Sure they put out some good stuff, but those are neither money printing franchises like Star Wars, Marvel, or Pixar, nor are they critical darling genre defining series like The Sopranos, Game of Thrones or The Wire.
For all the money they've spent on original content, they're just not in the same league as the big boys. They are data-driven / engineering-driven, which leads to kneecapping anything too creative (eg. The OA, Tuca & Bertie), and sanding off all the rough edges (https://www.vice.com/en/article/ake3j5/why-does-everything-o...). And their UX? The algo-driven engagement designed to hide the weakness of their library. This works until it doesn't, and frankly I've long since stopped browsing Netflix. I only watch something there once I've already determined it's on Netflix.
> I don't think Prime Video makes the kind of profit margin that its competitors do: it's there to help the no-margins logistics juggernaut stay in the black by giving subscribers an extra little nudge not to cancel.
Yes, this is absolutely true, and this is why Netflix is in a particularly difficult situation. How are they supposed to compete with a loss-leader for a business the size of Amazon Prime?
Netflix is a really solid place for content and will remain one of the top players in the market for a long time.
The market has rapidly grown and there is plenty of revenue to go around. Anyone predicting Netflix's eventual downfall or that their business is in serious peril is dramatizing the situation.
Yes, of course Disney has more subscribers across their three services. They are a gigantic conglomerate company and easily the most successful in their industry. Being "not Disney" doesn't put you in a "rough spot," that just makes you "every other company."
> Netflix has Stranger Things and then falls off very fast.
Hard, hard disagree. I hear tons of of discussion around recent shows like Squid Game, Bridgerton, Selling Sunset, The Witcher, and Money Heist. Saying that Netflix only has Stranger Things is kind of like saying Nintendo only has Mario. Netflix also still has the viral hype marketing strategy perfected.
Finally, a note about Prime Video: it's nowhere near as popular as Netflix when you look at streaming minutes [1] and their subscriber numbers are muddled with people who are subscribed because they want overnight shipping and Amazon Fresh/Whole Foods deliveries.
In my view, if Amazon gained more of a serious online shopping competitor (e.g., let's say Walmart started taking major market share from Amazon), their subscriber base would erode. I don't think Prime Video makes the kind of profit margin that its competitors do: it's there to help the no-margins logistics juggernaut stay in the black by giving subscribers an extra little nudge not to cancel.
[1] https://www.benzinga.com/general/entertainment/22/06/2777173...