Items tagged with Netflix
Not only is Netflix cheaper than a cable TV subscription, the value proposition is higher—much higher, in fact, which some might find surprising (and even outright dispute) due to Netflix's limited catalog of titles. Be that as it may, Netflix subscribers pay roughly three times less per hour of content than cable TV subscribers.That's one possible takeaway from a comprehensive report by Nielsen (PDF) that examines content consumption across television, radio, TV-connected devices, PCs, smartphones, and tablets. Nielsen didn't set out to compare Netflix to cable TV directly, but using the numbers provided, the folks at AllFlicks did some interesting math to figure out how much Netflix costs per...
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If you need to get your Orange is the New Black fix in 1080p, Edge might be the browser for you. Microsoft Edge is now the only Windows browser that can consistently stream Netflix in 1080p (the other browsers were limited to 720p). These recent tests follow-up an investigation conducted by Microsoft on browser battery life in June. According to Microsoft’s own testing, Netflix sent higher resolution and higher bitrate video to Microsoft Edge compared to the other browsers. The fact that Microsoft Edge received 1080p content in their test indicates that the browser actually ran a somewhat higher power draw than it otherwise would have. Internet Explorer also ran 1080p, however, it was less predictable...
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Netflix is a pioneer in the streaming video space and helped popularize the concept of watching movies over an Internet connection. Be that as it may, it's fallen a bit behind the technological curve in recent times, at least in terms of not being able to view videos offline like you can with rivals Amazon and Comcast. That's going to change. Industry insider and Penthera Partners COO Dan Taitz says Netflix is busy working implementing the ability for subscribers to download certain content for offline viewing. If true, it wouldn't be a complete surprise, both because the competition is already doing it and also because Netflix CEO Reed Hastings earlier this year said he was open to the idea....
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Are you getting the broadband speed you're paying for? An easy way to check is to use one of the many available testing services on the web, one of the more popular being Ookla's SpeedTest. Netflix has a vested interest in your broadband connection, so it went and released a speed tester of its own. It's a simple test found on Fast.com that measures your download speed from any location in the world and on any device, be it a desktop PC or a mobile phone. The test lacks the bells and whistles of SpeedTest, in that it doesn't detect your ping or upload speed, nor does it let you choose from different testing locations. "We all want a faster, better Internet, yet Internet speeds vary greatly and...
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Netflix wants to put you in control of your mobile data usage when it comes to its iOS and Android smartphone apps. Up until today, Netflix held all the cards and adjusted video quality settings on its end (and hence how much cellular data is consumed) when users were on a cellular connection. Now, Netflix is opening up user-selectable settings that allow you to sip data (at the expense of video quality of course) or gulp it down to the max, if you’re one of the few with an unlimited data plan. Making the adjustment is as simple as navigating to App Settings and then selecting Cellular Data Usage. From there, you will be able to select from Automatic (Default), Low, Medium, High, or Unlimited...
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Amazon believes its library of online movies and TV shows is rich enough that it can challenge Netflix for streaming supremacy and so it now offers Prime Video as a standalone service. This is a first for Prime Video, which prior to today was strictly a supplemental perk of being an Amazon Prime member. A subscription to just Prime Video runs $8.99 per month. Netflix's most popular streaming plan runs $7.99 per month and allows for streaming on up to two devices at the same time, though the price is jumping to $9.99 next month. When it does, Amazon's Prime Video service will be a dollar cheaper, plus it includes 4K Ultra HD video content. That's not included on Netflix's "Standard" $9.99 plan—you...
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Much to the chagrin of every major TV network out there, Netflix continues to rise at a solid rate and eat into its wary competition. According to research conducted by Michael Nathanson, of MoffettNathanson, cable TV viewing dropped 3% in 2015, and half of that is directly attributed to Netflix. It's being predicted that by 2020, 14% of household TV viewing will be through Netflix, highlighting that the service's growth isn't about to slow down. Nathanson's research hits on some rather specific stats regarding how much airtime Netflix subscribers give to network giants. During 2015, those subscribed to Netflix watched CBS 42% less than non-subscribers, and it's not just The Big Bang Theory host...
