Who Will Win the Streaming Wars?
Disney+ is coming.
Who will win the streaming wars?
The media is obsessed with winners and losers. Netflix, YouTube/Google, HBO, Amazon, etc. But I think there's room for more than one. Which one will consumers chose? Which one will die?
I'm signing up for Disney+ (3 years since I'm a Parks Passholder; who doesn't want to save $40 to lock-in?). But I won't cancel Netflix. But I may finally cancel cable. I don't need Hulu, I won't do ESPN+ because there's no NBA. But I will keep Netflix and Disney+.
Disney had two options: Go low price for volume growth (or) Go premium price and force switching. They went low and it's easy to add at a $6.99/month - but it's not too much that I really have to pick. I'll have both. The fam will watch both. And we won't need cable anymore.
The conversation in the next two years will be about pricing and content. Netflix is pricey and may drop their price a bit or reduce the frequency of increases. Disney will likely have to raise prices coming up, especially with the burn rate of some of their programming costing $25MM an episode to produce (unsustainable without massive scale).
Who will win the war? The winner will be the consumer as competition reduces prices and increases quality of content while the smaller players shake out.
?? I help people figure out how to be happy ?? Ayudo a las personas a descifrar cómo ser feliz ??
5 年Who will win the Streaming Wars? Other than all the consumers who rediscover the joy of “piracy”?
I cut cable a few years ago. I have Amazon Prime and Netflix. I'm not into sports so that’s been sufficient. Yes, Disney+ will get me if they get on Amazon Fire. That’s another wrinkle in this war and where I’m losing right now. I won’t be buying new TV streaming hardware (Apple TV, Roku) just to get Disney+. If some streaming services are not available on some platforms ongoing, consumers don’t win.
Balkanization of streaming platforms isn’t a win for fans. The hunt for what to watch becomes where to watch it as well.
Growth & Revenue Leader | Media, Entertainment & Tech | Scaling Businesses, Driving Innovation & Monetization
5 年Hmm, feels a bit like pumping the initial uptake, and locking in some insurance re churn %. Clever but also feels like someone may be a bit concerned...
Chief Experience Officer @ Pinfinity | Merging Fandom, Collectibles, & Augmented Reality to Create Next-Level Fan Experiences
5 年Who will win the war? Fans :)