In 1999, Netflix got it’s first subscriber. In 2013, it has surpassed historic cable giant HBO in American?subscribers for the first time ever.
According to reports, by the end of March 2013, Netflix had 29.17 million subscribers, while HBO had slightly less. As recently as the end of 2012, HBO was in the lead by about 1.5 million subscribers. I can’t wait to see what this does to intensify company rivalry. This isn’t just company competition: This is an outright rivalry, reminiscent of the? east vs. west rap wars or pro wrestling?Monday night?wars?back in the 1990s.?But?HBO can still brag?about being a bigger force internationally. They have over 110 million world subscribers; Netflix have only 7 million.
But the good news for Netflix doesn’t stop there. To better serve large households, they?plan to extend the two movie/TV stream limit from two to four, for an additional $11.99. But this is only available in the US, and will do nothing to help global numbers.?I don’t know what HBO’s offering these days, but looking at these numbers, they need to be offering something.
Wall Street is taking notice too.? Their shares are up nearly 20 percent, and those numbers are expected to increase. Wow! Back in the early 2000s, when people said Netflix would put video stores out of business, I didn’t believe it! Now, I see what used to be Blockbusters and independent video chains are now ghosts of better days. But Netflix needs to something about their international market in order to stay strong. How long will Netflix’s gravy train last?
Starting on April 29, you can attend a great comedy show. Come see legends like Mel Brooks (Blazing Saddles) and Carl Reiner (writer of Dick Van Dyke Show). Come see up and coming comedians like Amy Schumer (a semi-finalist on Last Comic Standing). You won’t be seeing this?show?at your local comedy club. You won’t even seeing this festival on TV. This event will be seen exclusively and entirely on Twitter.
This is a partnership between Comedy Central, Viacom, who owns Comedy Central and Twitter. For years, the relationship between television and social media has intertwined. Ever hear of Vine? Well, next Tuesday, Steve Agee will lead a ‘vine party’. At the party will be the cast of ABC’s mega-hit scandal. Don’t tell my friends about that one. But they will be sharing in six second videos. There is a bigger picture here. Comedy Central wants to be the network that is just as dependent on online media as much as TV.?For example, their core group is the young adult crowd, age 18-34. Guess what? The big core group for tweeters is the 18-34 crowd.
I think Twitter and Comedy Central are doing a great job and the right thing here. Gone are the days are families gathering around the TV at prime time. Did you miss an episode? Now you can watch it on Hulu. I find myself watching You Tube as much as I do regular TV. Whether we like or not, media is changing. I’ll ask this question to take it a step further: by the 2020s or 2030s, will TV be altogether obsolete?
Can you believe the year is over 1/4 over? I’ve been reporting a bit about Q1 (the first quarter of 2013) sales this week. Now let’s see which devices had the?best?2013 starts.
10. LG Optimus G: It’s 4.7 inches and 2 GB of pure power! A few months ago, it was ranked America’s best smartphone.
9.? HTC One: Any phone that can be used as a remote control, sign me up!
7. Blackberry Z 10: For the writing impaired, the keyboard will virtually do the typing for you!
6. Google Nexus 4: That Google mapping navigated me in a lost city; and possibly out of?a crime-ridden part of the city!
5. HTC Windows 8X: On my desktop, Window 8 is a boil on the neck! But on this smartphone, it’s smooth as butter. Coincidence? I think not.
4. Nokia Lumia 920: Another Windows phone, this?one?does everything and in style. I?read one critic say, “This is not a toy.”
3. Samsung Galaxy Note 2: It’s carried by all 4 big phone companies (AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint, Verizon) and gets lots of well deserved praise for it’s?pen use, CPU core, and lengthy battery life.
2. Samsung Galaxy S 3: If I listed all the ways this phone saves time, this posting would go on all day and night.
1. Apple iPhone 5: As of late, this is Apple’s biggest accomplishment. This may be their only accomplishment so far this year. What it lacks in mapping skills it makes up for in looks, camera, and pocket ability. And of course there’s the name Apple!
If you think I missed any smartphones, let me hear from you!
Beam me up Scotty…make that beam me up Google! Since the 1990s, Google has changed just about all of our lives. Now, it wants to go even further, by building a Star Trek like computer.
That’s right. Google is obsessed with building a computer solely based on language. For example, you ask, “Where in this city/town is the best place to meet people?’ Google will start a conversation about which place is the best and why it’s the best. It might even tell you who and where to avoid. We shouldn’t be surprised. From what I’ve read, Google top employees are huge Star Trek fans! During lectures, they incorporate Trek in their speeches.? Google VP Amit Singhal says it’s his dream to meet William Shatner. Well, as for as Shatner’s on screen computer, it talked to them, understood them,?and in some episodes, already knew what their needs were. And this was in the 1960s! Is it even conceivable today?
In 1992, did you think a search engine website was conceivable? Now, what?used to take?hours and days to research now takes literally minutes.?Have you ever Googled yourself? The last time I did,?this search engine seemed to know me better than I knew myself! Check out their knowledge graph:?Look up a celebrity or public figure. When you do, you’ll get a whole row?of people related to the person you’re looking up. There’s already software that?when you speak, the software types it for you.?Singhal predicts this Star Trek computer will happen in our lifetimes, and I believe him.
But Google’s idea reminds me more of 2001: A Space Odyssey more than Star Trek.?As I write this, I’m having visions of Google Star?Trek becoming more like a jealous lover than a wise friend.?What if?use Bing? I can see Google Star Trek?turning on you ?and trying to destroy you, just like HAL did in Space Odyssey.??Are you really ready to go where no man has gone before?
Do you have the new Twitter music app yet? Twitter is launching a?new and uncomplicated?music app this weekend. Too bad you have to be a celebrity to have it now. You’ll have to wait until next week at least.
As of this weekend, it’s being introduced at the Coachella festival. This app has a ‘suggested’ tab for song recommendations, ‘now playing’ tab to link songs listened to by your followers, ‘popular’, for the most trending songs, and ’emerging’ to promote rising artist or help get your name out there if you’re a struggling artist. Ryan Seacrest is already tweeting good things about it. But that’s just one tweet from one man. There are some saying they absolutely hate the app.
And that’s the gamble here. Should you really release an app or anything else to celebrities before releasing it to the general public? I have mixed feelings about that. I understand why Twitter is doing it. If Ryan Seacrest and other famous people like it, they’re banking you will too. But what if they hate it, and I’m guessing some do. What if the haters tweet about how awful this app is? I’m sure people will avoid the app if that happens. And that’s the double-edged sword.?What will the next A-lister say about the upcoming Twitter music app?
Online music service?Spotify?has done well for itself.??Since it’s launch in 2008, Spotify has acquired 24 million users and 6 million subscribers. But why stop there? Starting tonight Spotify is taking over You Tube.
Spotify hopes you ‘follow’ Phoenix, as in use the Spotify follow feature to see what your friends are listening to. Personally, I think it’s a much smarter ad move than spending tens of million in?TV ads, like they did when they featured commercials during the?NBC talent show?The Voice. ?This You Tube campaign: $400,000. So obviously, the Phoenix campaign makes more economic sense. I think it makes more common sense too. Yes, The Voice has a huge following. Yes, it’s one of the most popular TV shows today. But it’s only on a few months of the year, and even then, only one hour a night. You Tube is there 24 hours a day, they’re are always people on the site. I hope this ad campaign work. I wonder where Phoenix is going next.
