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NETFLIX HAS MADE good on its promise to crack down on people using VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) to access shows from other countries.
With the service in almost every country in the world, some people weren’t happy with the decision, but Netflix is pushing forward and feels that such complaints have no real merit.
When asked about if Netflix had changed its VPN strategy since it announced it at the start of the year, Netflix CEO Reed Hastings said the complaints were of no concern and hadn’t impacted on its business plan.
It’s a very small but quite vocal minority so it’s really inconsequential to us.
Instead of trying to appease this group, it’s more concerned about the many things it’s competing against for viewers’ time. Not only would that include rival services like Amazon and YouTube, but anything else that people would do in their free time.
“If you think about your last 30 days, and analyse the evenings you did not watch Netflix, you can understand how broad our competition really is,” the company said in a letter to shareholders. “Whether you played video games, surfed the web, watched a DVD, TVOD, or linear TV, wandered through YouTube, read a book, streamed Hulu or Amazon, or pirated content (hopefully not), you can see the market for relaxation time and disposable income is huge”.
We are but a little boat in a vast sea… we earn a tiny fraction of consumers’ time and money, and have lots of opportunity ahead to win more of your evenings away from those other activities if we keep improving.
Growing pains
Growing that userbase could be a challenge as the company said it only expects to see 2.5 million people join the service over the next three months. Despite better-than-expected earnings, its outlook for subscriber growth meant its share price fell as a result.
Part of that slow growth is down to it starting off un-grandfathering, a process which allowed early members to continue paying the original price instead of the increased version for a certain period.
Some users in Ireland will be facing a €2 per month price increase from May onwards. Those who originally signed up for the service when it first arrived will see the monthly price increase from €7.99 to €9.99.
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Putting up prices.
Not listening to customers.
Not responding to the market.
What could go wrong?
But this article is just bad journalism..
Their CEO vented huge frustration at the screwed up licensing ways of the move industry but said there was nothing he could do only a few months ago when they first announced this VPN blocking move.
Netflix has clearly allowed the use of VPNs/proxies in the past despite it going against their contracts with the film distributors (they could have easily blocked VPNs before but didn’t)
Ultimately Netflix is under pressure from the distributors region-block their content because that’s how it’s licensed, if they don’t comply we’d likely just see more content moving to Amazon Video and Hulu.
Netflix is trying to get over it by investing heavily ($6B this year alone) into original content some of which is pretty good I think. They own the full world-wide rights to their originals so there is no region issues with them.
The investing in originals and the competition from the likes of Amazon Video & Hulu over other titles is the reason for the price hike afaik, which they did give notice of like 2 years of..
Hardly a shock, the journal’s coverage of technology and the internet is regularly this lacking and usually just a click bait headline followed by a poorly researched copy and paste job, ironic considering they web only too
Ultimately, as a consumer, I couldn’t give a fiddlers about Netflix’s international licensing struggles, their attitude to VPNs, investment in original content or anything else.
I, like the vast majority of their customers, am interested in content, in finding something worth watching, which is difficult enough as it is, both because of the poor selection of good quality content and the good selection of poor quality content.
Anything they do that makes that more cumbersome, or limited will cost them business.
Thats before we go near price hikes or their attitude… they seem a bit all over the place to me.
I’d lay a bet on them being the MySpace of the streaming generation.
Leading edge, quickly turning bleeding edge.
It will always be possible, no matter how they try, to search (google or elsewhere) “Watch [insert movie/series title here] online” and find a working link somewhere. They try to keep on top of things and you often see notices about links being deleted for copyright infringement… but you’ll always find it somewhere.
I don’t know why anyone bothers with Netflix.
He might care in a few weeks when he loses the entire European market. I cancelled my account last week because it’s useless to me now.
Typical self-destructive American corporate arrogance.
btw I subscribe in US dollars currently, and I can still access content using an addon in chrome to change location to whatever country I wish.
which add on?
Same here and will not be be going back. The thing is I dont mind paying a small fee if I can get the content I want.
Was sitting there the other day and wanted to watch The Hidden Garden with the kid.
Sony Smart TV, thought surely I can find it somewhere and rent it.
PlayStation Video. Found it, but not available in Ireland.
Amazon Video. Found it, but not available in Ireland.
Netflix (before I cancelled), nowhere to be found.
Apple Itunes, Found it, but no way to stream it to TV unless I go out and buy Apple TV.
After wasting 1 hour on it, I went back to my old ways, found it and had it down in 15 min. Which is exactly what I will keep doing until this regional crap is finally dead and gone.
