Netflix recently sent me and my family some greetings. It was nice of the streaming service to let us know, but I really wish they didn’t, especially due to the content of the message.
“We hope you’re enjoying Netflix, and we’re always adding new TV shows and movies for our members,” Netflix happily informed us, which is a kinder way of saying that starting in January, we would be paying an extra dollar to more each month for the privilege of accessing Netflix streaming content.
You don’t really need to be fluent in corporate language to interpret what’s going on here and why. Netflix produces a lot of original programming, from Oscar-winning movies to TV shows and busy specials. This requires money to finance, and Netflix hopes you and I will get more.
Disney Plus allows me to explore the Simpsons catalog again with my daughter, Hulu offers many on-demand programs that we could miss, and the selection of movies and programs from Amazon is pleasantly eclectic. They’re all on our watch list – Netflix isn’t.
This is a fairly fair proposition – Netflix does not have a nonprofit organization here, so as production costs on its ambitious programming list increase, this is a cost that will be passed on to viewers. There’s only one problem with that solid line of reasoning: I just don’t watch enough of the Netflix originals to feel like I’m getting a good price for the $ 13.99 that Netflix wants me to pay each month.
Netflix vs Hulu vs Disney Plus
I’m not saying that we’ve never watched Netflix. My daughter likes to see amateur bakers frown on Nailed It, and I got drunk on three seasons of Glow some time ago, before I shut down any future episodes. But in terms of viewing regular appointments, Netflix is well below our list.
The movie catalog is scarce if you like the classics – someone should tell Netflix that there were a whole century of movies that were made before the 2000s – and the number of movies that exist seems to be decreasing at the expense of the original Netflix that the service streaming wants to put in the foreground.
In fact, it’s safe to say that Netflix’s announcement about impending price increases makes my family members ask if Netflix is still worth it. I imagine that many Netflix subscribers are probably asking the same question as their accounts go up.
What helped our family make a decision was to keep a record of everything we watched for about a week – writing down the program, what service was broadcast and whether we could live without it if that service suddenly disappeared.
To answer the question, we need to consider our own individual streaming habits. Our family cut the cable cable more than 18 months ago, and it was largely a change with no regrets, except for an occasional sporting event stuck behind the cable’s paywall. Having streaming services that offer a wide range of movies and TV shows has helped to contain the loss, but at the same time, we are eager not to add so many services that our monthly streaming account ends up exceeding everything we have already paid for our service. hateful local cable provider.
To that end, in addition to Netflix, we currently pay for Disney Plus, which I believe is now mandatory by federal law, if you have a child. Hulu’s ad-supported streaming service is included in our Pandora subscription and, as we paid for Amazon Prime, we also received Prime Video. Our support for our local public broadcast station gives us the PBS Passport extended schedule.
The point is that we watch all the other channels. Disney Plus allows me to explore the Simpsons catalog again with my daughter, Hulu offers many on-demand programs that we could miss when they aired in real time, and the selection of movies and programs from Amazon is pleasantly eclectic. They’re all on our watch list – Netflix isn’t.
Doing the math
And this is the first step that I suggest to anyone who is trying to decide if it is still worth paying for a streaming service. Add up what you pay to stream things each month and see if it’s more than you’d really like to spend. Paying $ 4.99 here and $ 5.99 there does not seem very isolated, but you would be surprised at how quickly all of these services can be added up.
If the amount you are actually paying is greater than the sum you thought you were distributing – or if the price for one of these services is about to go up – it’s probably time to consider pressing the Unsubscribe button on at least one or more these services. What helped our family make a decision was to keep a record of everything we watched for about a week – writing down the program, what service it broadcast, and whether we could live without it if that service suddenly disappeared.
Netflix is a goner as soon as my wife and I finish working at The Good Place.
This should help to clarify which subscription services you actually support and which are surprisingly expendable. Another trick is to look at the program guides that are currently being broadcast on the services you are paying for – Tom’s Guide completes What’s new on Netflix, a best movies and best TV shows on Hulu and it all new at Disney Plus for your convenience. Check the schedule on these lists that pique your interest. If you have a not-so-long list – or if you’re looking at a blank sheet of paper – you may have stumbled across the answer.
If you have a good reminder program on your smartphone, just set a reminder for the day or more before being charged for the streaming service in question. This makes it easy to review your monthly streaming habits and – if necessary – cancel before another billing month starts.
After going through all of this, all the members of my household came to a consensus that Netflix is a goner, once my wife and I finished examining The Good Place. (It just happened: that four-year program is very good!) After that, we’ll either pocket the money we would have spent every month on Netflix or reallocate it to HBO Max, a streaming service that seems to offer more of the type of programming we want, be it an extensive library of films or more recent programs like Succession and Harley Quinn.
At least until you try to raise prices for us too.