s to prevent the degradation of service, passing that cost back onto consumers with higher member fees. But it doesn’t want to do that: the company said that were this to happen it would protest and encourage its members to do the same. Though Netflix doesn’t see this happening – the company puts faith in ISP’s to keep providing the open internet they are charged with delivering – it could prove to be a pressure point in the coming months and years: what will it take for users to protest against these sorts of changes? Would the intentional throttling of Netflix, the number one source of U.S. Internet use during peak hours, be enough to push people over that edge?
Netflix Gets First Golden Globe
From arguably “winning” CES with its 4K content, to now winning a Golden Globe, you could say it’s already been a good 2014 for the streaming and TV production company. Netflix is now, certifiably, a production house to be reckoned with, as it won its first ever Golden Globe as Robin Wright came away with the Best Actress (Drama Series) award for House of Cards. The company was nominated for six awards, and four of which were for House of Cards, while Arrested Development and Orange is the New Black only got nods for one apiece. Nonetheless, as Netflix continues to diversify its critically acclaimed programming in an increasingly popular streaming, on-demand format that’s found itself accessible on nearly every smart interface debuted at CES or available for purchase at present, it continues to establish itself as the leader into the world of streaming.
Breaking Bad Spinoff Airs On Netflix
In another big win for the streaming service, the Breaking Bad spinoff titled “Better Call Saul” will air digitally, on Netflix, exclusively in Europe and Latin America. In the United States, the show will be posted online shortly after it airs on AMC. The move is in line with the show’s founder, Vince Gillian, who has said on multiple occasions that Netflix is responsible for saving Breaking Bad in its early seasons while it was struggling to gain wide-spread attention. It’s also a big win for Netflix, who are continuously looking for legs up over competitors Amazon Instant Video.
Netflix Redesign Cuts Across Platforms
In the biggest revamp in its history, Netflix addresses cross-platform integration and overwhelming title search by deeply integrating social and recommendation engines into the new platform. It provides users with the show’s relation to their – and their friends’ – viewing habits, as well as provides helpful synopses for the shows at hand. Searching is also new, integrating show results as well as names of actors and others affiliated with the shows. The most important upgrade is its uniformity across different platforms; in the past, users faced a slightly altered Netflix interface on, say the PS3 and the Roku. But now, no matter where you use it, it looks exactly the same and functions in the same way. Neflix is pushing harder and harder to make itself the go-to, on-demand media channel across all platforms, and this is a big step in that direction.
Netflix Wants To Bring Blockbuster Movies Online On Release Day
The idea isn’t as bold as the headline might suggest, but it’s an interesting play from Netflix: the streaming service is looking to make its own feature films that would debut digitally and in theaters simultaneously. Off the back of its successful show series, the idea doesn’t seem too far-fetched; nonetheless, putting together a feature film is another level of commitment entirely. Nonetheless, Netflix has recognized the fact that consumers want the movies in all formats simultaneously, and is banking on this strategy.
