Netflix and the Future of Distribution
When it comes to modern movie watching one of the first questions a 2019-ite will ask is, "Is it streaming on Netflix?" Gone are the days of proudly displaying your DVD and VHS collections, gone are the silly little cases you would keep just the discs in, for as society immigrated to the internet so did our interests and thus digital media became God. Netflix, starting out as a DVD online/mail rental, is the most used and commonly known out of all services and has boasted great returns and content over the years. 2018 was a big year for them not only because of great acquisitions, but also for the ones that weren't so great.
Similar to sports fans, the modern day citizen will compare and contrast their favorite streaming services. Whether they're team Hulu, team Netflix, maybe team Amazon, or any of the other plethora of smaller services out there, debates and arguments have ensued in healthy and/or ranting discussions. However, it always had seemed that Netflix was the majority's favorite that came out with consistently good quality, until 2018.
In 2018 Netflix has received a massive intake of new, and original, content. Many of which are good, maybe okay, but what everyone talks about now is the decline in quality in the Netflix library. Starting early in 2018 Netflix released the latest Cloverfield movie, Cloverfield Paradox, after the Super Bowl. It came out to mixed, mostly negative, reviews and really put Netflix's mantra into the public's eye; Content over Quality.
Since that fateful night Netflix has released multitudes of movies and TV shows that have either baffled, brought joy, or confused customers when they had no idea it existed. Netflix indeed has an impressive library with new content coming each month, however, in favor of always being fresh they're forgoing content control, quality, and the very little curation they had before. Now films and shows are being promoted only if Netflix assumes they'll have an audience, like the Marvel shows or The Christmas Chronicles having come out around the holidays, but that also left a mountain of content hidden from the world.
In 2018 Netflix had released approximately 100 feature films, including documentaries. Some you've no doubt seen or heard about like Roma, others you may have forgotten about like Cargo, and many of them you no doubt never heard of nor knew Netflix had like The Open House, Been So Long, The Angel, and many more. 2018 also featured probably Netflix's most extraordinary film, The Other Side of the Wind, which is Orson Welles' final film that he wasn't able to finish nor distribute before he died. Not only have film critics not talked about this enough, but Netflix has barely put any marketing behind it. It was front page recommendation the day it came out, but good luck finding it now as it has descended into the middle of the slush that occupies Netflix's vast library. Even searching under Netflix Originals will take you a good amount of time to find this one film, especially since it's not always listed there the few times I tried it, leaving you to physically type in its name just to watch it.
Amid the poor algorithms that recommends the same movies, usually the trendy ones at that, Netflix is acquiring daring, artsy, and otherwise risky films that wouldn't normally get a theatrical release. Foreign films like Happy as Lazzaro, The Night Comes for Us, and Roma benefit from this and wouldn't have had as much buzz and accessibility if it were not on Netflix, unfortunately as previously stated Netflix doesn't, if at all, market their own films and library well enough. So for every critical darling such as Roma you have the underrated Happy as Lazzaro that probably won't be discovered by anyone any time soon.
One streaming service that dedicated itself to cinema was FilmStruck. It held a library of film from every decade, showed films that are otherwise unavailable, and personally had staff curate their library week to week, with my favorite being their double feature Fridays. This service really dedicated itself to providing their viewers with the best experience they could think of, and sadly in November of 2018 it came to an end. If Netflix with all it's power can't even strive to be what FilmStruck was then what is Netflix other than a dumping ground for all sorts of film?
Financing their own content, and buying the distribution rights to some pricey media, was Netflix's first step into claiming the crown at the big boy's table of streaming services. They've proven that they can get nearly any content they wish, preparing to make originals for the day that everybody has a streaming service of their own, and yet the actual Netflix app hasn't changed that much in the last few years. It still has recommendations for you, and organizes films into their respective genres, but as you're looking through Netflix on a boring Friday night you'll start to see the same movies pop up in multiple categories, and shows that have been recommended to you time and time again, which make you wonder is that all Netflix has? The answer, no. No it is not for Netflix has so much content buried under the new releases each month plus the Netflix originals that they may or may not market it may as well be a graveyard to everything else.
It is when you discover a Happy as Lazzaro or The Other Side of the Wind that you realize that while Netflix is a great place for many of these films, it's also in a way their graveyard as well. Instead of fostering their content and starting discussions around their films Netflix prefers to have them talked about once and move on to the next big announcement. When it comes to other streaming services such as Amazon their recommendations always change, and when it comes to their original content all their new films and shows are generally front page and easy to find. If Netflix wants to keep its crown as King of the streaming services it really needs to work on how it treats its content rather than continue at break neck pace in gaining content.
So, with that in mind just how can Netflix, and streaming services in general, evolve? It's obvious that this is where film distribution is going and it's a great opportunity for smaller films. One idea that FilmStruck did well is curation. Have movie experts, critics, historians, anyone who is passionate about film curate your library week to week. It can be a rotation of curators, or an advanced algorithm that actually pays attention to what you watch, but having, say, seven movies picked specifically for you each week would still have the freshness Netflix craves and also deepen the bound with your customers.
You can also add in special features like what they did with The Other Side of the Wind. In the "Trailer's & More" section there is a 40 min behind the scenes on how they made the film without Orson Welles. It's great and right there for anybody who's watching the film, albeit a little difficult to reach if you don't know about it. Netflix could also add commentaries to their films with ease. Really, there is a lot Netflix and other streaming services can do but don't that is mind boggling.
With stores shrinking their physical media outlets, buying actual DVDs and Blu-rays are becoming very common for online shopping. Amazon could easily have a button that says "Liked this movie? Well check out the blu-ray for this price" button. Netflix could change their format and add extras, or older films, make a curated section, etc. For as much good streaming services are to out of the box films they don't focus on keeping people interested in them. And with the digital age rapidly approaching the new decade it's time for streaming services to actually buck up and do better. Yes they acquired a film, but how about nurturing your customer's love of films for a change?
