Some common phrases now a days a days are “do you wanna Netflix and chill?” or “have you seen the new Netflix original?” but some you don’t really hear are “do you wanna cable TV and chill?” or “have you seen the new cable TV show?” Netflix has been getting more and more popular since the time it started to stream online.
Since 2012, Netflix has seen a constant growth in subscribers, while cable has maintained a steady amount of users. This can be seen in the graph below
Towards the end of 2016, Netflix subscriptions surpassed the amount of cable TV subscriptions by about 2 million subscribers.
There are a couple of different reasons as to why people are choosing Netflix over cable TV, one being that you can binge watch many seasons in a week, but for cable, you have to wait for a certain time and day just to watch one episode in a season. In an survey done by Cinemablend, users reported “The experience is better: 79% say binge watching makes the actual show better.” This makes sense because people are typically impatient when it comes to things that they want, so they don’t want to wait to see more like they would have to do if they were watching a show on cable TV. Another reason would be that for Netflix, there are no interruptions, while on cable TV there are commercial breaks. In an article by Scott McKelvey, it states that, “People hate advertising because it gets in the way of what they really want. A funny video, a TV show, a song or an interesting article. Ads make people wait to have a want or need satisfied.”
Netflix caters to a crowd of people that are busier than ever. Statistics from quartz state that, “...about 67% of people now watch movies and TV shows in public”. With cable TV, you can’t watch that just anywhere you go. Typically you need a TV and an internet connection, but with Netflix, there is an option to where you can download movies and TV shows so that you are able to stream what you want to watch without an internet connection, which comes in handy when you want to watch something on an airplane or when you’re bored in a waiting room and don’t want to waste your cellular data.
Personally I have had a Netflix subscription for 4 years now and I’ve binge watched about 10 different series of TV shows and probably about 100 movies. All my friends also use Netflix almost on a daily basis. The statistics that I found are very accurate because I can’t even remember the last time I watched Cable TV besides the for the news or background noise for doing chores.
This is increasing the demand for Netflix, which is responding by investing in more moveis, hiring more employees, and even creating their own “Netflix originals” to keep the customers interested in them. See below
Because of the per employee, Netflix is making more money, so they’re going to want to keep hiring employees which is good for the company.
Morris, Ian. “Netflix Is Now Bigger Than Cable TV.” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 13 June 2017, www.forbes.com/sites/ianmorris/2017/06/13/netflix-is-now-bigger-than-cable-tv/#6f3eb968158b.
West, Kelly. “Unsurprising: Netflix Survey Indicates People Like To Binge-Watch TV.” CINEMABLEND, CINEMABLEND, 13 Dec. 2013, www.cinemablend.com/television/Unsurprising-Netflix-Survey-Indicates-People-Like-Binge-Watch-TV-61045.html.
McKelvey, Scott. “ABOUT.” Scott McKelvey Copywriting & Marketing, 17 Feb. 2015, scottmckelvey.com/people-dont-hate-advertising-this-is-what-they-hate/
Rodriguez, Ashley. “People Watch Netflix Unabashedly at Work (and in Public Toilets, Too).” Quartz, Quartz, 14 Nov. 2017, qz.com/1128973/people-watch-netflix-at-work-and-in-public-bathrooms/.
The problem with cable TV is that you can't watch WHAT you want to watch WHEN you want to watch it. Like you said, Netflix offers so many on demand options and full libraries of all TV shows that it's easier for people to say "I'll sit down and watch one episode of the Office" than it is to say "I'll sit down and browse the channels until a find a semi-interesting program that's already halfway finished" Not to mention, Netflix is cheaper than cable.
ReplyDeleteYour blog post is very relatable to a typical teenager. I know for a fact that almost everyone I know has a Netflix account. This does not include just my friends, but older family members too. The whole idea of the program makes life more efficient: watch when you want to not when you need to. Life is busy and fast-paced for many people. We have school, work, volunteering and more. That is where Netflix comes in. When a show on cable won't air until the next morning, you can watch all the shows you want on Netflix right now. It takes advantage of the small amount of hours that you can watch TV. For example, at 2am when everyone in the World seems to be asleep but you and all that is on TV is infomercials. This is what makes this business so popular and why subscriptions are currently sky-rocketing. I agree with your statement in the end that this could eventually lead to new jobs. The larger this company becomes, the more employees will be needed to manage it. This will bring in jobs around the Netflix headquarters.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very cool subject! There are a lot of interesting points. I think this could be related to the topic of Toys R Us because this too demonstrates how newer, more accessible ways to receive a good are becoming more popular as the more out-dated ways are becoming obsolete. My own family hasn't had cable in probably 10 years, we've had Netflix and other streaming subscriptions (Sling, Hulu) that cheaply replace the need for cable. I predict that within the next couple of years cable will be completely obsolete and streaming companies will be the main source of entertainment.
ReplyDeleteThis was an interesting post since I also am a fan of Netflix. I think it was neat how you compared it to cable since it has been a major rival for the past few years when it comes to certain channels. However, one thing you could've done to make the post even stronger is when you talk about Netflix growth if you mentioned how they are now making their own original movies and shows and figure out how much more revenue they have made after doing so since that is something that used to only be seen on cable TV, not on exclusive apps.