Exactly Brian, the VPN option I use sometimes still works but more often than not im giving up to find what i want to watch elsewhere which yes may take a bit more time and isnt as streamlined but in the end I get to watch what I want to watch without stupid pointless restrictions based on my geographic location, region locking is simply archaic and anti-consumer
Netflix is for people who can’t figure out any other options – so you can treat them like crap and they’ll likely not cancel because they know no better. You can increase the price & they’ll stay. You can give them limited programming compared to their US counterparts and they won’t know any better.
So while you may have cancelled, Greg, you are as he says “the vocal minority”.
Netflix keeps growing bigtime:
http://www.licensing.biz/news/read/netflix-welcomes-6-74m-new-members-in-q1-2016/043748
Disagree. I know all the other ways. I use netflix. I’d rather pay then just take. The service I find was worth it. I’ve not cancelled (yet) some good things listed to watch yet. I probably will end up cancelling sooner rather then later unless distribution and copyright laws change.
“I’d rather pay then just take.”
So you do both?
Light foot, Heavy hand..
My nephew downloads everything I want for free. He is puzzled why anyone would use Area restricted Netflix. Often the downloads he gets for me are in higher resolution than on Netflix. I give him my little black box and he fills the 2Tb over a 6 to 8 month period.
Sometimes, he gives me releases only a few weeks after cinema releases. He does not want to distribute pre cinema release material, which is honest.
I’m willing to pay but not for inferior or compromised service.
Nothing honest about it
Hola
Brian there are ways of doing it depending on your os. Hint if on windows change your add in ie. Simple search should do it. Have a look at mobdro
Noticed this a few weeks ago, people like me who were running a vpn (like hola) were accessing way more content, after returning to the european netflix service, I don’t think I’ll remain subscribed.
With Netflix it seems like there is so much available when you get it at first but you go through the good stuff in no time. Might take a break from it for a year or so to allow it to populate again.
There’s always Popcorn time ;)
My VPN is working perfect. They can’t shut down all. Make sure you VPN server is in the states.
Or just use Showbox.
Is there any particular one you use lez…..if possible..
I currently use Hola, as of the last time I used it it was working fine, but this isn’t a vpn right?
I’ve always used Hola, but that no longer works for me.
Didn’t hola have serious security problems?
It did, Darren, but people need to see the next episode of Family Guy so that trumps any privacy concerns.
If you are going to use Hola, switch it off as soon as you are finished watching netflix. It’s pretty dodgy but you can at least minimise your exposure.
I would recommend Smartflix, it works very well
Used to use express vpn but they hit most of their US servers. Problem is vpns are easy to spot. Lots of connections from very few IP addresses so shut it down. It’s too much hassle. People will just go back to torrenting
I just installed Hola and it didn’t work either..
Yes. Smart DNS.
Now now… we’re no longer behaving like a cool friendly little start-up that wants to be your customers best friends and more like a nasty corporation with monopoly control.
If it continues like this… I can imagine some of that small inconsequential minority you so mockingly dismiss will find a way a get back.
If the monthly sub wasnt so cheap i wouldnt bother with it, alot of B movies with very few mainstream cinema or series.
“a very small but quite vocal minority.”
So he’s met you.
Really though, unless you’re on certain broadband providers everything on US Netflix (and all global TV) is easily available to you for free. (Allegedly).
Not worth it anymore. Prefer an android box.. Sure the CEO will care when people leave. After all money talks
He already cares… He’s been forced to issue a letter to shareholders. This is his attempt to downplay their concerns.
I didn’t realise people outside America were a minority.
When you realise half the content is pulled from free players like the BBC and channel 4 catalogues there is even less available than you think. I think we have scraped the barrel of what there is to watch… still have yet to see killer clowns from space though.
Cancel your account asap.their prices are sneaking up all the time.luring you in then screwing you big time.get out now!
Calm down Gerry. Do you need to talk to someone?
Calm down? Im very calm.really dont know where you’re coming from with that stupid statement Charles. Try make a sensible contribution to the issue ok. Silly chap!
“their prices are sneaking up all the time”
All the time? There has been no increase here yet, but there will be 1 starting in May. That’s once. But don’t let facts stop you exaggerating.
Why would you pay for netflix when it’s content is free online anyway?Too many alternative sites for free now so hopefully people cop on.
It’s better quality, no irritating ads and pop-ups, no issues buffering, available on mobile & smart TV apps and makes it easy a lot easier to search/locate programs.
And of course… No moral concerns #sarcasm
Same as Spotify, most people are willing to pay a small fee to have easy and straightforward access.
Exactly Drew. I pay for spotify which has seen an end to pretty much all music piracy on my part.
I don’t see why this is an issue, surely people grasp the concept that the content they are paying for is content specifically licenced to their jurisdiction, accessing content not licensed is against the terms and conditions and so it’s no surprise Netflix are stopping it.
