I don't understand the value of Netflix, Amazon Video, Hulu, etc.

Netflix and amazon prime are good if you just want to watch something. If you want to watch a specific thing, given the amount of media that exists today, odds are you'll have to buy it. Most people aren't so picky. For instance, if hacksaw ridge isn't the only film you're willing to watch, you'll probably find something on netflix. Not sure why you'd think there'd be a big media monopoly when there are so many people in the industry. Most people believe competition to be healthy and a means of keeping prices down.

I don't understand the value of jamin.

jamin wrote:

I don't really use any of those services regularly, but even if I did, I don't see how it would be possible to get my money's worth.

Okay.

Lots of people do.

WTFBBQ wrote:

jamin wrote:

I don't really use any of those services regularly, but even if I did, I don't see how it would be possible to get my money's worth.

Okay.

Lots of people do.

Jamin has zero clue about playing a date flick at home with a woman sitting next to him while they drink a bottle of wine. Totally clueless.

Date Flick wrote:

WTFBBQ wrote:

Okay.

Lots of people do.

Jamin has zero clue about playing a date flick at home with a woman sitting next to him while they drink a bottle of wine. Totally clueless.

If I ever experience mutual attraction I will be glad to do the date flick thing you described

I have thought about starting a thread asking this very question. I paid for Netflix for a time, but I canceled it. Its just underwhelming.

I not only think Amazon video is overrated. I don't understand the entire company of Amazon and why everybody thinks its so great. I have Amazon prime right now just to see what its all about but I'm going to cancel.

I subscribe to Hulu just because all the episodes of South Park and Seinfeld are on there. That combined with the a decent selection of movies is good enough for me.

Preaching to the choir. Every once in a while I borrow someone's Netflix account, and I never end up finding anything to watch.

ryan foreman wrote:

I have thought about starting a thread asking this very question. I paid for Netflix for a time, but I canceled it. Its just underwhelming.

I not only think Amazon video is overrated. I don't understand the entire company of Amazon and why everybody thinks its so great. I have Amazon prime right now just to see what its all about but I'm going to cancel.

I subscribe to Hulu just because all the episodes of South Park and Seinfeld are on there. That combined with the a decent selection of movies is good enough for me.

You sound like me. I've rewatched Curb a million times on Amazon Video because all the seasons are free and I love the show. However, I get this subsequent feeling of guilt, like I'm not "branching out" enough, similar to the feeling when I order the same dish at the same restaurant every week.

Me and a special 'someone' enjoy Netflix and 'chilling'.

Your original statement could basically be summarized as, " I don't understand the value of paying for something I don't use much, that doesn't have the very specific things I want it to have," which is a very strange thing to not understand. It's also very arrogant to extrapolate that something makes no sense because you don't like it.

I rarely eat sushi- but that doesn't mean I think it's weird that there are tons of sushi restaurants. I don't understand how the concept could be lost on you. Your own very specific preferences don't dictate global supply and demand.

If you're not someone who likes to watch a lot of different things, then the product just isn't for you. That doesn't mean it's existence is "no better than Blockbuster," or however you phrased it. It's a pretty simple concept.

Well obviously the value decreases significantly if you still insist on paying $100+ every month for a cable subscription. If you cancel cable and pay for Netflix (Netflix originals + really good kids shows), Hulu (for the major network shows), Amazon (Prime delivery alone is worth the cost if you buy everything on Amazon, video is just a bonus), free OTA via antennae, and then Plex + torrent any one offs that you want to watch, like Hacksaw Ridge, that's like $30/month. Throw in another $20 for Sling if you need sports, and you're saving a ton of money and you can watch whatever you want. Even if streaming services cost the same as cable, I would still prefer to do that just to avoid giving my money to cable companies, which are some of the worst businesses on the planet.

Most movies on Amazon are available to rent, and you don't need an Amazon prime subscription to do so. Movie rentals range from 1.99-4.99...so just think of it as a Blockbuster Video where you don't need to leave your home and you save time. I don't have the buffering issues you do, so you must have a crappy computer if you have fast internet...or a crappy router. Some movies aren't available to rent due to licensing or being too new, so you can think of those movies as the ones you go to Best Buy and buy for $14.99 without having to leave your home, or they're checked out after you drove all the way to Blockbuster.

Additionally, I find no interest in watching mediocre football (PAC-12) or all those other crappy TV channels (Real Housewives, Karadashians, Cake Wars, Pawn Stars, etc.). If I prefer the shows on Netflix or Hulu or Amazon and I don't have to pay for all the crap you seem to be paying for, just consider that the costs end up similar (or in my case, lower because I avoid cable and don't by every subscription) and we have different tastes in what we want to watch. You waste your money on 300 channels you don't watch and gas to get to Blockbuster, and I'll waste my money on House of Cards and Game of Thrones.

The reason you can't stop one place for everything is because no one person or entity owns everything.

You have to wait for your video to buffer? Oh my. Because going to Blockbuster Video is so much quicker than waiting for your video to buffer for a moment.

Patronizing aside, you wouldn't be able to watch Hacksaw Ridge for free with just cable. The reason we value these services is because we cancelled our $150/mo cable plan and decided to get Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and HBO Now for $35/mo. Now I don't watch commercials. And if I want to see something local, I use my $20 antenna to watch the major stations. I don't have access to every movie or show available, but I have a good enough selection that I'm happy and I'm saving myself over $100/mo.

$14.99 is huge waste of money?

a total waste of money. Netflix at a certain point became emptied of anything good so I dropped it probably ten years ago. Looking at samples of offerings more recently has not impressed me at all. Mostly a bunch of worthless junk. Now the anti-piracy operatives are far more effective nowadays too, certainly with youtube, so free content is not easy to find unless you know what sites to look for.

Very quick searches show over 100 million subscribers to Netflix and 80 million to Amazon Prime. So someone out there must find value in it (including me).

It's true that if you're looking for Hollywood block busters or network television sitcoms, then you might not be happy.

However, the original content on Netflix is great! Also, they have other "network" shows that might not be so famous but are great (Shameless) or BBC shows like the original Office and Sherlock.

We have been without cable TV since 2010 and it has worked out just great. Go down to the theater room about twice a week and do Netflix. That is the extent of "tv time" for us.

The services are decent for TV programs but absolutely suck for movies. That's the business model.

All 8 seasons of Entourage are on Amazon.