Netflix Killing Piracy and BitTorrent?

[Trik'Stari]

So, it would seem that the long time arguments made by consumers, as to how to kill piracy, are slowly being proven right.

That argument being that "piracy results from geo-locking, market segmentation, and general unavailability", and that companies could make more money, if they would just

stop being so belligerent, and give people easy access to the content they want to buy.

 

 

 

Netflix, probably the most popular video streaming service ever, is having an unexpected consequence on the world of piracy and torrents. Apparently, the popularity and accessibility of Netflix, as well as the affordable U.S. prices that it can boast with, have impacted the way in which Bittorent is used. It seems like there are fewer and fewer pirates ripping movies and series with Bittorent and the number of the torrent client’s users has dropped. That leads us to believe that people are turning away from piracy thanks to the obvious benefits that Neflix offers, and we’re glad about it.

 

 

 

We are familiar with the legal implications of piracy and stealing and distributing copyrighted content. But there was a time (and still is in some countries), when people simply could not afford to go to the cinema to watch a movie or subscribe to HBO to be able to watch Game of Thrones, Spartacus, Six feet under, Carnivale, How I met your mother and the list goes on. But with Netflix bringing affordable content to so many people across the world and services like UnoTelly making Netflix available in European and Asian countries, piracy has plummeted.

 

 

 

According to a Sandvine report entitled In the Americas, Netflix + Google + Facebook = The Internet?, Bittorent and Netflix seem to be clashing. While more and more people are flocking to Netflix, less and less people are making use of the Bittorent client and ripping content from torrent sites like The Pirate Pay, Kickass and I’m sure you can name a few others. The report details that Neflix has become more dominant among users in North America, accounting for more than 36 % of bandwidth use during peak hours of internet use. Although Sandvine doesn’t give out precise numbers for the change, they do emphasize the pull that Netflix is having on Bittorrent clients.

 

 

It seems like affordable and accessible content is the way to weed out pirates and to convert them into upstanding citizens of the internet, if I may. Although there’s still a lot of piracy going on in all entertainment industries, including movies, series, cartoons, music and talk shows, the number and sheer volume of content that is being watched illegally has dropped. Netflix can be proud of their accomplishment, and have proven to the world that the business model they are using is effective and has a positive impact on the industry.

Source: http://www.geeksnack.com/2015/05/30/netflix-inadvertently-killing-off-pirates-and-bittorent/

Alternate source: http://www.delhidailynews.com/news/Netflix-inadvertently-killing-off-pirates--Bittorent-1432990988/

 

I have to admit, I'm eager to see what kind if ridiculous response some companies will come up with in light of this information.

 

Personally I have to agree with the article. While Piracy IS immoral, it can be better fought with easy, convenient access, rather than obstructive geo-locking, and timed releases for different countries just so companies can charge more money in that country because "it just came out".

 

What's more interesting to me, is that some companies like HBO, seem to be waking up and realizing that box top set television is a doomed industry, and that people don't want to pay a ridiculous price for a package that includes channels they don't watch or have any interest in.

 

Source: http://www.technewstoday.com/23995-netflix-suffers-while-hbo-enjoys-the-traffic-through-game-of-thrones/

 

*Professor Farnsworth voice* "GOOD NEWS EVERYONE!"

[shadowblitz3]

they're still not available here.

[lani100]

They might in the US but in my country the amount of content they offer is shit. So I'm still getting my stuff from somewhere else.

Also Netflix is really frustrating was watching a season of Top Gear and when I was watching they deleted a whole season wtf?

I still keep Netflix for my brother who likes to watch movies and for that it's fine.

[Trik'Stari]

they're still not available here.

I'd give it time. Or use a VPN maybe.

 

They might in the US but in my country the amount of content they offer is shit. So I'm still getting my stuff from somewhere else.

 

Is it a trade issue, or a "stuffy government not liking the content on netflix" problem?

[Trik'Stari]

"is having an unexpected consequence"

 

-snip

 

I really couldn't find a different way to say "no shit". Offer something better > gain userbase. No rocket surgery needed.

Tell that to CEO's and shareholders with no knowledge of the world

[lufihengr]

 

 

Netflix, probably the most popular video streaming service ever, is having an unexpected consequence on the world of piracy and torrents.

 

Is it though? I thought is was obvious that this would happen, at least in the states.

[Master Disaster]

How I met your mother? How old is this article? I thought that finished years ago.

[TwistedDictator]

I agree. Netflix has reduced piracy as they offer a cheap solution to watch shows when ever they want. Netflix has their own shows which is worth watching such OITNB, Marco Polo, House of Cards and many more...

[samcool55]

Just sad that it took a big name like netflix to finally prove to the big boys that their methods are it only making worse

.They clearly have the power to do it right, but they just won't listen. I hope things will change now.

