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Comment by simonh | Hacker News Reader

I don't think the back catalog play works anymore. There are too many competing services with strong pipelines of compelling new content. The back catalog approach is very low value add, so you can't charge enough for it to make it viable these days.

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It works for Disney. Kids love old Disney movies

Old Disney movies are...boring? My kid would rather watch some CGI bullshit on YouTube or videos of kids playing with other toys...

I dont think there is a single child in existence that would object to watching The Lion King

I'm not letting my kid watch any Disney. They're just content marketing for merch and theme parks.

I am an uncle, not a parent, but even from that limited experience I think it's safe to say the majority of children programming is pushing merch.

It works initially - but after they have watched all that which they want to watch new content is required.

My brother once refused to watch anything on TV but Aladdin for almost a year. He’s a grown adult now and can STILL recite half the movies...

Kids will rewatch more than adults will

As I child I remember seeing back to the future so many times on VHS. And now, my kids have seen Moana dozens of times as well Princess and the Frog, Cinderella and many classics. the back catalogue can keep the children buys for years. Especially thru COVID induced school closures with working parents needing to breath.

Or new viewers.

But you're also not having to pay to produce the back catalog, and the cost of the streaming infrastructure scales well. Every person who stays subscribed because their toddler wants to watch Moana for the 53rd time is free money.

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