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Tag: Netflix

  • Game of Thrones is the most pirated show of 2013

    Game of Thrones is the most pirated show of 2013

    With 2013 nearing its end TorrentFreak (TF) has released the list for their Top 10 Most Pirated Shows and Game of Thrones takes the crown again this year followed by Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead. Game of Thrones holds the honour of becoming the most downloaded TV-show for the third year in a row.

    With 5.9 million downloads via BitTorrent, the 2013 season finale beat the competition by a landslide. More than half the downloads happened in the first week after the show aired and apparently the total exceeds the number of traditional viewers in the US.

    Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead complete the top three with an estimated 4.2 and 3.6 million downloadsa are est respectively. The datimated by TorrentFreak based on several sources, including download statistics reported by public BitTorrent trackers.

    It doesn’t come as a surprise that Game of Thrones topped the charts as the show has broken two piracy records already this year, with over 170,000 people sharing a copy of an episode simultaneously.

    There are a wide variety of reasons why people download TV-shows, but to a certain degree one could claim that HBO is to blame for the massive piracy of Game of Thrones. The network prefers to keep access to the show exclusive and even Netflix wasn’t able to buy the rights no matter what they offered.
    Interestingly enough, TF also learned this year that the huge number of unauthorised downloads don’t bother the show’s makers much. Game of Thrones director David Petrarca previously  admitted to TorrentFreak that piracy generated much-needed “cultural buzz” around his show.

  • AP names Jennifer Lawrence ‘Entertainer of the Year’

    AP names Jennifer Lawrence ‘Entertainer of the Year’

    MUMBAI: The battle for the Associated Press (AP) entertainer of the year came down to the Girl on Fire and the Queen of Twerk.

    Jennifer Lawrence edged out Miley Cyrus by one vote in the Associated Press annual survey of its newspaper and broadcast members and subscribers for “Entertainer of the Year”.

    There were 70 ballots submitted by US editors and news directors. Voters were asked to consider who was the most influential on entertainment and cultural front in 2013. Lawrence won 15 votes, Cyrus had 14, Netflix was a close third, earning 13 votes for altering the TV landscape with its on-demand format and hit original series.

    However, Lawrence, who started the year with an Academy Award for best actress, hit it big all through the year first with The Hunger Games Catching Fire and wrapped 2013 with a critically acclaimed performance in David O. Russell’s American Hustle that has just earned Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award nominations.

    Lawrence was a favourite of many because of her diverse roles as well as her  Academy Award for Best Actress. She has since been nominated for both a Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award for American Hustle.

    The second in the list – Miley Cyrus also made headlines in 2013, but for many different reasons. She made her first splash in August  during the MTV Video Music Awards, but kept her twerking ways for the rest of the year. Cyrus later smoked pot onstage in Europe, continued to undress in many different situations and went through a very public break up with fiancé Liam Hemsworth.

    She also made fashion headlines with her pixie haircut.

  • Netflix is gaining popularity over cable among US young adults

    Netflix is gaining popularity over cable among US young adults

    MUMBAI: The statistics portal Statista has revealed in its study that among Americans between the ages of 18 and 36, 46 per cent of paid subscribers choose cable, while 43 per cent are Netflix users.

    This, however, shifts as the demo ages up. Of those ages 37 to 48, 48 per cent subscribe to cable TV and 31 per cent subscribe to Netflix. With respondents 49 to 67, 55 per cent opt for cable and 21 per cent for Netflix.

    Looking at other pay-TV services, with Americans aged 18 to 36, 16 per cent subscribe to satellite TV, 17 per cent to Amazon Prime and eight per cent to Hulu Plus. Satellite TV is more popular with older demos, with 30 per cent of those 37 to 48 subscribing, 28 per cent of those 49 to 67, and 25 per cent of those over age 68. Amazon Prime and Hulu Plus are less popular with older demographics.

    Of Americans ages 37 to 48, 15 per cent said they subscribe to Amazon Prime, and five per cent to Hulu Plus. Among 49-year-olds to 67-year-olds, 10 per cent choose Amazon Prime and three per cent choose Hulu Plus. Amazon Prime has captured only six per cent of the demo 68-plus, according to the survey, and for Hulu Plus, the figure is just a per cent.

  • Unbundling channel rates a danger to TV ecosystem?

    Unbundling channel rates a danger to TV ecosystem?

