Netflix Billing Migration to AWS – Part III
techblog.netflix.com
techblog.netflix.com
And just because Netflix uses servers (hardware) hosted through AWS doesn't mean that they don't have plenty of proprietary in house tech (software) that powers their service. An example of such would be Open Connect (https://openconnect.itp.netflix.com/) their CDN built on top of FreeBSD and Nginx (https://www.nginx.com/blog/why-netflix-chose-nginx-as-the-he...).
But beyond software, content licensing and content creation are also major distinguishing factors in the streaming video space.
It is remarkable, but not uncommon.
In fact all of their mobile CPUs except A8/A8X and A9X are fabricated by Samsung [1]. Lately they are also increasingly using Taiwan Semiconductor.
[1] see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_mobile_application_proce... and linked "Main article" pages e.g. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apple_A9
One reason to host your service on a competitor's platform is if you intend to be purchased by that competitor. It brings your technology portfolio in alignment with theirs and makes the integration of the two platforms after acquisition easier.
"What should I go with? AWS or Azure/Google/Whomever? Wait, Netflix runs entirely on AWS... I use Netflix, my daughter uses Netflix, I've never experienced Netflix downtime..."
...sure, maybe your entire reasoning for picking AWS wouldn't be because of Netflix. But it's like a poster child. If Netflix trusts AWS, why shouldn't you?
> Cloud features and APIs should be a commodity not a differentiator
> ...
> We would prefer to be an insignificant customer in a giant cloud.
it makes me wonder if Netflix gets any "special deals" that any other corporation/consumer couldn't get, or if anything has been done at the hardware level specifically for Netflix.
I.e., I wonder if they ended up building a data center that they would have needed anyway, but made it the "Netflix datacenter," even if no one else would ever know it.
For example, here in the netherlands, you have one major IX, the AMS-IX; if they were to rent a suite there, put some metal and hire a few engineers, they could supply most of western europe from there; I can imagine for some of these locations, it would make sense cost wise; on the other hand, if they are profitable like this, why take on the extra distractions of HR, failing hardware, etc. (which is probably why Netflix doesn't do the above...)
Furthermore, it's actually a benefit to the marketplace! It forces Netflix to differentiate it's product to retain customers/marketshare.
Don't outsource your infrastructure to 3rd parties (especially competitors) just to save few dollars in the short term. Have control of your assets.
[1] https://techcrunch.com/2015/03/27/slack-got-hacked/That applies to you and me. Amazon will not ban Netflix randomly. If anything unexpected happens, I'm sure Netflix guys have direct contact to either people dedicated to servicing them, or appropriate level of Amazon management. They're also unlikely to have the same contract/access as you and me.
Best just to use the best tools for the job (and us customers get to reap the rewards of that funding with great TV shows!)
Everything except the CDN is on AWS (unless they moved something back to the datacenter since I left 1.5 years ago, but that's unlikely and I probably would have heard about it).
Just by assuming that 5-10% of their actual Netflix video traffic gets served from AWS and the rest gets served from the Open Connect servers, it's probable that any other competitor (except Amazon Video) would see huge savings with a similar implementation.
Edit: it seems like the earlier blog post mentions there is a data feed to the GL, but leaves this rather vague. Very interested to read their ERP and data feed setup. What ERP does Netflix use too?
I'd be interested if anyone had any guesses as to what data type may require a 38 digit number.
I bet these were 128 bit integers encoded in decimal.
[0]: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/18439520/is-there-a-128-b...
Yes, although it was interesting that they put themselves through ETL pain now for a future state they aren't moving to.
And yes, I'd imagine they heavily use reserved instances as their traffic patterns would be pretty predictable by now.
If they do pay the public prices, they are being totally fleeced to the point where you'd have to ask what in the world they are doing.
RIs make such a big difference on your bill if you utilize them well, and it's a no-brainer for Netflix scale.
All the instances are cheaper and faster.
The networking is substantially faster, especially on smaller instances (I can imagine they have a lot of network IO given their business).
No more reserved instances to manage. The discount is automatic on GCE when instances ran 24/24 for the month. (Reserved instances are a management nightmare when you have many servers, you can actually loose money).
Replace all spot instances with the equivalent on GCE, which has fix pricing (about 70% discount) and is more dependable. (I imagine the core video business is extremely spot friendly).
I think mysql users are just there quietly making money while postgres users are bashing mysql ;)
I also think services like aurora are strong selling point for starting new tech businesses with mysql.
This seems to be the underlying factor.
Timing has more to do with adoption then the technical implementation. Being the first thing that is "good enough" for wide spread use is key. The last 20 years are riddled with examples such as Docker.
98% percent of people using w/ever are quietly making money. Then you have 1% that complain and 1% that praise. (Numbers are arbitrary.)
You could apply the same sentence to NodeJS, Rails, MongoDB, etc - hype is not necessarily a good thing, if you read the definition:
- Excessive publicity and the ensuing commotion;
- Exaggerated or extravagant claims made especially in advertising or promotional material;
- An advertising or promotional ploy;
This is technology, there are always going to be "my stack is better than yours" arguments and fanboys claiming their newest tech choice is simply amazing because it does $x, $y and $z.