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Netflix spread its wings earlier this month, expanding its global footprint with an additional 130 international markets. While that news can be seen as a big win for overseas customers that have long waited for the ability to stream Netflix content, there are new restrictions being handed down to ensure that Netflix keeps its content providers happy. With that huge global expansion comes a big crackdown on people that are using unauthorized methods to gain access to Netflix content that wouldn’t otherwise be available in their current country due to licensing restrictions. That means people using a VPN or proxy to access a Netflix account (even if a U.S. user is accessing his or her account...
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Typically when you hear of someone wearing an electronic device around their ankle, your first thought may they made a bad decision that led to house arrest. You may not have considered many other scenarios, though Netflix did, and so the concept for Netflix Socks was born. Will it spread? That may be up to you and your sleep habits. We've all been there, fighting off sleep like a grumpy child, only we're doing it because we're trying to power through yet another episode of Orange is the New Black or catching up on Breaking Bad (both are awesome shows, by the way). Eventually we succumb to our inevitable fate, drifting off into la-la land while Netflix continues playing in the background. What...
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Netflix is on a mission to re-encode its entire library of movies and TV shows. The ambitious goal is to reduce data consumption by up to 20 percent without a degradation in video performance, and based on internal tests in which Netflix challenged employees to spot the difference between new and old streams, the effort seems to be working.The challenge was simple. Netflix placed two televisions side by side, each playing the same content except that one was streaming video based on the new bandwidth saving technology. Any employee who could spot a difference would win a bottle of champagne. In the end, the employees gave up, and that was sufficient motivation for Netflix to move full steam ahead.In...
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We all know that streaming services have consumed a sizable portion of Internet traffic in recent years, but a new report from Sandvine is giving us some insight into just how dominant streaming video and audio has become. According to Sandvine, streaming video and audio account for a whopping 70 percent of all fixed-access (i.e. home broadband) Internet traffic in North America. What’s even more amazing is that streaming services’ share of the pie has more than doubled in the past five years. And out of all of the streaming services available, it should come as no surprise that Netflix is the clear leader of the pack, sucking up 37.1 percent of Internet traffic. YouTube was a distant second...
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T-Mobile has really been knocking it out of the park this year, and it's reaping great rewards for the company. This past fall, the company leapfrogged Sprint to become the third-largest US wireless carrier, and given the company's momentum, things are only going to improve. While it's hard to argue that T-Mo's network isn't as wide-reaching as AT&T's and Verizon's, the company is sure doing everything it can to help smooth that over until the situation improves. Networks aside, T-Mobile seems to be the most "fun" of all the major carriers, thanks to the company's outspoken and hilarious CEO, John Legere. Earlier this week, we saw him troll Verizon's headquarters with a skywriting message,...
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In a recent Spanish interview, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings offered a rather controversial perspective on content piracy via the Internet. In the interview, Hastings stated that while a great many may consider piracy to be a problem, the truth is that it has served a purpose in helping to create a public that is savvy about viewing best-quality content on demand via the Internet. Spain has long been a particularly sharp thorn in the paw of producers and distributors of entertainment products, with a raging culture of Internet file-sharing piracy borne of a dearth of good legal alternatives. Despite this, Hastings thinks Netflix's upcoming Spain launch will be one of the company's most successful...
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Netflix is a streaming giant, offering its services in all of North America, South America, parts of Europe (including the UK, Ireland, Germany, and France), and Australia, among other countries (a Japanese launch is coming this fall). Netflix has over 40 million customers in the United States, and 60 million total globally. During Q1 2015 (PDF), its subscribers streamed more than 10 billion hours of programming. As growth in the U.S. market has slowed, Netflix is increasingly turning its attention towards expanding into more global markets. And what better way to significantly boost its international presence than to take the Chinese market by storm? The Wall Street Journal is reporting that...
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Now where did I park my Dacia Sandero? If you’re a tech fanatic, there’s likely a pretty good chance that you’re at least somewhat interested in the latest and greatest enthusiast cars on the market. And if motor oil runs through your veins, there’s no doubt that you’ve heard of the international automotive sensation Top Gear, which had dazzled audiences since the series was revamped in 2002. We won’t get into the dicey and salacious details that led to the demise of Top Gear in its current format (you can find hundreds, if not thousands of articles online dedicated to dissecting the show’s downfall following the BBC’s decision not to renew Jeremy Clarkson’s contract), but what is important to...