    MUMBAI: In the midst of the digitisation process in India, several issues continue to be left unanswered. One such being the matter of unbundling of channels for which the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) issued a consultation paper asking suggestions from stakeholders regarding the same but no decision was reached after that. There is however a rift between MSOs and aggregators on the issue with the MSOs favouring it and aggregators being against it.

    The real question is whether or not it will benefit everyone including the broadcasters, MSOs, aggregators and finally the consumer. 

    A report on the situation in the US by investment banking and asset management firm Needham and Co’s entertainment analyst and MD Laura Martin says, unbundling of cable TV rates could well be a recipe for disaster for all concerned. In the report, Martin has taken a look at the issue from the consumer’s perspective and its consequences for them and for the ecosystem. 

    Martin’s report reveals that US households pay about $720 per year for 180 channels out of which they watch just 18. Consumers would like to pay $30 per month to watch these 16-20 channels. As compared to this, in India, annual rates are a paltry $30-$60 per annum for anywhere between 120 channels to 200 plus channels. 

    Martin argues that if consumers wanted to have all 180 channels as a la carte, their annual spending would increase to $1260, i.e, 75 per cent higher than the current price. 

    Here’s how it goes: cable TV channels in the US generate $56 billion from advertising and $45 billion from subscribers, while pay TV distributors pocket $30 billion, if one goes by last year’s figures. She estimates that if there was unbundling about 124 channels out of these 180 would be wiped out as they would not be in a position to have an average of the 165,000 viewers which Martin estimates are needed to break even on each cable TV channel’s $280 million per annum investment. Her view is that niche channels would simply disappear.

    The decrease in channel choices, points out Martin, would also mean that approximately $80 to $113 billion would be lost in consumer value and the government would lose $20 billion in taxes. It will also put the US, which is already dealing with a high unemployment rate of 7.3 per cent in October 2013, at a risk of losing 1.4 million additional jobs.

    She also warns that if these 180 channels do not create content that is engaging young Americans in the 18-34 year age group, there might be no traditional linear television left in 10 years. Viewers are resorting to cord-cutting and migrating increasingly to online for their entertainment to services such as Hulu, Netflix, Big Frame, Defy Media, Fullscreen, Machinima, Maker Studios,etc. According to a statistics portal Statistica, 43 per cent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 34 preferred Netflix as compared to 46 per cent of paid subscribers who chose cable.

  • OTT video services dominate US network traffic

    OTT video services dominate US network traffic

    MUMBAI: The latest internet traffic trend report from Sandvine has reported that the network traffic in the US is dominated by over the top (OTT) video services.

    Tracking of the fixed and mobile networks across the globe shows that peer-to-peer file sharing has fallen below 10 per cent of the total traffic in North America. This is starkly different from the 60 per cent share it consumed 11 years ago in the heyday of Napster and other P2P services. Even five years ago, it accounted for over 31 per cent. The figure was reported in the six-monthly survey conducted by the broadband network solutions provider, Global Internet Phenomena Report 2H2013.

    The report has also found that the OTT leader Netflix (31.6 per cent) held its ground as the leading downstream application in North America, and together with YouTube (18.6 per cent) accounts for over 50 per cent of downstream traffic on fixed networks.

    Average monthly mobile usage in Asia-Pacific now exceeds 1GB, driven by video, which accounts for 50 per cent of peak downstream traffic, more than double the 443MB monthly average in North America.

  • Netflix becomes bigger than HBO

    Netflix becomes bigger than HBO

    NMUMBAI: Orange is the New Black may have helped make Netflix the new HBO with investors.

     

    On Monday, Netflix reported a U.S. paid subscriber leap, which according to analysts, puts the streaming service squarely ahead of Time Warner’s HBO.

     

    The advances by Netflix spotlight a winning formula around original programming to attract new membership. Original titles such as Orange is the New Black and the Emmy-winning show, House of Cards, were big attractions for subscribers. Binge viewing of these titles have turned Netflix into a hit maker for the new generation.

     

    Netflix Chief Content Officer Ted Sarandos remarked that the only reason to adapt the forecast model for the second season of Orange Is the New Black was because they were highly confident in the model and the quality of the show.

     

    Netflix’s U.S. paid subscribers jumped to 29.9 million in the third quarter, up from 28.6 million in June, passing HBO’s 28.7 million, according to market researcher SNL Kagan.

     

    Wall Street investors applauded Netflix’s programming results. Shares of Netflix rocketed 10 percent, at $391.39, in after-hours trading on the news. Overall membership at Netflix soared in the quarter from last year. It also reported more than 33 percent jump in members from last year, at 40 million compared with less than 30 million in the prior period.

