Netflix created the bad but successful template that the other streaming services followed: own the streaming platform and the content -- and now they're suffering for it, and so are consumers.
As a consumer, I don't want to have 5 different streaming services with subs coming and going depending on what shows happen to be in season. I'd rather choose to subscribe to one of various streaming services that in turn let me source content from many providers and just let me pay per show or whatever (maybe after a free first episode or something, I dunno).
In a way I kind of feel bad for Netflix, because they were there "first" and for a long time had maybe one of the more "open" (in terms of content) services. Now the studios are in control again. It's not good for the consumer.
Sure, absolutely, I could probably rephrase to make that clear, I don't think it was their "fault" per se, but a result of the asymmetrical power relationship between content producer and streaming service.
I'm amazed that people didn't see this coming as the end game of the "cut the cord" transition... This was always where it was going to end up. Netflix proved the concept, but it ends up that having an early-mover advantage doesn't matter when you don't own your product, just the platform. But of course what people are actually paying for is the product. And it's been shown time and again that people are willing to put up with "good enough" platforms as long as it has the product they want.
It's the downside of all "content platform" plays. There's nothing stopping a new platform from taking over YouTube or Facebook or Twitter. All it takes is the actual content producers moving to a different platform and poof there it goes.
This seems to be the most obvious explanation. There is simply competition now where there was none before. A good learning moment here for HN, where we mistake lengthy in-depth blog posts for an unassailable tech advantage when in reality this stuff is kinda commodity.
As a consumer, I don't want to have 5 different streaming services with subs coming and going depending on what shows happen to be in season. I'd rather choose to subscribe to one of various streaming services that in turn let me source content from many providers and just let me pay per show or whatever (maybe after a free first episode or something, I dunno).
In a way I kind of feel bad for Netflix, because they were there "first" and for a long time had maybe one of the more "open" (in terms of content) services. Now the studios are in control again. It's not good for the consumer.