Netflix faces a net loss in American subscribers for the first time

Netflix is facing some serious issues. More competition and less available content as their competitors keep their media libraries to themselves. Basically Netflix raised their prices but their content has gone down. And lets get real, how much successful original content does Netflix actually have? The only two shows I can name are The Crown and Orange is the New Black . Yes, there is Bodyguard but that was a British production that Netflix simply bought the international rights for.

Their most popular show in America is "Stranger Things", worldwide it is "Narcos".

Netflix's original series that I look forward to seeing is Mindhunter. Apart from that, they are rubbish.

Don’t forget Ozark. And House of Cards. And they still have the AMC catalog, including Breaking Bad, The Walking Dead and Better Call Saul with new seasons of the latter two added yearly. Plus they of course have movies on top of that. Still plenty of reason to be a Netflix subscriber.

And a Netflix PR flak and a Netflix stockholder, right R4.

Netflix needs to spread out their episodes. That season dumping they do is a disservice to their viewers. They can't analyze episode by episode.

[QUOTE]And a Netflix PR flak and a Netflix stockholder, right R4.

Yes, Netflix rushed me here out of concern for losing the 36 DLers who subscribe to their service.

That would guarantee a lost of subscribers r6, being able to binge watch shows is part of the appeal.

Netflix kind of sucks now. Their movie selection is pretty crap. Amazon Prime doesn't seem any better. Instead of one good streaming service, now we have a number of mediocre ones and have to pay more to get a decent variety of entertainment.

Can we be honest? When Netflix hired the Obamas and Susan Rice, many of their subscribers said, "See ya later!"

[quote]Yes, there is Bodyguard but that was a British production that Netflix simply bought the international rights for.

Which turned out to be a crap show.

What weird right wing bubble do you live in r10? The Obamas signed a deal with Netflix over a year ago, subscriptions kept increasing. Netflix lost subscribers this quarter because of the big price increase.

We are all dumber for having read your post.

[quote]We are all dumber for having read your post.

That's the plan, dearie.

Are they all low budget? Netflix is cranking out their originals at a clip.

It's just as expensive now to subscribe to all of these streaming services than it is to have traditional cable or satellite TV. Part of the reason that Netflix took off was because of cable-cutting. And it's only going to get more expensive as media companies, like Disney, hold onto their content and start their own streaming platforms.

R9. And that's the future of streaming. I am sure all the new services popping up will have their good content, but the ratio of must see content to bland will not be good. Netflix has probably 9 good shows and like 300 bad ones. I think people are willing to deal with that kind of spread, but when you start introducing multiple different streaming services into the mix with the same problem(a few good shows, rest not must see) people can't justify the price, and start dropping shit. So these services are all gonna essentially start cannibalizing each other. That is definitely the endgame result for all these streamers.

[QUOTE]Instead of one good streaming service, now we have a number of mediocre ones and have to pay more to get a decent variety of entertainment.

Did you honestly think the entertainment industry was just going to sit there and let one streaming company take over their business? This was inevitable.

And it’s not really that bad. It’s basically become like cable, except you can more easily pick and choose what you want instead of worrying about calling some customer service number to jockey over channel bundles and contracts and prices. Most people can pick two streaming services and be fine. Maybe you’re a Marvel fanatic so you choose Disney and you order a lot from Amazon so you’ve also got their Prime streaming service. You’ll have plenty of content at your disposal right there. You don’t have to subscribe to everything.

I love Netflix for shows like The Society, Stranger Things, etc.

People simply decided to double up and share their accounts when Netflix raised their prices.

[QUOTE]It's just as expensive now to subscribe to all of these streaming services than it is to have traditional cable or satellite TV.

You don’t need to subscribe to them all. That’s hysterical thinking. Most people will be fine with two or three different services, and that’s still a lot cheaper than cable.

I pay for Netflix, HBONow and Amazon Prime (primarily for the shipping since I order a lot)

Any other services I want content from I pirate, that's how it is going to work. Few people are going to pay for all these services.

I only pay for Netflix and Hulu and use my parent's Prime Account.

That's the truth that a lot of these streaming companies aren't calculating in their projections - as prices go up and more streaming services hit the market, people will just share their accounts with family and friends.

