It seems like the direction of streaming media is now moving to a studio based model. Each studio would like to create their own streaming service for their content, and reap all the benefits from that. We're seeing that affect Hulu's valuation as well. An aggregated video streaming service needs access to all that content, and the right's holders are less and less willing to negotiate that.
I think the long term is an aggregated model like Netflix, but they're going to have to weather some trying times as studios try to build their own streaming services first. At the end of the day, consumers want one place to go and get all that content. The studios want a bigger piece of the pie and are going to force everyone through some uncomfortable times before they learn their lesson. Ultimately consumers will foot the bill for all the failed experiments and will probably end with a service just like netflix at a higher cost.
I think the major problem here is that the studios are routinely forgetting that thye've never successfully managed full distribution. Never. There's always been another party which aggregated, whether it was movie theaters or stores.
Possibly, they think they can replicate television. But television was either free or 24 hour nichey-ness if it was really popular.
I agree. I think the strategy of the studios is doomed to fail, but I think Netflix and consumers will end up paying the price (through more expensive services, and less content). They absolutely hate that someone else is building a profitable business on their content. The studios, much like the recording business, is slow to react, and they didn't realize the value of streaming video until Netflix proved it was a viable business model. I see the studios throwing money at it, hoping to buy their way into a new source of revenue. That will only serve to fragment the market, and won't succeed in the long run. The big question for me is, does Netflix have the resources necessary to weather the time Studios spend experimenting with their own distribution?
I think the long term is an aggregated model like Netflix, but they're going to have to weather some trying times as studios try to build their own streaming services first. At the end of the day, consumers want one place to go and get all that content. The studios want a bigger piece of the pie and are going to force everyone through some uncomfortable times before they learn their lesson. Ultimately consumers will foot the bill for all the failed experiments and will probably end with a service just like netflix at a higher cost.