tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6976144462093297473.post1278037339477322399..comments2024-03-26T19:10:00.791-04:00Comments on West Coast Stat Views (on Observational Epidemiology and more): Netflix and the big swinging check syndromeJosephhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10760453165301871031noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6976144462093297473.post-12514224705286818342014-09-02T19:12:54.168-04:002014-09-02T19:12:54.168-04:00I think the question might be "a signal to wh...I think the question might be "a signal to whom?" It's not much of a signal to competitors. As far as I can tell, the view in the industry is that Netflix is an easy mark. In this case, it paid top dollar for episodes that have already aired on NBC, streamed on Hulu, been released on DVD and, I believe, continue to be available on Amazon.<br /><br />The best way to signal competitive intent would be to actually buy the rights to something, but the company has publicly stated that they just want to be a renter, not an owner.<br /><br />I suspect that Netflix wants investors and journalists to see it as a disruptive force but it doesn't want the major media companies to see it as a threat (since it depends on them for its content).Markhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14705408455380402571noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6976144462093297473.post-11231905816714891482014-09-02T12:22:17.891-04:002014-09-02T12:22:17.891-04:00If the numbers are true, which is an if, that'...If the numbers are true, which is an if, that's equivalent to 460,000 subscribers a month. I gather they have over 31 million, which means this is about 1.5% or so, but they're also adding - so it's said - 2.25M a quarter or roughly 750,000 per month on average. (Some sources say the number is 40 or 50 million. Beats me.) So they could look at this as a way to keep subscriber growth on path and that means they're chasing marginal revenue in the traditional American way in which getting new business is seen as worth more investment (especially in comparison to cost saving measures, which are often subjected to very high payback requirements). <br /><br />This kind of revenue chase is often a way of grabbing share and is seen as signaling competitive intent. I'm not sure what the actual value in that signal is.jonathanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01372999828751252978noreply@blogger.com