I guess it's time to to ditch Netflix. The shows aren't very good anymore. Many (most?) now have ads, and you know those will keep increasing until they've pushed it to the very edge of customer tolerance. And for some reason they refuse to explain, they're updating their app to prevent offline downloads.
Put this all together and it's really not worth it anymore. Any recommendations for what to replace it with? Or have all the streaming services gone down the same enshittification road?
Wow. Three hours after Kevin's post and no response. Are we surrounded by the evils of many lessers?
nice article
Rotate through them: drop Netflix for Hulu and poke around there, find something you like, watch... when that's done, cancel Hulu now, try Apple TV (which does have some decent stuff right now), then cut that for the next one, and so on. And maybe someday give up on TV altogether ha ha
Lots of services have s few good shows, so rotating subscriptions works pretty well.
HBO still has some good stuff (Hacks is great), it's just buried in crap.
That's what my wife and I do as well.
Went from Netflix to HBO, back to Netflix, to Apple TV, Netflix again, and now HBO Max again.
We live outside the US so some services don't work here. Also, we had major issues with Apple TV. Signal kept dropping and we'd have to restart over and over again.
We dumped Netflix a while ago. Now we exclusively use Amazon Prime and when necessary pay for the few movies that we watch.
I personally vote for enshittification.
I was a huge film nerd in high school and the advent of streaming seemed like the best of all possible worlds to me where I could have a permanent and boundless library of every film ever made. That lasted for like two years, and now I feel like the situation is worse than before, where you basically have to chase content from one service to the next while endlessly shelling out micro transactions.
The future of film sucks now that I’m here, is what I’m saying.
+1 for Enshittification.
The least enshittified streaming service I currently subscribe to is Dropout. But it's pretty nerdcore, it's not really in competition with Netflix.
The next one I'm planning to try will be Criterion.
Criterion is great if you like classic film. Huge variety of films, many American films in addition to vast acclaimed foreign films. No ads. Cheaper than Netflix. I subscribe yearly.
I like Apple TV for series. Slow Horses is excellent British spy thriller. Ted Lasso is entertaining and charming. I watch other stuff it offers, but these are the standouts.
I subscribe to Netflix ad-free, because I HATE ads. Some foreign series are lots of fun. Turkish, South Korean ones come to mind. If I couldn't avoid ads, I'd drop Netflix as it is way too expensive.
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A few months ago I signed up for the BritBox streaming service, and it’s mostly what I’ve been watching ever since. It’s full of good or great TV shows, miniseries, and movies - most of which I was previously unfamiliar with.
At present I’m watching a 15 year old show called Life on Mars. It’s an essentially perfect show about a 21st century British cop mysteriously trapped in the 1970s. I’d only vaguely heard of it before, and it’s honestly kind of amazing I didn’t previously know more about such a great show.
And that’s been my ongoing experience with BritBox. It’s been a bonanza of good stuff that I was surprisingly ignorant about. Definitely worth checking out!
Don't miss the sequel show, Ashes To Ashes.
thanks !
We have been traveling the world for 25 months, currently in Japan and streaming via VPN wherever we go. We love a good mystery, cozy, scenic or otherwise, so we have Amazon Prime with Britbox, Acorn and MHz Choice as add ons. This gives us access to all of the Prime content, plus all of the BBC via Britbox and Acorn, MHz Choice gives us German, French, Austrian, Swedish and Italian content and more, all with English subtitles. Lots and lots of murder mysteries, documentaries, food shows and other content,
I also have an MLBtv subscription so I can watch the Dodgers live in the middle of the night or the replay when I am awake!
I forgot to add that Britbox and Acorn also have Australian and New Zealand tv too. Like Brokenwood, Deadloch and 800 Words.
I'm shocked no one has suggested the original, and still best, streaming service: piracy.
I won't name names or post links here, but there is no shortage of sites that offer shows from *all* services, plus old movies, in high quality, immediately. Obviously for free. The only caveat is to make sure you have a decent ad blocker installed.
The best part is you get to stick it to greedy parasitic media companies.
i doubt kevin would go for the piracy option.
