So Netflix has upheld their threat to prevent users from accessing the service through the use of proxy servers and vpn services.
ManTwaddle must admit that at first they believed the original statement made by Netflix to be nothing but an idle threat to scare people using these services to access Netflix, and other streaming TV services, such as NowTV, BBC iPlayer amongst others, to cease and 'toe-the-line' and access the Netflix service available within their country of residence.
However, it didn't take long before ManTwaddle started to hear about people receiving the notification about the use of a proxy service or vpn to access content when using Netflix.
So that was it. Darkness. End of content for many people who were accessing Netflix outside of their country of residence to be able to gain access to varied programming and programmes that they actually wanted to watch, including people travelling who wanted to continue to access their home service while in a different country and the programme was not available there.
Ok, so MT must be clear here: we understand that the restriction to access content outside of the country of residence is not a choice of Netflix, but due to pressure placed on them by the various major movie studios and TV companies.
In a weird way MT actually feels a little bit sorry for Netflix as they appear to be caught in the middle of this whole situation: although that still doesn't stop us being personally upset that they have bowed to the pressure exerted on them as it stops us watching our favourite programmes which are not available in our area of residence Netflix service.
We understand that they are required to demonstrate to the major movie studios that they are protecting their rights and interests by ensuring that access to content is only provided legally, to then allow the studios to sell their content to other geographical areas and then maximise their revenues even further.
However, by restricting access to content for users who live in countries with limited Netflix catalogues such as UAE, Spain, Portugal amongst others, Netflix is at severe risk of losing subscribers who are no longer willing to pay for the service with such limited access to content in the times of the Global Market Place.
Data posted on finder.com stated, as of 27th January 2016, the percentage of content available to users outside of the USA and provided some very surprising results.
For example, Netflix users in the UK had access to only 38.2% of USA TV shows and 34.53% of USA films, Germany had access to 28.35% and 31.35% respectively and the UAE had 28.35% and 31.26% respectively.
Is it any wonder with these severely restricted content libraries that users are resorting to the use of proxy and vpn servers to try and access content that they actually want to watch?
The availability of access to online streaming content has no doubt taken people away from illegal downloading of content through torrent file sharing; however, now restricting what people can access in a semi-legal manner will push them back to downloading content through torrent file sharing.
Why can the movie and TV producers of the world not realise that the world is now a global marketplace and in the modern world of online access and information sharing people want access to everything?
Netflix Vice President of Content Delivery Architecture, David Fullager, stated recently that 'We look forward to offering all of our content everywhere and to consumers being able to enjoy all of Netflix without using a proxy. That’s the goal we will keep pushing towards.'
ManTwaddle cannot help but think that the pushing has to be helped by the end user as well. Public opinion and pressure will always help to persuade the large corporations of the path that they need to follow if enough people join together. Obviously the only true language that the corporations will understand is the loss of revenue by people no longer willing to be restricted to content catalogues, only accessible within their country of residence, which contain severely limited and outdated content.
MT would suggest that the likes of Netflix produces new subscription models to their customers.
How about adding either a local subscription rate and a premium global subscription rate with access to all available content? Or you could add on other countries to your basic subscription that provides access to their content that is not already included in your own?
Don't forget that people are already paying for a vpn or proxy service every year to be able to access the other content, so an additional, fully legal, cost to subscribe to increased catalogues would not be prohibitive.
MT for one is more than willing to pay for legal access to the full catalogue provided by Netflix and would love to see other specialist streaming channels start up and join the streaming revolution, such as science fiction channels, sports only for example. Qello Concerts is one of MT's favourite specialist channels providing access to hundreds of music concerts and programmes without geographical restrictions.
The future of TV viewing is changing and producers of content have to realise this quickly: people want access globally to content at their own convenience, not being drip fed what the corporations and producers believe we want in a limited fashion.
So what does the immediate future hold for country hopping Netflix users? Well the proxy and vpn service providers are hurriedly trying to work around the restrictions put in place to allow their subscribers to resume service as normal and get access to the Netflix countries they want.
But then, we guess that Netflix will then put measures in place to prevent access again in a never ending cat and mouse game that will potentially drive people back to illegally downloading content and cancelling their Netflix, vpn and proxy subscriptions.
So let's see what happens, and who will win in the end, however one thing's for sure - as ever the loser in this battle will be the consumer who just wants to pay for content that they want to watch, when they want to watch it, in whatever country they happen to be.
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