CBS Launches a VOD Subscription Service (1 Viewer)

[revgen]

CBS Launches $5.99-A-Month Subscription Streaming Service
by David Lieberman
October 16, 2014 6:16am

Here you go, cord-cutters — and take that, Hulu: It’s called CBS All Access, and it will offer streams of broadcasts from the 14 stations that the network owns, as well as VOD for “thousands of episodes from the current season, previous seasons and classic shows,” the company says. It’s available today at CBS.com as well as iOS and Android apps for mobile devices.

Go here to read the whole article.

It will have ads for new productions, but will be ad-free for the "classic" shows.

No support for Apple TV or Roku yet. That may come later.

 

[Towergrove]

With services like this coming HBO too! and Netflix stock losing 26% of its value and its subscriptions no longer growing as fast with high growth phase on the downward slope as well as prices for media increasing the party is over for Netflix. That said I look forward to what CBS has to offer as well as HBO.

 

[revgen]

I wouldn't say the party is over for Netflix.

They don't include ads with their content like Hulu and CBS.

That's why I don't subscribe to Hulu, and I won't subscribe to CBS either. Part of the reason people are "cutting the cord" is to get away from paying outrageous prices for tv content with ads included.

I'm currently subscribed to Netflix, Amazon, and Warner Instant. I may even subscribe to HBO's VOD channel if it's available on Roku or AppleTV.

 

[Towergrove]

I wouldn't say the party is over for Netflix.

They don't include ads with their content like Hulu and CBS.

That's why I don't subscribe to Hulu, and I won't subscribe to CBS either. Part of the reason people are "cutting the cord" is to get away from paying outrageous prices for tv content with ads included.

I'm currently subscribed to Netflix, Amazon, and Warner Instant. I may even subscribe to HBO's VOD channel if it's available on Roku or AppleTV.

No I guess saying the party is over is too harsh but the lady in the moo moo is singing.
With prices going up for content I would not be surprised if we start seeing commercials on Netflix. Possibly before and after a feature. They are already raising subscription prices ever so slowly. 4K now costs more and new subscribers now pay more. All this and growth is slowing down for Netflix.
On the consumer side of the coin...The problem with subscribing to all of these services is that after a while the costs add us to what you were paying for cable to begin with . Thats the big reason many cord cutters are going with these services- to cut costs but $10 x ? adds up (this doesnt include the cost of your high speed internet to run some of the services correctly). There is only so much a consumer will take. Its called subscription fatigue and I have been reading stories about Sub Fatigue recently in the news. I wouldnt be surprised if we see a showtime , nbc and abc sub app as well. another set of subs to add to your total monthly tab.

 

[revgen]

The prices for content are going up because the content providers know that Netflix needs programming to offer to customers.

Netflix has countered by offering original programming. Which has so far been very successful.

Amazon is trying to do the same.

I don't think we'll see commercials on Netflix as long as their original programming is working out. They can negotiate lower prices for content that isn't their own because they have their own content to offer, in addition to their regular DVD/Blu-Ray rental business. Ditto with Amazon.

IMO, the primary reason CBS is doing VOD is because of the battle they had with TWC last year. TWC eventually folded, but CBS will have another war with larger providers like DirecTV soon enough. The VOD service is more about giving themselves another outlet to deliver content in case talks break down. DirecTV just had a battle last month with Raycom Media, a broadcaster of Fox affiliate stations mostly in the mid-west and east coast. Times are getting testy for Cable/Satellite providers and the content providers.

 

[Towergrove]

The prices for content are going up because the content providers know that Netflix needs programming to offer to customers.

Netflix has countered by offering original programming. Which has so far been very successful.

According to this article, they dont really know how successful the programming is, only what Netty tells them:

Now, it turns out, not even the people behind the streaming service’s most successful (well, at least we think they’re the most successful) series, like House of Cards and Orange is the New Black, have any idea how many people actually watch their programming.

http://qz.com/205346/not-even-those-who-run-netflix-shows-know-how-popular-they-really-are/

I dont think the Time Warner HBO announcement and the CBS announcement around Netflix financials announcement was a coincidence.

Again I see commercials on the horizon. New subscription growth is starting to slow. They cannot raise their pricing because people will cancel the service and with new services like HBO coming online I dont think they want to do that. Competition is fierce. As newer online channels come to pass they wont want to have their programs on Netflix if they have them on their own systems. That will give them exclusivity.

BTW. Netflix stock tanked today. Investors are scrambling .

 

[revgen]

According to this article, they dont really know how successful the programming is, only what Netty tells them:
http://qz.com/205346/not-even-those-who-run-netflix-shows-know-how-popular-they-really-are/

I dont think the Time Warner HBO announcement and the CBS announcement around Netflix financials announcement was a coincidence.

Again I see commercials on the horizon. New subscription growth is starting to slow. They cannot raise their pricing because people will cancel the service and with new services like HBO coming online I dont think they want to do that. Competition is fierce. As newer online channels come to pass they wont want to have their programs on Netflix if they have them on their own systems. That will give them exclusivity.

BTW. Netflix stock tanked today. Investors are scrambling .

I think it is. Especially since CBS has yet to announce their All-Access channel being ready for Roku or Apple TV. Do they really expect to compete with Netflix with only Web and Mobile?

HBO already has their HBO Go channel up and running, so it's no surprise that they would want to make it available to more than just cable/sat subsribers. The HBO and CBS announcements have more to do with the decline of cable/satellite than anything to do with Netflix.

That same article also reports that Netflix added 4 million customers in early 2014 and a total of close to 47 million total subscriptions around the world. 47 million paying subscribers isn't something to panic over. Especially when Hulu only has 6 million. http://techcrunch.com/2014/04/30/hulu-now-with-6-million-subscribers-will-make-some-tv-episodes-free-on-mobile/

That kind of growth isn't going to last forever, and a slowdown shouldn't be taken as an omen unless you're a daytrader who only invests in what's "hot" at the moment.

 

[Ron1973]

Go here to read the whole article.

It will have ads for new productions, but will be ad-free for the "classic" shows.

No support for Apple TV or Roku yet. That may come later.

Being a fan of classic TV, I went and took a look. I just don't see much in the way of shows that interest me. I see Perry Mason, but much of the other content that appeals to me such as The Andy Griffith Show, I can get on Netflix. When did Melrose Place and Beverly Hills 90210 move into the classic realm? Oldies possibly, but far from being mentioned in the same sentence as the other two I mentioned.

 

[TravisR]

Being a fan of classic TV, I went and took a look. I just don't see much in the way of shows that interest me. I see Perry Mason, but much of the other content that appeals to me such as The Andy Griffith Show, I can get on Netflix. When did Melrose Place and Beverly Hills 90210 move into the classic realm? Oldies possibly, but far from being mentioned in the same sentence as the other two I mentioned.

For some reason, it seems like 'classic' now means anything that's about 20 or 25 years old.

 

[Ron1973]

For some reason, it seems like 'classic' now means anything that's about 20 or 25 years old.

Yeah, it does. There's a radio station in our area that claims to play "five decades of classic country" but they're idea of classic includes 90's and 00's!