Netflix has been one of the pioneers of streaming services. It’s evolved a lot today but now it also faces massive competition from other streaming platforms like Amazon Prime, Hulu, Vudu, etc. In fact, entertainment giant Disney has launched its own Disney plus streaming service which is welcomed with open arms by streaming users. This raises the question, is the existence of the original streaming giant Netflix is in jeopardy? Let’s find out.
Today, Netflix has over 130 million subscribers and this figure is increasing. However, as giants like Comcast and Disney are working on their content delivery platforms, Netflix certainly needs to wake up and be more serious about its services.
The following are some of the problems that Netflix is facing today:
1. Money Problems
It may seem that streaming businesses are highly lucrative today and sure, there are plenty of entertainment apps on Android that are supporting them in the market. However, space isn’t exactly a pot of gold, at least not now. For instance, Apple has invested a whopping 1 billion USD on streaming content for its new service. Amazon, on the other hand, is highly profitable already and can afford to use a portion of the revenue from its other businesses such as AWS and eCommerce to fund the streaming entity Amazon Prime. However, Netflix solely relies on the revenue generated by its streaming service and the only option it has for funding is credit.
The problem that Netflix is currently facing is debt. It has a whopping $10 billion of long-term debt and it recently decided to raise around $2 billion in debt to fund its content spending. So, what it needs is a well-thought-out strategy to sustain its business model over time.
2. Delivery Channel
At present, Netflix is available just as a website and app. It doesn’t have a dedicated device that the users can connect to a display to stream content on the fly. That’s not the case with emerging leaders like Amazon and Apple that offer Fire TV and Apple TV.
The hardware limitations of Netflix can potentially raise many problems for the company in the near future. If it wants to protect its identity in the market, then it needs to make it easier for the customers to find the content.
3. Competition from Powerful Content
It’s no secret that Netflix has a massive content library. However, it realized a long time ago that merely borrowing the copyrights of hit TV series and movies won’t be able to take it far. This is why it started creating high-quality original content of its own. For a long time, this strategy worked as titles like Orange is the New Black, Atypical, The Mechanism, etc. performed really well and managed to give a major boost to the subscribers’ base. However, now the company’s original content strategy is failing.
It’s good that Netflix is trying to give its subscribers a large number of fresh and original TV shows. However, IPs cost a lot. It doesn’t help that the platform has competitors like Disney which now owns Fox Studio, Marvel Studios, etc., and has the rights of some of the biggest IPs like Star Wars and other classic movies. Competing with these is certainly a herculean task.
Conclusion
Considering all the points that we discussed above, it’s a no-brainer that Netflix has some serious competition now. So, the original streaming giant now needs to bring its a-game and take creative measures to fight the rivals who only seem to be becoming stronger over time. That said, there is hope and it may bounce back rather soon.