I would think the way to “stick it to the greedy parasitic media companies” would be to find artist-run streaming services. Shirley there must be one out there. Unless collateral damage is part of the point.
are there artist run streaming services? i'd imagine the capital costs and competition would make it close to impossible to run one on any scale even close large enough to replace major streaming companies. netflix is spending 17 billion in 2024 just on content create and acquisition.
Viewing scraped content from the web is not piracy when you pay for an internet connection, but it is the second best solution after antenna.
They're all pretty much the same. They've succeeded in replicating the awful experience of cable just a handful of years after I quit cable. Commenter who suggested rotating through services has it right I think, although I find that difficult in practice, especially if (like me) you tend to watch the same shows in rotation. Like, I would find it a wrench to dive in and out of paramount plus--despite it being the WORST in terms of ads and user interface--because they have all the Star Trek content which I pretty much watch on an endless loop.
The other clear answer is physical media, which I'm slowly going back to.
Except they don't have all the Star Trek content as I recently found out to my dismay when I wanted to watch one of the old movies. They get intermittently licensed to other services, Max at this moment. Grr.
I got the first 10 movies on Vudu for like $25 as a bundle. Worth it!
I’ve noticed they’ve added new CGI effects to several episodes of the original series. Yes, the effects are much “better” but it’s kind of jarring to those of us who know the episodes by heart. We instantly recognize shots that weren’t in the original show.
I agree. Although Enterprise is a "major character," she shouldn't take away from the story when you see her. The amount of work that went into the effects pre-CGI should never be dismissed. Remaster the episodes but leave them as is.
I'm leaving streaming behind for 4K Blu-ray content, since the image quality of movies remastered on 4K (or even 1080P) Blu-ray exceeds anything I have ever seen streamed, and audio is often better.
It depends on the competence of the remastering, but movies, especially old movies, are now breathtaking in 4K.
4K Blu-rays of television content are still few in number. It's not clear when or if they will be plentiful, particularly for older content shot in 1080P or below.
Beyond that, I'll stream Acorn or Britbox for low resolution classic PBS-type content, and leave the other streaming services behind.
I might revisit Paramount Plus now and again to view Christine Baranski-related content for, uh, personal reasons.
You can also subscribe to PBS Passport and get classic PBS-type content.
Two of the best series I've ever seen: Professor T (the original Belgian version-the currently running British copy is OK, but not in the same league). And Seaside Hotel (Badehotellet) set in Denmark between the wars.
Both (unless you happen to speak the languages, obviously) require reading subtitles. After a few minutes I pretty much forgot I was reading with either one. Both also may require a little getting into before becoming addicted.
Not sure how viable that strategy is since physical media is a dying medium (unfortunately IMO; I have well over a hundred 4K Blu-ray discs). The vast majority of people are just not, and never have been, interested in better video/audio and prize convenience over all else or they wouldn't, for example, be watching wide screen epics on their tiny phones, while bitching about letterboxing to preserve original aspect ratio (a fight I've been having for over thirty years). Kevin is actually a case in point--if he's seeing commercials on Neflix (I can't abide commercials and pay extra to avoid them on a bunch of streaming services), it's because he does not have their top plan and therefore cannot view content in 4K or HDR/Dolby Vision and probably doesn't care. I'm betting that's true for the large majority of subscribers on every streaming service.
Moreover, while you're certainly right that physical media is capable of a much higher bit rate than streaming, and theoretically better picture quality, with fast internet the video quality of 4K HDR content on most of the major streaming services is pretty darn good today (I'm watching on a 2020 LG OLED TV). Though mastering undoubtedly means a lot. I happened to watch Beverly Hills Cop II on Netflix last night and while it was ostensibly in 4K and Dolby Vision, the video quality was maybe mediocre at best while I watched The War Wagon (a so-so 1967 Western with John Wayne and a very hammy but fun Kirk Douglas--and a still active Bruce Dern in a small part looking incredibly young) on Prime Video the night before and it looked pretty nice although merely in HD.