ReplyDeleteThis was a really interesting blog post because I can’t remember the last time I watched cable TV either (besides for watching The Bachelor). Within the last couple of years, it is evident that Netflix has gained popularity and that has a lot to do with their ability to keep up with the latest trends and please a variety of consumers. On the other hand, cable TV may not always have the show that you want to watch on at the time you want to watch it. With the busy schedules of Americans, Netflix is a lot more convenient. But, I think it would have benefited your blog if you would have talked about how this will affect the future of cable TV.
ReplyDeleteI still remember getting cable for the first time, thinking it wasn’t worth my time watching shows or movies with breaks. Netflix has been more convenient and has most of the movies or shows I watch or would want to watch. It makes sense that Netflix is increasing its subscribers because nowadays, people seem to be more impatient as you mentioned. When I used to watch shows on cable on certain occasions, I would forget what I had watched before the commercials so it was very difficult to keep track of episodes in shows-- we just got rid of cable and started buying movies at stores until Netflix came out.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting to see these statistics since I have recently just switched over to only watching netflix. It is great not having advertisements and just being able to watch your show straight through without disruptions which is a main reason why I believe teenagers like this option better since most teens are impatient. Households are switching from cable to amazon fire sticks which offer a variety of applications such as netflix and hulu. It is surprising to see this change and how everything is evolving in society today.
ReplyDeleteIt's obvious why Netflix surpassed cable TV simply because of the wide variety of easy to access titles. What Netflix doesn't have though, is the news and new TV shows. So, depending on the shows you may be interested in, it could be better to have a Netflix subscription than to pay for cable TV. But overall, Netflix has a wide variety of titles that grab the attention of any type of viewer and new ones are released every month. In my opinion, as time passes, subscriptions for Netflix are going to increase exponentially.
ReplyDeleteThis is very interesting. In this article you talked about how people are starting to watch less cable TV and more Netflix. This just shows that times are changing. As we develop more and more technology people start to expect more and more along with it. When cable TV first came out I am sure no one had an issue with the advertisements or having to wait to watch the next episode of their favorite show. However, Netflix changed that. Now people want to watch whole seasons of shows in a matter of weeks. As times goes on less and less people maybe watching cable TV and more and more people might start to watch providers like Netflix.
ReplyDeleteThere is no surprise that netflix has been rising up in the past couple of years, it's just more portable if you will, because you can take your phone or anything that allows you to go on the internet and you can watch netflix, plus cable is so much more expensive, when you can spend $8 a month and you can watch hundreds of movies and shows. There is one device that has been making more money than anything and that's the Amazon TV fire stick, and with this you can pay for prime, but if you download a program onto it you can stream any show or movie you want, for free. The choices are endless, because everything that has ever came out on TV or anywhere is on the fire stick. You just need to download a program called Kodi. and overall Kodi is so much better than Netflix, Hulu, or Cable.
ReplyDeleteI think that this was a very good and very relevant blog post. Every age group is interested in Netflix now a days ranging from my grandma to my 6 year old cousin. One thing I would've liked to read in your blog was maybe how many people have stopped using cable completely to only use Netflix since it is the cheaper option for entertainment.
ReplyDeleteOver all I agree with the main idea of this article. I think that Netflix is the better platform of the two and I don't personally even use cable. But I think that you are not crediting cable with everything that they deserve. I think we know that big companies don't just watch competition come up without trying to adapt. When Netflix provided the ability for users to binge watch their shows, cable tv set up the DVR on their platform so users were able to record and store whatever shows they wanted to that were airing at some point on tv. This is something that you might hear some Netflix users complain about, that there a lot of shows that pop up on the page that they are not interested in watching. With the ability to record or even to pause a show while it's live then allows you to fast forward through any commercials up to the point where it is again live or until the show ends. This is still somewhat of a pain to those that are used to just zoning out watching netflix without touching the remote until it prompts you asking if you are still watching, but it is a feature provided by cable still. As for the part that claims that Netflix is mobile while cable is not I don't think that is true either. I believe that the various forms of cable television you can find in app form so you can watch on the go.
ReplyDeleteI agree that cable is becoming obsolete, however I would've used video streaming networks in general to show the massive lack of viewers for cable. This can range from Hulu to Amazon Prime, even YouTube has a paid streaming program. Overall I agree that cable is dead and I do not see it lasting much longer. Spellchecking is a real thing by the way.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like the age of "new media", like YouTube, Hulu, Amazon Prime and Netflix are all major powerhouses that have been currently dominating the video streaming domain. Which in turn has taken over the regular, basic, cable TV option. The most people use TV for nowadays is too catch up on news. Especially with the millennial, we barely consume any TV, while we consume alot of different outlets. Its crazy to think such a dominant force, like TV, with billions invested into it and used to be a common household amenity will soon be obsolete and replaced with this new media.