Let’s say you have HBO Max, Disney Plus, and Apple TV Plus. Are all those other services really necessary? Do you really need Showtime’s service? Maybe you’ve already got your favorite HBO shows purchased on iTunes and they don’t have another hit program you like, so you drop it with the click of a button and subscribe to CBS All Access instead for the new season of Star Trek: Picard. And then you can cancel at any time if there’s nothing else you like. I’m telling you, this is going to be awesome. Stop worrying about paying for every service—you don’t need them all.

I only subscribe to Netflix because I travel and can download a portion of their videos to watch while I'm not online. I'll eventually drop Netflix for three reasons:

1) I know they have a vast library but it is difficult to search.

2) Very annoying to maneuver around the promotions that instantly stream as you log in. Then, once you find what you want to watch, it isn't easy to get to the episode. Those drop downs are not designed well. I have to mute the sound otherwise the noise from the promos is distracting.

3) The quality of the picture, unless you have an excellent connection, can be iffy. The other night it was so bad I had to stop watching my Netflix movie and watched one on Amazon instead. (Amazon, by the way, has an agreement with Dekkoo and for a small monthly fee you can watch an amazing variety of gay movies. More movies than Netflix or Amazon.)

Netflix should step up their game or they should expect additional subscribers to find other streaming services.

Wait until ATT, Comcast and Disney pull their content. It'll be like The Empires Strike Back.

i wonder if a lot of those lost subscribers came back this month when Stranger Things Season 3 was dropped. Stranger Things Season 2 was released in October 2017, and then fans had to wait a YEAR AND A HALF for the next season. (Youtube was much smarter about Cobra Kai. When Season 1 was a hit, they delivered a second season quickly...before everyone forgot about what happened in Season 1.)

I can't ever search for shit on Netflix. because their insta play for their content is annoying as fuck! Makes trying to find something interesting to watch an aggravating chore, so I usually just never bother.

[quote]Most people will be fine with two or three different services, and that’s still a lot cheaper than cable.

It's not, especially if you want to watch live TV from your local stations, like most people.

Netflix's recent price increase is only the beginning. Their original shows are going to get more and more expensive to produce.

1 pound of wheat with 300 pounds of chaff

[QUOTE]Netflix should step up their game or they should expect additional subscribers to find other streaming services.

That’s partly why this new competition is so good. It will force a transformation at Netflix. They just got a huge wake up call, and if they don’t fix the things you described then they’re going to have a lot more bad days ahead. If it wasn’t for these other companies stepping into the streaming game and Netflix was the lone giant, they’d never change a thing.

[quote]Netflix's recent price increase is only the beginning. Their original shows are going to get more and more expensive to produce

Well recently the president said they they were no longer going to go crazy with spending on their moves, and would instead invest sensibly on projects and actors that could bring in revenue stream versus just writing blank checks chasing critical acclaim.

I am sure that might effect the original series side of their bottom line too.

[QUOTE]It's not, especially if you want to watch live TV from your local stations, like most people.

There’s many ways to get local TV for free.

I watch Netflix less and less and was really only interested in movies.

Netflix can just suffer. If I want to see a movie, I'll run down to my local Blockbuster.

Netflix has been spending too much money on shit like that stupid werewolf series from Canada, and too much money on content designed to challenge the theatrical distribution model. How much fucking money did they throw away on Roma? I doubt that even brought in a single subscriber.

I wish you people would just read a book now and then.

R28 Yes which is why the seem to cancel many of their shows after 2 or 3 seasons. That's another big problem for them, they allow shows to build up an audience and then cancel them pissing fans off. Also I think they should stop the dumping of entire seasons and convert to a week by week format as this will keep subscribers longer. I know several people who will pay for one month binge watch and then cancel.

Steaming is going to go the same way as cable. Exorbitant prices, crappy selection. You're going to wind up having to bundle a bunch of services to get a decent package.

I know people who have already ditched streaming and gone back to cable.

Good. I will never forgive them for what they did to Stranger Things in season 3. They refused to acknowledge Will's sexuality, which they have teased for three seasons now, yet had no qualms adding a fucking dyke! Fuck this shit. The least they could have done was to add a gay MAN.

