Streaming Wars: Broadband/Cable Providers Make Netflix ‘Unwatchable’
The Wall Street Journal reports that Internet/cable providers are attempting to extort more money from Netflix and/or kill off their customer growth by making it increasingly difficult for Netflix consumers to stream:
Netflix Inc. subscribers have seen a lot more spinning wheels lately as they wait for videos to load, thanks to a standoff deep in the Internet.
The online-video service has been at odds with Verizon Communications Inc. VZ and other broadband providers for months over how much Netflix streaming content they will carry without being paid additional fees.
Now the long simmering conflict has heated up and is slowing Netflix, in particular, on Verizon’s fiber-optic FiOS service, where Netflix says its average prime-time speeds dropped by 14% last month. The slowdown comes as Netflix is rolling out the new season of its Emmy-winning series “House of Cards.”
Let’s not forget that a whole lot of Internet providers are also bundled cable providers or part of a huge multi-national that is in the bundled cable business. Bundled cable is a racket and cash cow for everyone involved in the business of show and Netflix is an existential threat to all of that.
For a long time we were told that Internet providers would start charging their customers for the amount of broadband used — a reaction to the increase in Internet usage caused mostly by Netflix Streaming. I never thought that would work. And this latest round of extortion probably won’t work either.
Zero Hedge disagrees, but when my Netflix is crashing or that circle just keeps spinning, I am knee deep in my Internet provider’s backside. And unlike cable television, there is competition in the Internet business.
‘Noah’ Backlash: Paramount’s Mad at Variety
For publishing the results of a survey that showed 98% of respondents are not happy with the way Hollywood portrays biblical stories and themes, Paramount lashed out at Variety for “implying” the survey had anything to do with their tent-pole “Noah.”
“The survey question that had the 98 percent response rate did not contain any reference to the film Noah, despite the fact that the Variety reporting implied that it did,” the studio said in a statement. Further, “research from industry-leading firms about the upcoming epic paints a very different picture.”
Paramount then cited measurements from established Hollywood tracking firms National Research Group and the Barna Group that show strong interest in the Darren Aronofsky film, which hits theaters March 28.
Touchy-touchy.
The group that did survey pushed back, “We sent an email introducing our survey that squarely mentions Noah and that links to an extensive article in The Hollywood Reporter, and 5,000 people responded, which is significant.”
To be fair to Paramount, the Variety article wasn’t as specific.
I go back to what I said yesterday: If “Noah” does, as rumored, have an over-population theme, it is an anti-Christian film.
Period.
The devil can disguise himself as Jesus, he is still the devil.
The phony over-population crisis is a demonic crusade meant to justify the death cult around abortion. It implies — through junk science and arrogance — that human life is a burden as opposed to a gift.
If Paramount is using “Noah” to fool people into believing a crusade against overpopulation is a biblical or Christian theme, that is a wicked, wicked act on their part.
‘Gravity’ Director Blasts Creationists Because Life Came from Outer Space
Just before he blasts creationists as uncomfortable with scientific facts, “Gravity” director Alfonso Cuaron told The Daily Beast that life on earth came from outer space:
On one hand, there’s the image of this character who went through a process of rebirth and now she’s putting her feet back on the ground, taking her first baby steps towards a new life, and in a bigger metaphorical sense, there’s this comment of evolution. Even more literally, life came from space–not unlike our character reentering earth and colliding with the water.
Tom Cruise, an Operating Thetan, might agree.
Perfect Opportunity to Start Your Bluray Collection
For today only Amazon is offering an extraordinary deal for the “Best of Warner Bros 50 Film Collection (+UltraViolet Digital Copy).” Fifty Bluray films for $178.99. — less than $3.50 each. Here are the films included. I have no deal or anything with Amazon. Just passing this along.
1. Grand Hotel* (1932)
2. Mutiny on the Bounty* (1935)
3. Wizard of Oz (1939)
4. Gone with The Wind* (1939)
5. Maltese Falcon, The (1941)
6. Mrs. Miniver* (1942)
7. Casablanca* (1942)
8. Treasure of the Sierra Madre, The (1948)
9. Streetcar Named Desire, A (1951)
10. American in Paris, An* (1951)
11. Singin’ in the Rain (1952)
12. Gigi(1958)
13. North By Northwest (1959)
14. Ben-Hur* (1959)
15. How the West Was Won (1962)
16. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
17. Cool Hand Luke (1967)
18. 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
19. Bullitt (1968)
20. Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory (1971)
21. Dirty Harry (1971)
22. Clockwork Orange, A (1972)
23. Exorcist, The (1973)
24. One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest* (1975)
25. Superman, The Movie (1977)
26. Shining, The (1980)
27. Chariots of Fire* (1981)
28. Risky Business (1983)
29. Amadeus* (1984)
30. Color Purple, The (1985)
31. Lethal Weapon (1987)
32. Full Metal Jacket (1987)
33. Driving Miss Daisy* (1989)
34. Goodfellas (1990)
35. Unforgiven* (1992)
36. Bodyguard, The(1992)
37. Natural Born Killers (Director’s Cut) (1994)
38. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
39. Matrix, The (1999)
40. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (2001)
41. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
42. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
43. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King* (2003)
44. Million Dollar Baby* (2005)
45. Departed, The* (2006)
46. Dark Knight, The (2008)
47. Blind Side, The (2009)
48. Hangover, The (2009)
49. Sherlock Holmes (2009)
50. Inception (2010)
Quick Hits
CBS plans another ‘CSI’ spinoff
‘Ride Along 2’ Moving Forward With Kevin Hart, Ice Cube in Talks to Return
14 Pixar Classics: We Rank ’em!
Trailer: ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’:
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’22 Jump Street’ Trailer
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