Netflix, once a pioneer of ad-free viewing that offered a break from traditional TV norms, is now contemplating launching free ad-supported versions of its service in markets like Europe and Asia, Bloomberg reported.

The plans to offer a free ad-supported tier, albeit in select markets, suggests that pivot towards monetizing user data, in other words — making users and not the extensive library of award-winning shows a product, might be well in the pipeline.

  • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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    7 days ago

    Told people this years ago when pewdie pie became a millionaire selling ads. Like that was the time to wake up and hate every single one of these content creators for selling out and making the internet the hellscape this is. But no we Revere and emulate these people.

      • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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        7 days ago

        Too fucking many. But replace him with any of them. Speed, H2, Moist, donkey something. We use to have to walk uphill both ways in the snow to see content.

    • efstajas@lemmy.world
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      7 days ago

      This is a bit unnecessarily tough on independent content creators… what exactly do you expect them to do? Make no money from their content? How would they be able to make a living?

      • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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        7 days ago

        Would you put blame on doctors for contributing to the opioid?

        I see it the same. Every one bares responsibility. And even though a big chunk is on the pharma and media companies. There is still the pusher

        • efstajas@lemmy.world
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          7 days ago

          Would you put blame on doctors for contributing to the opioid?

          I’m gonna assume by “contributing to the opioid” you mean over-prescribing pain medication for the commission? If so, that comparison is so far-fetched that it’s completely meaningless. You’re really going to compare that with independent creators having skippable ad reads that have to be clearly marked as such on content you get for free?

          • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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            7 days ago

            Mind explains what is far fetched about it?

            There was an opioid crisis where drug makers sold pills to the public that the public did not need and they used doctors to sell them.

            There is an advertising epidemic where industry is working to push ads into every space we listen, look or experience and they are using content creators to justify it

            Both have a large well funded industry. Both require an interface between public and the industry to sell their product. Both push products to people who don’t need them by using these interfaces to bullshit, lie and leverage their authority to sell the product. And in one case we blame the interface in the other we say " they aren’t responsible they are just making money" so why?

        • TheDarksteel94@sopuli.xyz
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          7 days ago

          For me, it depends on what they’re promoting. If it’s some crappy mobile game or crypto, I’m out. But I’m fine with the usual shit like energy drinks or VPNs. Like, those things usually have a serious business behind them, even if they might be useless for the vast majority of viewers.

          • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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            7 days ago

            If Netflix ads were just energy drinks and VPN then you’re cool with them adding these tiers?

            Honest to god question. How many hours a day are you OK being spent on being sold something. What is your ratio of content to ads.

            That’s your time by the way. My full belief is anyone trying to sell me anything needs to pay me. Not a content creator. That’s my time I barely have any of it to give so when 1 hr out of 3 hrs I got to relax is spent being sold shit I’m pretty pissed.

            And it isn’t like I can. Just opt to enjoy ad free content creators. They no longer exist because the ones that monetized it. That’s the part I hate most.

            • TheDarksteel94@sopuli.xyz
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              7 days ago

              It’s a little different with Netflix, because of what they started out as. With Youtube, I expected to be advertised to from the beginning, you know? I pay for Youtube Premium and use Sponsor Block to support the creators I watch while having a mostly ad free experience. Also, I just trust most of the creators that I watch to have my best interest in mind in terms of what they advertise.

              But for Netflix, their whole thing from the beginning was that they were better TV. That’s how they sold it to me. Now they’re slowly losing their point. So I’d definitely not be alright with it if they started showing me ads on top of my subscription fee. Same with Prime Video, because I know they’re experimenting with that.

              • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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                7 days ago

                That’s exactly what I’m saying with it too. All of this started out as a place to share and collaborate and to reject the stuff that made all other industries rotten.

                We had something amazing and we let it rot on our watch and that’s something we can’t ever fix but I don’t think we should forget how badly we fucked up. And how we fucked up should be remembered in case we ever get any new frontier.

                YouTube never had ads. We all just shared videos. It was a big deal every time they brought it in. Pewdie pi made a fortune and it was all over from there.

                Ill never support any of these content creators or buy any subscriptions. None of this should have been monetized. Advertising is out of control and it was already bad before the internet. Some of us are experiencing an ad 24/7 a day now.

          • Iheartcheese@lemmy.world
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            7 days ago

            Yep. I don’t hate youtubers for doing ads. Everyone needs to make money. Just skip the ads.

            Except for Ryan George because he actually makes his funny as fuck.

        • efstajas@lemmy.world
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          7 days ago

          Sure, Patreon is great, but Patreon alone is not enough for most creators to make a living, considering how hard it is to get people to commit to monthly subscriptions.

          • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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            7 days ago

            But why do they need to make a living creating content.

            We should go back to hobbyist sharing videos of their hobby and interest for the love of it instead of a guy trying to make money by jumping into trendy hobbies and creating bland generic content until the algorithm picks them.

            It would reduce so much noise online and the stuff we would be left with would be people who have the best content. It would eliminate the drama and toxic crap for views.

    • UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world
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      7 days ago

      Like that was the time to wake up and hate every single one of these content creators for selling out

      And then what? Stop consuming their content?

      • Melvin_Ferd@lemmy.world
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        7 days ago

        Sure, or accept that you participating in that industry will always lead to this stuff.

        What do people want here. In what world do you think you can separate the two things. Monetizing content through ads and marketing and a world where ads and marketing are not capitalized on.