[Bouzoo]

Hm... "reducing their use"? Yeah sure, but killing? Wouldn't go that far.

[shujin]

it seems like it was a distribution problem all along not the pirate corrupted by satan or some other stupid shit

[TwistedDictator]

it seems like it was a distribution problem all along not the pirate corrupted by satan or some other stupid shit

 

A lot of people noticed it was a distribution but the big companies were just ignoring the issue but then cried about pirating. I remember at time shows will come so late but in place like NA it was already shown lol

 

Lets be honest we have that one show we all like, for example GoT was shown in the different country but a week early and the only way to watch it was though piracy a week early wouldnt you do it?

[TheInverseKey]

They cant kill off HBMC.

[Embattled]

Trust me if I had some money I could freely spend, I would totally just get Netflix instead of torrenting all my shit. 

[bcredeur97]

hopefully this pushes netflix to add more movies and shows. People are throwing away cable in general as well, so they have more money for things like netflix. It only makes sense that this would reduce piracy

[ivhyn]

Netflix working against geo-locking? Are you kidding me? There's a reason I installed Hola unblocker and that was to see all the content I paid for but didn't have access to due to restrictions.

Also, there will always be room for piracy as not every show/movie releases on every on-demand platform; who's got the cash to pay for several streaming services just to see specific things?!

[Guest Kloaked]

Is it a trade issue, or a "stuffy government not liking the content on netflix" problem?

I think it may also be those executive on Hollywood who aren't up to speed on how this world works.

[Matu20]

I will most likely never stop pirating. 

 

For instance, pirating allows me to watch pilots of shows and see if I like them. The same goes for games, I can see how it performs etc ...

 

Pirating will allow me to "test" the product before purchasing, same as a test drive for a new vehicle. Concept is used very effectively in other categories, yet pirating is somehow the only one despised upon.

[werto165]

I will most likely never stop pirating. 

 

For instance, pirating allows me to watch pilots of shows and see if I like them. The same goes for games, I can see how it performs etc ...

 

Pirating will allow me to "test" the product before purchasing, same as a test drive for a new vehicle. Concept is used very effectively in other categories, yet pirating is somehow the only one despised upon.

Yes it has similarities but they're not the same, with test driving a car you're not exactly getting the product forever are you? Sure you probably buy the content afterwards and support the content creators but it's those who don't who hurt the creators. Sure situations can be tough i understand that not everyone can afford it but if you're an adult you should not really pirate. Then again you can do whatever you want as I don't like forcing my will on others.

[Mattrixx]

If Netflix offered everything, and let me watch offline (download them temporarily maybe), I would be happy and all my needs'd be met. That'd solve the problems of people who don't have the bandwidth to stream, and have finicky internet connections.

 

Thing is, even though someone in the household does have Netflix, I can't use it when I want to (when the internet dies or there's company) due to the volatility of my internet connection. The only other option is to pirate so that I can watch the movies and shows that I already paid for. It really does screw over everyone with crappy internet.

[Alurit]

would be nice if they do their crusade here in Hungary as well, and it would be even nicer if the us content wouldn't be region locked, I mean region locking have to die

[Silentknight]

So long as Region Lock bullshit is still a thing, so will there be piracy.

[dimitriianghelov]

I'd give it time. Or use a VPN maybe.

 

 

Is it a trade issue, or a "stuffy government not liking the content on netflix" problem?

yep use vpn from eu to u.s; no way in hell it's gonna happen(it'f sucks and there aren't any options aside from pirating), there aren't vpn's good enough + there isn't a direct way to get netflix subscription/monthly payment

 

and when i say pirating i don't mean just using a torrent, there are webpages made for this kinda of content and you can watch it online without waiting the quality might be a bit lower

[Cheddle]

Netflix has reduced my depenancy on torrents heaps. If they had all the content I would uninstall utorrent

[Tech Enthusiast]

Well, this is harldy newsworthy in my eyes. Sure piracy will drop if you can get your fix cheap and NOT from a TV that is bloaded with adds.

 

Not that i don't want to pay for a service like Netflix, but we don't have a competetive service in germany. We do have SOME, but series are like 2 years behind most of the time. And most services also only offer a very small database, far from what US Netflix seems to have (judging from how people talk about it).

 

So it is: Watch it on the TV, bloaded with adds, missing most of the episodes due to busy RL.... watch it 2 years later, possibly having to pay for serveral services to get the movies and series i want,... or just use torrents. Guess what is most appealing.

 

Again: The money is here and we want to spend it. Get us a service that can compete with torrents and you get our money. Right now?`It is just a convenience kind of deal. TV and small Databases are just no competition for clicking a link.