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The Rise of Netflix Competitors Has Pushed Consumers Back Toward Piracy (vice.com)
A new study from network equipment company Sandvine finds that BitTorrent usage and piracy is increasing after years of declines. The reason appears to be due to "an increase in exclusivity deals that force subscribers to hunt and peck among a myriad of streaming services to actually find the content they're looking for," reports Motherboard. From the report: Sandvine's new Global Internet Phenomena report offers some interesting insight into user video habits and the internet, such as the fact that more than 50 percent of internet traffic is now encrypted, video now accounts for 58 percent of all global traffic, and Netflix alone now comprises 15 percent of all internet downstream data consumed. But there's another interesting tidbit buried in the firm's report: after years of steady decline, BitTorrent usage is once again growing.
According to Sandvine, file-sharing accounts for 3 percent of global downstream and 22 percent of upstream traffic, with 97% of that traffic in turn being BitTorrent. While BitTorrent is often used to distribute ordinary files, it remains the choice du jour for those looking to distribute and trade copyrighted content online, made easier via media PCs running Kodi and select plugins. Back in 2011, Sandvine stated that BitTorrent accounted for 52.01% of upstream traffic on fixed broadband networks in North America. By 2015, BitTorrent's share of upstream traffic on these networks had dipped to 26.83 percent, largely thanks to the rise in quality, inexpensive streaming alternatives to piracy. But Sandvine notes that trend is now reversing slightly, with BitTorrent's traffic share once again growing worldwide. That's especially true in the Middle East, Europe, and Africa, where BitTorrent now accounts for 32% of all upstream network traffic.
According to Sandvine, file-sharing accounts for 3 percent of global downstream and 22 percent of upstream traffic, with 97% of that traffic in turn being BitTorrent. While BitTorrent is often used to distribute ordinary files, it remains the choice du jour for those looking to distribute and trade copyrighted content online, made easier via media PCs running Kodi and select plugins. Back in 2011, Sandvine stated that BitTorrent accounted for 52.01% of upstream traffic on fixed broadband networks in North America. By 2015, BitTorrent's share of upstream traffic on these networks had dipped to 26.83 percent, largely thanks to the rise in quality, inexpensive streaming alternatives to piracy. But Sandvine notes that trend is now reversing slightly, with BitTorrent's traffic share once again growing worldwide. That's especially true in the Middle East, Europe, and Africa, where BitTorrent now accounts for 32% of all upstream network traffic.
It doesn't help when they put ads on the service. Amazon Prime Video has started randomly putting ads between show which is annoying but they also have copied what older ads used to do which is pump of the volume for ad which is really annoying.
That's not Netflix's fault really
The studios that make the movies and shows are starting to push them out their own streaming services and refusing the sell them to Netflix
His point is that piracy is a service problem. The main PC vendors that literally blow all the other services out the water in both content and earnings is Steam and GOG. While Gabe kinda does have a monopoly for PC games his point is very poignant for this topic: https://games.slashdot.org/sto... Steam being such an easy service to use for having games and keeping them updated means that people will want to use them more. It's not Netflix's fault though since before Netflix became huge, they had licenses for really cheap because the studios didn't think Netflix would take off. Then it did so now they are making their own services for each of the licenses and now the fragments are ruining the issue making piracy a better service again.
There is a difference between Steam and Netflix models which i think is worth mentioning.
With Netflix et al, there is a monthly fee and content is only temporarily available. Right now Netflix is essentially a giant cable channel.
Or Netflix is like a video store which charges a monthly fee for access, but no guarantee you will like anything new and no guarantee the things you liked yesterday will be available today. But you pay the same either way. So its a pretty crappy video store!
With Steam there is no monthly fee, I only pay for content I actually want. That content is permanently available to me. If there is no content I want, I pay nothing. Its more like buying DVD's from Target.
Maybe if there was a streaming service which worked more like Steam; which aggregated all the titles and allowed people to buy a single episode or season, that might work better.
Its not competition, its the exclusivity that is killing it.
Show 1 is on Netflix
Show 2 is on Amazon
Show 3 is on Hulu
Show 4 is on HBO/ Other..
That's four monthly subscriptions just to watch 4 shows.... If all 4 shows were on all providers that would be competition, as then it would be the cheapest or perhaps highest quality content provider that would win.. THAT is competition..