Netflix FAIL [Self]Comments on:

By: InTheLoop

InTheLoop — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 13:35:05 +0000

In defense of Netflix, no matter how low-quality the movies are, the movie makers almost certainly have very tight requirements about DRM, so, in a sense, this issue may not be Netflix’s fault. Though I don’t know a lot about the issue or the technical details, perhaps the movie makers are the ones to complain to.

By: InTheLoop

InTheLoop — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 11:35:05 +0000

In defense of Netflix, no matter how low-quality the movies are, the movie makers almost certainly have very tight requirements about DRM, so, in a sense, this issue may not be Netflix's fault. Though I don't know a lot about the issue or the technical details, perhaps the movie makers are the ones to complain to.

By: Kyle

Kyle — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:32:02 +0000

Neil,

I never *once* mentioned copyright protection. But that’s ok, go ahead and slam me for it anyways.

How much copyright protection does a DVD offer? Very little. Anyone who receives a DVD from Netflix can very easily copy it, using the right piece of software. Embedding a stream (”Flash or otherwise”) provides the same level of difficulty for piracy.

But, let’s be honest… would it really be worth pirating anyways? Unless you’re streaming pretty heavily, there’s no way it’s going to look as good as a DVD when it’s fullscreen on my 22″ HD widescreen monitor. Why would I want to steal that? I would just have the DVD delivered to me, and rip it then and there.

I mentioned Roku, so I guess you missed that part. So much for reading, eh?

Finally, “current browser” is not defined as “Internet Explorer”… and in the case of Roku, it’s whatever they’ve embedded in the system. Broadband connection is obvious, that was never disputed.

–Kyle

By: Neil Hunt

Neil Hunt — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 19:05:53 +0000

We (Netflix) are of course working on this. Not that it will silence this debate, but the reason it takes a while to get embedded streaming, Flash or otherwise, on a wider set of platforms is that our content partners want and need reasonable protection against piracy of the content, which isn’t as trvial as Kyle seems to imply. Meantime, we have launched the Netflix player by Roku, which delivers this content directly to your television in a completely platform independent way. Well, I suppose it *does* depend upon having a “current” browser on any computer, a good broadband connection, and a TV with consumer video inputs…

By: Kyle

Kyle — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 17:32:02 +0000

Neil,

I never *once* mentioned copyright protection. But that's ok, go ahead and slam me for it anyways.

How much copyright protection does a DVD offer? Very little. Anyone who receives a DVD from Netflix can very easily copy it, using the right piece of software. Embedding a stream ("Flash or otherwise") provides the same level of difficulty for piracy.

But, let's be honest... would it really be worth pirating anyways? Unless you're streaming pretty heavily, there's no way it's going to look as good as a DVD when it's fullscreen on my 22" HD widescreen monitor. Why would I want to steal that? I would just have the DVD delivered to me, and rip it then and there.

I mentioned Roku, so I guess you missed that part. So much for reading, eh?

Finally, "current browser" is not defined as "Internet Explorer"... and in the case of Roku, it's whatever they've embedded in the system. Broadband connection is obvious, that was never disputed.

--Kyle

By: Neil Hunt

Neil Hunt — Mon, 09 Jun 2008 17:05:53 +0000

We (Netflix) are of course working on this. Not that it will silence this debate, but the reason it takes a while to get embedded streaming, Flash or otherwise, on a wider set of platforms is that our content partners want and need reasonable protection against piracy of the content, which isn't as trvial as Kyle seems to imply. Meantime, we have launched the Netflix player by Roku, which delivers this content directly to your television in a completely platform independent way. Well, I suppose it *does* depend upon having a “current” browser on any computer, a good broadband connection, and a TV with consumer video inputs…