R39, calm the fuck down. The lesbian character is over 18 and played by an adult actress. The gay male character is still gay; there were even more clues this season. They haven't killed him off or turned him into a pussy hound. So, calm down.

Shows get more expensive when they are a success and the teams (actors, writers, showrunner) want a raise. Of course the higher ups can say "NO!" but then you get unhappy, resentful employees who start to lash out and make stupid fuck-ups that fuck with the shows' brand, budget, and popularity.

Good, that greedy jackass keeps raising our rates.

Fuck cable and streaming. I decided to not waste any more money in them so I got a $20 digital antenna. Now I have around 20 channels including the big broadcast ones and some others like "Movies!" which shows some great classic films (finally saw the much acclaimed by DLrs Mildred Pierce") and some other channels with shows from the 70's like Kojac (great seeing the gritty Manhattan).

I'm pretty happy with my tv options.

R43 is an example of why there’s nothing to fear from multiple streaming services. He has the live TV channels (including CBS, ABC and NBC) that someone mentioned earlier thanks to his digital antenna. Now let’s say you need a little more, so you add the upcoming Disney Plus service along with Netflix. That’s only $17.98 a month.

Netflix back in 2011 used to be SO good. There was a slew of gay themed movie and other great shows selection. It was practically blockbuster stores on the web. Flashforward 2017, i subscribe to netflix and the gay themed movies are gone practically. Selection is pitiful now.

[quote]is an example of why there’s nothing to fear from multiple streaming service

R43 just owns a digital antennae, which sounds like a good idea.

And no one is fearing anything. Streaming isn't the be all end all it's cracked up to be. Nothing to get overly emotional about.

Sure sounds like fear to me.

One thing I hate about Netflix is the documentary section is all just old bullshit TV shows. If I wanted to watch Forensic Files or whatever I'd just turn on HLN where it has been airing nonstop for years. A documentary is a feature length or short series.

Yes. Couldn’t they sponsor some more original documentaries. They should be much cheaper to produce. And going forward they could be the go to streaming service for documentaries.

To be fair the 120k loss is a drop in the bucket when they have 60 mil American subscribers, the price increase still nets far more money than they lost in subscriptions. If you are a Netflix exec, the sky is not falling.

r48, that's one of the main reasons I canceled Netflix. I'd pay for Netflix if it were $4/month-- maybe. It's wildly overpriced for what it is. Their original shows are overwrought and boring.

Netflix needs to raise their rates further. They were shortsighted and arrogant when they started with that 8 dollar deal. But things are gonna get real. We are in peak television. Mediocrity will not fly. I mean, Amazon has that billion dollar Lord of The Rings TV show coming up. HBO has their GOT spinoffs, and, Disney is just a beast.

The movies to choose from are old and not all that great, that's the problem. I second the opinion that their documentaries are shit, almost laughable.

I watch a lot of foreign content (especially French, Spanish, British, Korean, Japanese and Australian) so there's more than enough stuff for me to watch on Netflix. I always have around 210 titles in My List of late which I add to by checking the Instant Watcher website each morning to see the latest releases.

I only pay for Netflix and Amazon Prime though we only have the latter because my boyfriend orders so much shit from them. I only occasionally watch a movie on it.

I canceled a long time ago. Their movie catalog is shit and most of their original programming is just tired. House of Card and Orange is new black should have been finished after 4 years. Nobody that I know watches the same shows. It’s just too much content. I would rather have a few real quality shows with better movie choices and more classic shows available. Right now I much prefer Hulu’s content to Netflix.

I'm one of the people who cancelled his subscription after the latest raise. Almost $20 was just too much. Complained about it at work and we now share an account. $4 for their content is more than enough. I never really used the other three slots anyway. So far no problems. Everyone only uses their profiles and Netflix doesn't seem to notice. Only problem: my collegues can see what sitty shows I watch (but it's not porn so who cares).

There is a lot of competition on the way from Apple ,Disney and in the UK from BBC and ITV teaming up to create their own streaming service juggernaut. Netflix need to shake of any complacency and be battle ready for the competition .If their not careful their golden days may well be behind them.

People on this thread are stupid stating they'd only be willing to pay 4 bucks for Netflix. That's it. Yo, you're gay ass pay 5 bucks a day for that Starbucks coffee and you can't spare 13 bucks for primo TV content. You outta be ashamed of yourself.

