Audio Video News

TW Wants Netflix Streamers to Pay More

Mark Fleischmann  |  Jan 26, 2011

The $7.99 per month that Netflix customers pay for unlimited streaming isn't enough, according to the folks at Time Warner and HBO. They want Netflix to raise the fee, and unless that happens, they're withholding their content.

The story emerged in The Hollywood Reporter, which quoted a Time Warner executive saying Netflix streamers should pay $20 a month. Ouch. Until then, HBO refuses to license its premium content for Netflix streaming, citing the cost of producing that content and its value to viewers.

Netflix is also getting rude stares from Time Warner cable channels. TBS is rattling its saber at studios from which it buys programming, saying competition from Netflix streaming is "going to have a significant impact on what we're going to be willing to pay for programming or even bid at all."

Not all of Hollywood is down on Netflix. The publication quoted a Disney executive: "What's not to like? They're another buyer, even for stuff that others don't consider terribly valuable."

Netflix is more interested in back catalogue than in new releases anyway, says one of its executives: "I don't care about last night's episode. I do want all of last season's episodes."

See The Hollywood Reporter and news.com.

COMMENTS
deckeda's picture
Submitted by deckeda on January 29, 2011 - 7:34pm

HBO is the epitome of a content provider not merely entrenched in the cable/sat model of distribution, but owes its existence since its inception to it. They have what makes them happy, yet whine when the newcomer Nerflix has a very different business model that undercuts all of that. Gee, too bad.

I'm happy to wait, buy used DVDs, which gives me media I can do whatever I want with, and gives HBO (let me see, gotta go get the calculator) oh that's right: $0.

tmsorosk's picture
Submitted by tmsorosk on February 5, 2011 - 11:51am

I think that Large corporations like the ones mentioned above are only interested in profits . They couldn't give a rats rear end what Joe consumer wants . They may suffer the same fate as music producers .

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