And I'm not sure what you mean by "old movies" which is a very subjective term. I've seen (probably very young) reviewers apply it to films that are barely 20-25 years old. As a 70-year old movie buff with a special love for Hollywood Golden Age, I think of "old movies" as at least pre-1975 or so and really tend to apply it to movies released before I might have went to the theater to see them (so, pre-mid-'60s). Very few of these movies (generally, just a handful of very well known classics) are being released on 4K Blu-ray discs but many are available in HD or SD versions on streaming services. Yes, Casablanca, Singin' in the Rain, Vertigo, The Maltese Falcon, Double Indemnity, It's a Wonderful Life, The Wizard of Oz look wonderful on 4K Blu-ray, but they represent only a drop in the bucket of fine movies released more than fifty years ago, many of which are available to stream.
Apologies for rambling on so long.
Once AI arrives, there will all this incredible content available to entertain you. Perfect stories, amazing visuals, mind-blowing sound, and fascinating ads directly relevant to your wants and needs. I'm holding out for that. It's just around the corner, I think.
I gave up TV 30 years ago. I have one friend who loves Criterion and another Britbox.
I gave up TV 43 years ago and gained in turn a huge number of productive hours per day.
I think that TV can be a fantastically good tool for socializing youth, but the benefits decline rapidly after age sixteen or so. By that age, you should know what a normal family and normal behavior looks like from the many example shows.
(Hey, how come I don't see Mrs. Cleaver punching the Beav in the face?)
After that, it's just diversionary entertainment.
Just my opinion. 🙂
There may have been certain technical advancements in TV since 1981.
Just tried Apple tv for a couple months, which had more shows that I really liked than I expected, including Palm Royale, The Completely Made Up Adventures of Dick Turpin and Severance.
And I, Claudius and Helluva Boss are free on YouTube.
Also, Staged is on YouTube,
https://www.youtube.com/show/SC8Hypk3aw_BFFGhSUy8_Suw?sbp=GhoKGFVDOWRKNGtSZzNmMGdWb1drblE0blhUQQ%253D%253D
with David Tennant and Michael Sheen.
Physical media is underrated, although 4k is overrated. What you can buy for a few bucks on DVD and Blu Ray might surprise you. Spend a year going through oldies, then see what missed that has withstood the rest of time (meaning that it still has fans after that first buzzy first appearance).
+1
Your local public library may have dvds, including Criterion stuff, but probably not the Blu-ray versions.
I'm not sure what you see on the Criterion channel, but the dvds always have one or two commentary tracks and often a lot of extra material - interviews, making of, etc.
Yeah. Updating Bruce Springsteen: 57 Streaming Channels (and Nothin' On).
There are 3 people in my house. I have Netflix and Amazon Prime, my wife had Hulu and her daughter has HBO Max. Between the three of us we see pretty much what we want to and we haven't had cable TV in years
I am a little surprised no one has mentioned the absolute necessity of Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and it's probable sister station, KCOP the old channel 13 that seems to play the TCM Library, (3,300 Titles), but with commercials.
See recently shown, The Berlin Express...opens with thanks to the Occupation forces of the Soviet Union, Occupation forces of France, Occupation forces of England, Occupation forces of the United States for allowing the filming in their Occupation Zones....
I immediately thought of Gaza, and the end driving around Berlin looked exactly like current Gaza City....but of course the movie also demonstrated the problem with occupation forces in Gaza....in Berlin, Nazi's still wanted to return to power and the Russians and United States forces had to kill them..
Still a good movie, the first filmed in post war Germany....with idea's also, (break down and pay full freight for Netflix....oh, Prime had Oppenheimer this weekend...very wordy, but riveting to me. Traveller
Between Britbox (9 bucks) and PBS Masterpiece (7 bucks), both of which I get through Amazon, I feel no need for any other service. But then I am a major fan of police and detective shows, and both of those services are heavy on those. There's a good dose of non-mystery stuff too, though.
Britbox has almost every classic British detective show of the last 50 years, mostly in complete series. The Sweeney, Taggart, Inspector Morse, Lewis, Dalziel and Pascoe, Prime Suspect, Jonathan Creek, Death in Paradise, Cadfael, Lovejoy, all of the David Suchet Poirots, many more. Plus the complete Upstairs Downstairs, the brilliant comedy quiz QI and other good stuff.