I am willing to pay only $4 because most of what I want to watch is not on Netflix. I don't pay for Starbucks either because I don't like it. If forced to go to Starbucks I buy the $2 iced tea and brew the expensive coffee I do like at home. If you like Netflix content: good for you. Not one show mentioned in this thread interests me. So there.

I subscribe to Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, and Sling. We also have a digital tv antenna and get about 70 channels.

I still love Netflix - there are plenty of good shows that make it worth it (my favorites being Dark, Stranger Things, The Umbrella Academy, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Queer Eye, The Chef Show, Cooked, stand-up comedy specials, etc.). I still have so many shows in my queue that I haven't watched yet that everyone raves about, so I can't see cancelling my subscription any time soon.

R58 you’re a stupid twat. Do you not get the message that most people here think Netflix sucks?

When do Ryan Murphy's new shows start airing on Netflix?

From what I gather R61, most folks on this thread enjoy Netflix. I personally do not. But to trash a price cheap channel with good content is stupid. HBO is my go-to internet channel. I respect those that like Netflix, no need to get hostile about such trivial matters.

Dear R58, most people on this planet don't have $5 for a Starbucks coffee or $16 for Netflix. Or even to pay for multiple streaming services at the same time. So $4 is a reasonable price for a global company and an entertainment service.

Never had Netflix never will. I watch Amazon because of prime I do all my shopping online because shopping face-to-face is bullshit and occasionally I’ll spring for a month of HBO then cancel after I’ve watched my fill.

R6 it did well for OINTB and Stranger things

[quote]When do Ryan Murphy's new shows start airing on Netflix?

The Politician arrives September 27.

Ratched only just finished filming a couple of weeks ago which is why American Horror Story's start date got pushed back a week. They're using the same crew.

[quote]Yes which is why the seem to cancel many of their shows after 2 or 3 seasons. That's another big problem for them, they allow shows to build up an audience and then cancel them pissing fans off.

Netflix data reveals that most shows don't bring in any new subscribers after season three. That's why the shows get canceled.

There have been a few exceptions to the rule -- e.g., House of Cards and Orange is the New Black.

I get a lot with cable. Usually On Demand allows me to find 80% of what I want to watch. They do need to either lower prices or fix that bundling shit. Stream line it. Allow the customers more flexibility.

Streaming is great but a bit overrated. Now, that is getting too expensive. If I want to watch something on Netflix or whatever, I just find a friend to watch it with who has that service or if it is a service I use more than others, I will subscribe. Which is rare. All other options is just too much to fuck around with and I'm no old fogey (33).

I find Netflix very hard to search and navigate (at least on my Roku). I also find their categories and classification bewildering sometime. There is also a lot of crap on the platform.

I enjoy Hulu. I feel like there's a good selection of current TV shows, old TV shows and films.

I did not like Amazon Prime, I thought it was extremely difficult to navigate and full of shit. I was also turned off by the way they would show you options that involved other for pay services. I know how to subscribe to HBO GO. I don't need to do it via Amazon and I resented how often something I thought I could watch on Amazon Prime was billable. I also have ethical issues with the Amazon juggernaut.

I use a lot of free apps (Sony Crackle, Pluto..) and I do have Netflix and Hulu. Plenty of stuff to watch. The free apps seem to have more interesting content lately.

Ugh I need to dial it back. I have YoutubeTV, Youtube Premium, HBOGo, Netflix, Hulu and Prime, and I barely watch any of it.

I can't comprehend who's making decision on buying shit for Netflix and Amazon as 90% of their movies/series are garbage. I wouldn't want to watch them even if they are free on torrent. Moreover, it's baffling to me that these streaming services like iTunes, NF and Amazon often censor their movies/series too.

R72 If you can afford all of that, then you probably don't have time to watch much TV at all.

Why doesn't Netflix or Prime allow you to sort through your wishlist the way you can sort through their entire fucking library. My Amazon Prime list is practically endless and I have no idea how to prioritize my watching because there is no way to tell for how long a show or movie will stay on their service. The navigation on Prime is even worse than Netflix as it's even more laggy and force crashes when I load too many titles. It's so frustrating because Prime has the best selection of out there but good luck finding them before they're gone.

