The Streaming War.

Essays | Taylor Riley | May 2nd, 2022.

In 2007, both Netflix and Hulu launched online streaming platforms, and for over a decade, these two companies dominated the streaming service market. In those simpler times, Netflix and Hulu were basically the only options for online streaming. 

However, in late 2019, both Disney and Apple launched their own streaming platforms, quickly followed by HBOMax, Peacock, NBC and many other companies. Suddenly, the average consumer was overwhelmed with choices as the competing services began a war over content. This has led to fewer shows and movies concentrated in a single service and increased prices, which frustrates consumers who now need three or four subscriptions in order to watch the shows that used to be consolidated on one platform.

The more streaming services that cropped up, the more content was stripped from preexisting ones. Marvel movies and shows were taken off Netflix to be put on Disney Plus, The Office left for Peacock and Friends was claimed by HBOMax. This fragmentation of content caused Netflix to report subscriber loss for the first time in over a decade. As a result, the company is considering drastic changes to their platform in order to drive profit back up. 

On March 30, 2022, Netflix users saw an increase in prices across all plans, causing many to consider canceling the service in favor of Disney Plus, Peacock or HBOMax, all of which now have lower prices than Netflix. Additionally, Netflix co-founder and CEO Reed Hastings has said that an ad-supported tier with a cheaper subscription price may be in Netflix’s future. 

The worst part about the streaming service war is that no streaming service is inherently better than the others. There’s content to be enjoyed across Netflix, HBOMax, Disney Plus and Hulu, but the average consumer isn’t going to pay subscription fees to all those services. Through the companies’ competition, prices have increased and content has been fragmented, so at the end of the streaming service war, nobody wins and the consumer loses.