PBS masterpiece has, in addition to the usual PBS stuff, a lot of European series brought in by Walter Productions. Mostly detective stuff - some very good, some not so good, but most of it interesting. I particularly like the French series "The Mountain Detective", the Spanish series "Under Suspicion", and the Dutch series "The Adulterer."
If your cable service includes Turner Classic Movies, you can download the free "Watch TCM" app to stream a whole lot of movie classics and obscurities (with no ads). Also, see if your local library has the Kanopy service for more free movies and documentaries.
stating the obvious
https://techcrunch.com/2024/06/23/streaming-execs-think-tvs-future-looks-a-lot-like-its-past/
I'm back to piracy.
Streaming actually worked for a while, and I subscribed. Now the same annoy-the-customer game as cable is in effect, and it isn't worth it.
I'd pay for bittorrent if it were possible. But it isn't, and legal offerings suck. So here we are.
I grew up in the Pre and Post TV eras. Post because we broke the TV till the children had learned to read.
Rotate, binge, repeat.
But also go to YouTube and search for film noir playlist. You’ll find a lifetime supply of whodunnits.
That's true. Lots of cool B/W movies from the 40s and 50s now in the public domain. Also, you can find some interesting TV shows on You Tube - the complete "Jeeves and Wooster", for example.
You Tube seems to provide the same content in any country, so it's good for international travel.
netflix category codes
https://www.whats-on-netflix.com/news/the-netflix-id-bible-every-category-on-netflix/
Amazon is enshittified if it ever was good. You can skip that.
I just recently dropped Netflix myself and probably will use rotating subscriptions, except for Kanopy and Hoopla, which are free (and ad-free), accessed through my local library. Kanopy in particular has excellent selections.
Right now I am subscribed to Disney+ and to the Criterion Channel, both of which I find (right now) lots of stuff to see. Criterion's player is somewhat primitive, but they have good movies, and their emails that point out things worth seeing are very useful.
Kanopy has a HUGE catalog of films, foreign and domestic. More Rohmer films than Criterion, and their quiet humanity soothes the soul after hours of doom-scrolling.
Hoopla has more recent film and TV, including the full run of "Foyle's War" and a wide range of similar quality.
They are both available through your library, and they both have a limited number of shows per month.
Among paid streaming, Mhz carries a wide range of European mystery and crime shows, some deliberately comic. The incomparable "Montalbano" and the full set of "Maigret" with Bruno Cremer. should keep you busy for months alone.
They've also picked up "Babylon Berlin" after Netflix dropped it, and added season four--if that's not too much like current events for you.
My local library has a free streaming service called Kanopy, and I'm sure your local library offers something similar. As long as you have a library card, you can stream as much as you want, although the selection is eclectic. For example, here are a few titles this month: The Graduate, The Producers, Into the Wild, The Whale, a bunch of British detective shows, Beau is Afraid, and other stuff like that. Not bad for free without ads.
Brooklyn Public Library:
Monday, June 24, 2019
While Kanopy has been an excellent partner and a great resource for our patrons, we’ve had to make the difficult decision to discontinue the service on July 1. Unfortunately, rising costs made it unsustainable . E-books and audio books remain some of our most in-demand materials across our branches, and we will redirect some of the Kanopy budget towards adding to those collections.
Apple TV+ is excellent if you like their taste in shows. It feels like they are trying to make a successor to HBO, although tilted more toward sci-fi. My wife and I probably watch more Apple TV+ shows than anything else. Just to name a few from this year: Manhunt, For All Mankind, Acapulco, Slow Horses, Hijack, Dark Matter, Severance. They have a high enough batting average that we'll often just start a show blind.
No ads.
If you like music, the Berlin Philharmonic app is pretty cool. (Digital Concert Hall, I think it's called). Has videos of previous concerts going back years, and also live streams the current ones. I think all of these things now have a week or two free trial.
See what you get over the air.
https://www.wired.com/story/cloud-support-all-i-do-is-scroll-netflix-does-that-count-as-entertainment/