^^ sort through your watchlist

I like Netflix's programming but their decision to raise prices and apparently shift their focus on more commercial programming is disappointing and doesn't bode well for their future. Their service works because there is a little something for everyone but if they just are going to chase the next big hit, then they will become no different than a premium cable channel.

[Quote] Netflix has been spending too much money on shit like that stupid werewolf series from Canada,

Which series is that??

I'm going to cancel Netflix after this season of Orange. Their auto-play previews in the navigation on my Roku make it fucking impossible to even try to search for anything. I'm going to give Mubi a try.

[quote]If forced to go to Starbucks

I condole you.

There is nothing on these streaming services that are worth the money they charge.

Sadly, the New York Public Library ended its contract with Kanopy. Kanopy was a free streaming service with lots of great content. Indies, foreign, documentaries, classic film, educational, weird obscure shit, it was awesome.

If your library has a contract with Kanopy, you can get more content than you can ever watch, for freeee.

[quote]Why doesn't Netflix or Prime allow you to sort through your wishlist the way you can sort through their entire fucking library.

Netflix does.

Add shows/movies to your watch list.

Then click on, for example, "TV shows". You'll be taken to your homepage and the word "genre" will appear right next to "TV shows". Click on "genre" and a drop down menu will appear with each genre. Click on, for example, "thriller" and the first row of titles that appear below "continue watching" will be all the thriller shows in your watch list.

(Note this is when accessing the site through a computer as I do.)

What I wish Netflix would do (and I've brought this up with them every time I've had to call their customer support) is go back to listing ALL their latest releases each day. They used to do this but then they removed it. I really shouldn't have to visit two separate third party websites (Instant Watcher and What's On Netflix) every day to find out what's new.

I also have Amazon Prime but it's horrible. Titles expire without warning and you never know what's been added unless you trawl through hundreds of pages (340 for comedy movies alone) for each genre. Plus I've noticed titles on Amazon have been censored (sometimes to disastrous effect).

I may be in the minority, but I find these streaming services kinda OVERwhelming. I've got Prime, Netflix, and Hulu and have sooo much shit sitting in all three queues. On top of that, the older I get, the more difficult it seems to sit through an entire movie--unless it's a documentary--so I end up watching series instead of the one million movies in my queues.

FIRST WORLD PROBLEM, y'all.

"Sadly, the New York Public Library ended its contract with Kanopy. Kanopy was a free streaming service with lots of great content."

Do you really sit in a library and watch movies and series there?

"On top of that, the older I get, the more difficult it seems to sit through an entire movie"

You know that you no longer have to wait for the commercial breaks to go to the bathroom, grandpa. You can hit the pause button or even watch the movie at a later time if you fall asleep.

R85 I'm not the poster you're being a cunt to but some people (especially as they get older) have trouble paying attention to something for two hours and so they either watch TV series (30-60 minutes) or watch a movie with multiple (non-bathroom) breaks.

And how does someone hit the pause button after they've nodded off?

I watch Kanopy movies on my computer or TV (via Roku), r85. I prefer the computer because CC doesn't work on the TV for some reason.

R85, Kanopy is a streaming service. You make an account with your library card and you can watch the content anywhere. I watch on my phone or laptop. You can also borrow ebooks. It’s free, and I wanted to let library patrons know, in case they didn’t.

No need to be a cunt about it.

You can watch all these shows for nothing if you know which sites to access online.

However, original programme content isn’t cheap to produce, and the more people who watch it online for free means the more subscribers streaming services will lose.

I think the real reason companies like Netflix are losing so many subscribers is due to people watching it for free.

You could access the Kanopy service at home from the NYPL, but they couldn't agree on a price and ended it.

[quote] Their auto-play previews in the navigation on my Roku make it fucking impossible to even try to search for anything.

This is really the fucking worst. I know I don't want to see that Adam Sandler is married to Jennifer Anniston film, but I feel like every fifteen seconds I'm watching that stupid preview. I wish I could mark it "I will never fucking watch this."