     

    Since Orange has been a great success for them, Netflix wants to do more content like Orange.

     

    Netflix quarterly results beat estimates, top to bottom, according to a survey of forecasts from Thomson Reuters. Company net income popped 315 percent, at $31.8 million, compared with a year ago. Revenue nudged past estimates by $6 million on just over $1.1 billion in the quarter. Earnings per share of 52 cents beat analyst forecasts for 49 cents in the period.

     

    Netflix’s international audience jumped by 1.4 million new members from a year ago, driven by Nordic and Netherlands expansion efforts, the company said.

  • Netflix said to negotiate with US cable companies for set-top box app

    Netflix said to negotiate with US cable companies for set-top box app

    MUMBAI: Netflix is in talks with several US cable companies with the aim of making its video streaming app available on set-top boxes, according to various reports. The reports say that Netflix’s discussions with US operators, including Comcast and Suddenlink, are at an early stage with no deal expected soon. Last month the UK’s Virgin Media became the first cable operator to offer Netflix to its customers; companies in the US have so far been reluctant to embrace streaming services, seeing the technology as broadly competitive with their traditional content offerings.

    One reported sticking point in the negotiations is that Netflix is pushing for the cable companies to adopt its Open Connect content delivery network, which it argues will provide the best streaming quality. Previously Netflix had restricted 3D and what it calls “Super HD” content, which requires a higher bitrate, to internet service providers that participated in the Open Connect initiative, but Time Warner Cable argued that its network was “more than capable of delivering this content to Netflix subscribers.” Netflix later opened up Super HD streaming to all ISPs.

  • Mip Junior puts spotlight on VOD

    Mip Junior puts spotlight on VOD

    CANNES: Mip Junior took off on 5 October at the tony Carlton Hotel in Cannes.

    The spotlight was on children’s content as delegates discussed everything from tight budgets to the change in focus to Video on Demand (VOD) to the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead.

    The first session ‘Money Matters: Finding Finance in New and Different Ways’, moderated by Debbie Macdonald consultant Debbie Macdonald and presided over by Snow River Media chief executive Angus Flethcher, concentrated on new business models, opportunities and challenges facing the independent creative and producing world.

    “Technology has changed and so has the audience. The audience is moving dramatically from one platform to the other. There is an extraordinary revolution going on, and it’s exciting to be in the middle of that change,” said Flethcher, adding that though television could be scary, the good part is: “We can directly speak to our audience. Producers today need not make a half an hour or one hour series. Instead they can create a one minute video for the internet and get immediate feedback.”

    He said content producers now had both newer entry points and people to talk to. Citing the example of Angry Birds, he elaborated: “The character was developed with a story, not as a series, but as a game, and it has done tremendously well.”

    The first session stressed on the importance of the VOD platform. While it was the success of Netflix that made everyone think of VOD as a medium to reach out to audiences, BRB Internacional CEO Carlos Biern said, “Most important is the audience (kids), who can, with VOD, be glued to animation 24X7.”

    Whereas the second session, ‘New Content Deal-Making: get the most of your VOD rights’, spoke about how the VOD platform could be utilised to reach out to audiences. Biern observed it could prove fruitful for advertisers as well while The Jim Henson Company executive vice president, global distribution Richard Goldsmith informed: “VOD is quickly becoming television. So while we look at VOD as a separate source of income, every time we have a conversation with channels, they also want to buy the VOD rights. This shows how important it is becoming for all of us.”

    What emerged is that while Netflix and Amazon may continue to rule the roost, the remaining VOD players had to stand out from the crowd. “We want to become the only option in children’s tablets and smart phones. We all need to involve with our brands to be able to connect with our target group,” said Toon Goggles managing director Stephen L Hodge.

    The key takeaways of the talks seemed to be that every show will sooner than later turn into an app and that SVOD will soon replace standard linear television.

  • From television to web on the go

    From television to web on the go

    CANNES: Day two of Mip Junior put the spotlight on how kids today are increasingly moving from television to the web.

    “This year, four trillion gigabytes of social data was generated. In fact, two years down the line, the number will double,” said SuperAwesome CEO Dylan Collins, adding that Netflix and YouTube were two of the biggest platforms for children to watch/upload videos and listen to music.

    “There is a re-definition of trend. This year, YouTube has seen 100 hours per minute of video being uploaded. And this has built up from zero, six years back. YouTube could probably kill half a dozen entertainment companies tomorrow, just because of how many children are there,” he said.