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The argument is often made that if content were made cheaper to watch and easier to access, it'd be pirated much less, but sometimes, that just isn't the case at all. Despite the fact that Netflix's streaming service costs under $10 per month, its latest series, Daredevil, has been pirated by 2.1 million unique users since its launch on April 10. Netflix's Daredevil As incredible as that might be, Daredevil still didn't manage to take the top spot for most pirated. That record belongs to none other than Game of Thrones, which had 6.5 million downloads over the same period. According to piracy tracking agency Excipio, Brazil led the number of Daredevil downloads with 190K. In second place, with...
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So picture this -- there's two dudes in a public restroom standing side-by-side at the urinals relieving themselves. The taller gentlemen on the left peeks over the barrier that separates the urinals and stares downward at the fellow on the right, giving him an approving nod. He's not checking out his neighbor's package, but his Netflix Watch, a smartphone shaped device that sits on your wrist like an enormous watch for ubiquitous access to Netflix's streaming catalog. No, it's not a real thing, and oddly enough, Netflix waited a week after April Fool's Day to post the hilarious video on YouTube, which is an obvious spoof of the Apple Watch and the marketing that Apple has put into the product's...
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YouTube is going where Netflix has gone before by providing kids with a selection of family-friendly content. The new YouTube Kids, which is expected to launch Monday, will feature the likes of Sesame Street and Thomas the Tank Engine. The built-in search engine will guide kids away from problematic search terms and parents will be able to set a timer to end access. But YouTube Kids’ most interesting characteristic isn’t its features: it’s that the service is (at least, initially) available only as an Android app. The Google Play store will soon have new competition for the array of apps that cater to kids. The YouTube Kids app will also feature a music section and have its own channel for educational...
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Up until last week, Marriott had the not-so-bright idea of blocking Wi-Fi devices in order to force travelers and conference attendees to pay for its high-speed Internet services, which in some cases could run as much as $1,000. Wiser heads prevailed -- a $600,000 fine by the FCC tends to do that -- and rather than focus on Wi-Fi hotspots, the hotel chain is now reportedly piloting a service that allows guests to access Netflix and other streaming media services through their televisions. According to Bloomberg, the Marriott is testing the service at eight of its locations. By offering guests access to Netflix, Hulu, Pandora, and so forth, Marriott is essentially modernizing its in-room entertainment...
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If your Netflix videos are playing with fewer interruptions, you may have your ISP to thank. Netflix announced that from November of 2013 to November 2014, the average speed for the top 10 ISPs increased to 3.07Mbps. Many users saw a 51% Netflix streaming increase, while people in the Midwest saw a 74% increase. That’s based on the Netflix ISP Speed Index, which measures media streaming performance on ISPs. It’s not meant to be a measure of ISP speeds overall, but it’s a well-known measure of Netflix speeds on ISPs. Image Credit: NetflixNetflix, which is responsible for nearly 35% of bandwidth usage in North America, has an understandable interest in the speeds consumers are receiving from...
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When it comes to downstream internet traffic, the streaming-video service continues to dominate by a large amount. Netflix alone, at the top of the list, accounts for 34.89 percent in North America according to the latest report from broadband networking company Sandvine. In second place is YouTube with 14.04 percent. Netflix has maintained that usage amount for the past six months, with a slight increase from 34.21 percent, with YouTube gaining almost one percent during the same time period. Meanwhile, Amazon’s Instant Video has been growing slowly and accounts for 2.58 percent. It isn’t a lot, but for the company it is good news considering that this number almost doubled over the past 18 months...
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Due to Hulu's tight connection with CBS, Nielsen has been measuring the audiences that stream shows via that platform. For pretty much every other major SVOD network, the numbers are either a complete mystery, or each individual service reports their own proprietary figures. Essentially, there has been no standardized way to get a feel for viewership across streaming video platforms, and with so much content moving away from pay-TV channels and onto the Internet, it's obviously something that needs to be addressed. And that's exactly what Nielsen is doing. Starting next month, Nielsen is expected to start applying its famed ratings to Netflix, Amazon Prime, and other competing services. It's...
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