Why should I pay to watch a streaming service when it's clear they hate gay men? My last straw was not making Will gay on Stranger Things, but they had no qualms adding a lesbian. Fucking bullshit. I've had it with them. The least they could do was add another gay MAN, not a fucking dyke. The lesbians have plenty of representation as is.

I would pay to watch a streaming service for GAY MEN, or at least one that had some gay (male) programming. Netflix barely has anything anymore. Enough with all the dykes already.

I was hoping the backlash against those atrocious auto play previews would force them to change it, or at least give us the option to turn it off. But the arrogance of their “product experience” guru here means that it’s staying put.

[QUOTE]In fact, it's clear that Netflix is unconcerned with the recent criticism of the video previews. Why? Netflix being Netflix, they likely have a treasure trove of user data and behavioral research that backs up their tech decisions. When the feature was introduced in 2016, the company's director of product innovation Stephen Garcia told Fast Company that the video previews were designed with the goal of cutting down on your browsing time by providing more information about the viewing choice you're making. They want less scrolling. More watching.

[QUOTE]In the same article, Garcia also argues that the quiet, serene Netflix browsing experience of the past was, in some ways, counterintuitive to how television typically functions. "Television has decades’ worth of expectation that when you turn it on, the video and audio play," Garcia said. "So it’s actually quite strange to have a silent experience."

This is why I refuse to give up my physical media. I can watch what I want, when I want and don't have to worry about licenses expiring or deals ending. Scoff at my two bookcases of movie and tv DVDs, but when I come home at night and am in the mood to watch the bulimia episode from Diff'rent Strokes, I know it will be there on the lower shelf.

[quote] the older I get, the more difficult it seems to sit through an entire movie--unless it's a documentary--so I end up watching series instead of the one million movies in my queues.

I'm the same way. There are very few movies that I can watch in one sitting anymore. I have to watch half one night and watch the second half another night. And I can't tell you the number of movies that I bail on completely after the first 15 minutes. I just don't have the patience or attention span anymore.

What is this Apple network that is on the way.? Will it be the same kind of deal? Oprah and Reese will have shows?

R94 This arrogance is what will do them in eventually. They are acting like that they are the only streaming site around and that's no longer true.

When I was a kid I LOVED Glee...and it is now on Netflix...so, I must keep it.

[quote] I would pay to watch a streaming service for GAY MEN, or at least one that had some gay (male) programming. Netflix barely has anything anymore. Enough with all the dykes already.

There are two that exist- Dekkoo, which is run by TLA and is the better of the two, and Revry, which gets the dregs that Dekkoo passes on. There's also HERE! but I don't know if they have a standalone app or if you can only subscribe to them through your cable package.

To the Kanopy user- does the NYPL have a contract with Hoopla? It's the same sort of service as Kanopy.

Also, have you considered applying for a library card outside of the NYPL system, maybe one in PA or NJ or LI? I live in LA and was able to get a NYPL library card online.

Here's a cool trick with prime. Search for a favorite actor or actress on Prime and 9 times out of 10, you'll find one or more movies they appeared in available for free streaming. Found a lot of obscure movies that way. Prime also has a pretty astounding collection of films that have never even been released on DVD. Also quite a big selection of 70s and 80s era sitcoms and primetime soaps. Also lots of Z grade schlock (ususally the same kind of stuff found on Tubi and similar) but that you can watch uninterrupted by ads.

Thanks, r101 and r102, for helpful comments.

r94 reminded me of another reason I cancel Netflix after a month.

[quote] In the same article, Garcia also argues that the quiet, serene Netflix browsing experience of the past was, in some ways, counterintuitive to how television typically functions. "Television has decades’ worth of expectation that when you turn it on, the video and audio play," Garcia said. "So it’s actually quite strange to have a silent experience."

You can also add commercials and censoring movies. Then it'll feel exactly like watching TV. Idiot.

[quote]I would pay to watch a streaming service for GAY MEN

Well you can try this:

"You can also add commercials and censoring movies."

They all have pin codes for adult movies, so why do they censor? They could also offer 2 versions if they think some scenes are too cruel for normale audiences. A lot of horror movies and even action movies like Robocop were censored. Hulu already has commercials. Netflix will probably offer something similar if they can't raise prices in the future.

R85 it has nothing to do with actually getting old, you fucking used tampon.