ReplyDeleteThis post was interesting to me because I not only use Netflix, I also use Hulu and Amazon Prime. These internet streaming opportunities are nice because I am able to watch my favorite shows with no commercial interruptions and, additionally, I am able to watch multiple episodes, or even seasons of a show without having to wait an entire week. Although I do love these services, I still watch a fair amount of cable television because there are shows that Netflix and Hulu do not provide. Cable television also is the only service that can stream live shows and the news, so I think it is still necessary for cable to be around.
ReplyDeleteIt is crazy how fast netflix has gained popularity. I agree with your stance that with more so the younger generations, cable tv has become very uncommon for the same facts that you stated. It is nice like you mentioned to be able to binge watch a show at any time and not have to worry about 5 minute commercial breaks. I feel if Netflix keeps on this increase trend, that cable could become almost non-existent.
ReplyDeleteIt doesn’t surprise me that Netflix has such high ratings and is constantly getting more and more popular. Unlike cable, Netflix offers a huge variety of movies and shows that cater to all age groups. Cable is limited on what it airs, furthering the decreased want to watch whatever’s on TV. I believe that Netflix will only continue to grow because of its ratings and praise. There haven’t been many major issues with the program, seeing as it’s what everyone wants when they would like downtime.
ReplyDeleteThis topic is relevant to almost everyone, since a lot of people have either Netflix or cable, along with other options, like Amazon Video and HBO. But there will always be cable, no matter what. You can't watch sports games or the news on Netflix or Hulu. There are certain TV shows that aren't on Netflix that you can only watch on cable. But I agree that binge watching shows on these providers is a lot better than having to wait a week or so to see the next episode of the show.
ReplyDeleteI like how Netflix is doing so well is because they understand the consumers’ interests and expectations and Netflix has become a substitute for Cable. As you explained how people don’t want to wait for one episode to release per week, so in order to meet these determinants in demand, they release a full series just to receive more subscribers. Because Netflix releases a full series, watching the episodes are more accessible while Cable releases episodes on specific dates that a person sets to record it--even the television shows that are finished are still set to record at certain dates. Another factor is how Netflix doesn’t have any advertisements. Since there aren’t any advertisements, more people will be interested in subscribing to Netflix instead of Cable. Because Cable doesn’t meet the determinants in demand, their revenue decreases and will lose more subscribers over time.
ReplyDeleteThe way that Cable television is going to the wayside because of internet streaming such as Netflix has quite frankly been crazy. Cable TV has owned the at home entertainment business pretty much as long as it has been a thing and their falling sales indicate that that has not only already come to a close but also is continuing to shrink. The only problem I belie is starting to come up is every cable channel is trying to hop on board the streaming in their own way. HBO, Showtime and others have already made their own systems and there is rumored to be a Disney one coming soon. The problem with this lies in that companies that have their own internet streams won't want to share their films with companies like Netflix. This will cause people to need to buy multiple subscriptions for a wide selection and in turn make those people need to spend more money. This has already happened such as when ESPN (owned by Disney) removed all of their special films from Netflix such as their 30 for 30's. Only time will tell what will really happen so i suppose we will have to wait and see.
ReplyDeleteThis article points out many interesting factors. I myself have a Netflix subscription and I also have one season on cable TV that I follow. As my life gets busier and busier I find that I stop watching my cable TV season and turn to Netflix every time. Netflix, like you stated above, is faster, easier to stream, and is more convenient seeing as it is on my iphone and not just my tv. We live in a fast paced world where nobody likes to spend time waiting for commercials or waiting for one show a week to play. I can definitely say I think Netflix will continue its strong growth in the years to come.
ReplyDeleteI use to have cable and Netflix but as my schedule has gotten busier, I find that I don't have enough time to watch movies and TV shows. I on the other hand would favor Netflix over cable because there are no commercials and I could watch whatever I wanted whenever I wanted. The demand for Netflix is defiantly higher than the demand for cable unless it's around march madness season or any other live stream events that Netflix can't provide to their watchers.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be interesting to further investigate the advertising aspect of your post. Commercials on cable TV present a negative externality to viewers as they interrupt the show, and many people have switched to Netflix as a result. The cost of advertising a good or service on television is quite high, particularly on popular channels and during big sporting events. It would be interesting to look into these prices to see what businesses are willing to pay to advertise their products and if commercials actually motivate consumers to go buy the products. Cable TV channels will have to look into shortening commercial breaks or including more entertaining commercials in order to maintain viewers.
ReplyDeleteAt this point in our time of instant streaming gratification, the only thing that keeps the Cable companies head's above water is the everlasting appeal of sports, which many of the cable companies are in control of what's broadcasted. However, many streaming services are now providing more sports, potentially pivoting towards streaming, leaving the cable companies scrambling.
ReplyDeleteI don’t see what's so bad about cable. Netflix is a great example of a business taking over other businesses, like Amazon is taking over the rest of the world. It shows how people are because less patient when it comes to commercials and waiting next week for the next episode. Personally, I love cable. I like waiting. I’ve had Hulu and Netflix before, but I just didn’t see a point in it.
ReplyDeleteCable is now to Netflix what radio is to streaming, it's obsolete. Cable costs an ungodly amount of money, and what you're really paying for is to simply watch commercials. The opportunity cost of only having Netflix however is not being able to watch sporting events. But that is what Buffalo Wild Wings is for!
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