It’s actually shocking that access to unlicensed content and pirated content has not been challenged or even looked at by irish authorities, not that i’m complaining but surely you would expect some basic attempt at a clampdown?
Irish authorities told ISPs to block access to pirate bay. If that’s not a basic attempt I don’t know what is!
True, that is the most basic of attempts.
The issue is their european service, isn’t worth 9.99 a month.
well meanderings, many people won’t be willing to pay for the poor limited content restricted to their physical location, so I guess netflix are willing to take a huge hit to their revenue.
Regional licensing simply pushes people to pirate, study after study has proven if people are given the ability to pay over pirating they will time and again choose to pay as long as the price is reasonable and the service gives them what they want. People do not want region locking, its an outdated system that serves nobody but instead of giving customers what they want the studios fight the change instead of embracing it.
The authorities might have told ISP to block it but sure come on.. They say a lot of things.. My laptop should be wearing an eye patch and swigging a bottle of Old Sea Dog with the amount of dodgy music and films on it.
To say he doesn’t care is a massive overstatement..
The guy have expressed huge frustration over the way movie licensing works by region countless times, there’s just nothing he can do about it apart from invest more in originals so that they need to depend on movies from other distributors less.
*cough* popcorn time *cough*
Its always the same with these ruthless companies. There all over you promising this and that and the minute they get fully going they walk all over you.Netflix vultures!
Why would people pay for Netflix? Are they really that technologically illiterate?
Better than socially illiterate Matty!
This thread is proof – you see everyone thinking they’re smart by discussing what VPNs they use and which ones still work & don’t work – essentially sharing information publicly that could lead to the last few working Netflix VPNs getting flagged – real genius at work.
“Oh this VPN works fine for me” – then others take note & they all sign up for it, and then it gets flagged & blocked.
Oh yes Matthew…. a company with $44.5 billion net worth isn’t aware of the handful of commonly used VPNs. They regularly browse The Journal, oh what thou art hast done.
Get a grip. Nobody is boasting about being able to install browser extensions, even my four year only cousin knows how add a new. The irony of you calling others technologically illiterate.
Because it’s an inexpensive, convenient service that rewards content creators and re-invests some of its profits into exclusive, well-made original content.
I don’t know what your point is Emmet. We pay more for the service here than they do in the states. They should offer equivalent service regardless of the region. If european netflix had more european only tv shows/movies, so there was an equivalent amount of content to the american service I wouldn’t be cancelling my subscription.
They’re aware of the “commonly used VPNs”, Pat – that’s not my point. If I had a VPN that still worked, I wouldn’t be shouting about it like an idiot, during a time when Netflix is blocking VPNs.
The fact that you think netflix trawl news sites for people talking about the vpn’s that still work shows that your are the technically illiterate one. They have far more effective and less labour intensive means of figuring out what vpns people are using still to get through.
“The fact that you think netflix trawl news sites”
Why would you say I said that when I didn’t?
@Matt
“This thread is proof – you see everyone thinking they’re smart by discussing what VPNs they use and which ones still work & don’t work – essentially sharing information publicly that could lead to the last few working Netflix VPNs getting flagged”
Show me where I said the VPNs will get flagged due to Netflix staff reading Journal comments.
You’re confused.
They would get flagged due to increased usage – the under-the-rader ones end up becoming popular, and their IPs get red flagged.
CARTOON HD works wonders for me through my TV browser. Finished the OJ show and 11.22.63 weeks ago. The problem is, the more you watch for free, the likelihood of top quality content being made starts to lessen.
Love all the people who feel all righteous because they pay for netflix yet are stealing content from outside their region while looking down their noses at those who pirate. It’s hilarious.
It’s the easiest thing on the Internet to hack and watch for free from any region! I would never bother though as I’d rather gouge my eyes out with a spoon than watch TV all the time!! Much more to life than crappy US television programmes and films!
All the people who use Hola need their heads checked.
Use an android tv box. Show box , movie HD and Kodi have all the content you could want and no monthly subscription.
Kodi and showbox has everything and more
If you want to watch US Netflix, move to the US. Simple!
or just torrent
Agree with him completely. It’s always the same idiots who moan moan moan!!!
On the xbox, used to change the dns to a us one. Watch all us cobtent that way. Dont know if stil works though, cancelled netflix years ago and stream all from xbmc on an android mini pc plugged into telly. Watch any show or movie for free.
The only thing is good for now is the odd box set . Putlocker all the way
Hola
Why waist money on Netflix when kodi is free with everything u want for Freeeeee
very easy do download all that US only content. Also very easy to download the non US only content…..
Hola chrome extension is a free vpn you can watch any Netflix.
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