    SuperAwesome recently asked 2,000 children what presents they’d like to unwrap on Christmas Day only to find out that kids favoured iPhones and iPads over traditional games consoles and handhelds.

    Speaking about the shift to multiple screens, Collins said: “A lot of people talk of two screens, but there are actually four – the mobile, laptop, TV, and desktop. If one has to look at China, the usage of mobiles has exceeded that of desktops. This is where every kid is going.”
    Again, kids with their own tablets are using more Android than iPad, Collins pointed out. “So when you’re thinking about creating new IPs and new brands, build them for tablets and not necessarily just iPads,” he said.

    He stressed on the need for producers to think multi-channel from the very beginning. “Parents today are ready to pay $10-20 for tablets. Everything that interacts with kids involves video and that is the way ahead. Video isn’t going away, in fact, online video is getting bigger and everyone needs to think about it from day one,” he said.

    The morning session also concentrated on games, apps, toys and books for kids.

    In a session on ‘Borderless IPs’, MakieLab CEO Alice Taylor informed the audience about her creation of physical goods from virtual ones. “MakieLab is a start-up making customisable 3D printed dolls, born out of the trend where children were seen collecting in virtual worlds like Moshi Monsters and Club Penguin to customise avatars. We wanted to turn these avatars into real dolls.”

    MakieLab now has a website and an app, and will also launch a game in early 2014. “The app helps children build their own doll through simple slide-bar controls. MakieLab is also working at creating an 11-minute 52-episode animated show aimed at girls, based on the Makies characters and world,” Taylor said.

    Compania de Medios Digitales (CMD) COO Marcelo Liberini spoke about his product Gaturro, which started as a comic in 1993, and has now moved to TV and video. “We ended up building a full trans-media property around this character, and this year, we are finishing the work on the TV series,” Liberini said.

    In 2010, CMD also launched Mundo Gaturro, a virtual world, which has since spread to online radio, a social network called Picapon, webisodes and a video-on-demand platform. “We are expanding into mobile too. We are now in the process of porting the virtual world, ready to be used on tablets,” Liberini said.  

  • Reliance Entertainment Digital has its eye on English entertainment content

    Reliance Entertainment Digital has its eye on English entertainment content

    Reliance Entertainment Digital CEO Manish Agarwal is pretty excited about his company’s date with MipCom this year.  Says he:  “We want to understand the market and its offering and how relevant it is for the digital business. We are always in search of some interesting and innovative content.” 

    For Agarwal, who is into content publishing, participation in Mipcom is likely to become an integral part of doing business, though his company is participating in it for the first time.
    “It gives us an opportunity to explore the large variety of content which we need for the various platforms like BigFlix, Zapak etc. We will obviously focus on networking with more content providers and aggregators across the globe,” says he.

     Reliance Entertainment Digital which launched its over the top (OTT) service BigFlix last year is sorted in terms of Indian programming and now wants add on international content in more genres and languages.

     “We want to expand our offerings to the consumer. Participating in Mipcom will help us explore more opportunities,” he says.

    We want to expand our offerings to the consume and participating in Mipcom will help us explore more opportunities believes Manish Agarwal

     Agarwal says that an increasing group of young Indian consumers is gorging on digitised content on hand held devices and on their PCs. “It is essential for Indian service providers to experiment with new type of content across genres and content-types. And it is just not that Indians will consume only trailers or paparazzi content, they will also look at different content and so we want to explore with a variety of content,” he highlights.

     The focus this year at Mipcom he emphasises will be on acquiring entertainment content – especially that which originates from English speaking nations or with English subtitles.
    “This will be entertainment for English speaking audiences, entertainment for masses and for kids. This is the reason we are going not only for Mipcom, but also for Mip Junior,” he informs.

    For those visiting Mipcom to sell gaming content, expect the Reliance Entertainment 

    representative at your stall. “We will also look at gaming content or gaming IPs on which games can be created. So we are aiming at kids entertainment both in gaming and VOD content which caters to everyone or in niche segments in the country,” says he. “In terms of gaming IPs, since we are present across the globe, we will go for any IP which is popular. So we will be hunting for any IP across different markets in order to get a license to create mobile games

     The OTT service which delivers its content online to connected devices – a la NetFlix in the US – is looking at stacking up its video-on-demand (VOD) menu. “This can subsume movies-on-demand, TV-serials-on-demand and animations-on-demand. And for gaming again we are looking at the mobile platforms.”

    And the company is shopping cheque book in hand. So sellers will indeed be kept busy by this emerging digital giant from India.