Hacker News Reader

Comment by cairo140 | Hacker News Reader

Even if content license holders don't require Netflix to go above and beyond, building sophisticated DRM is a moat against other streaming services. If Netflix can build a sophisticated VPN-detection service, copyright holders will be much less willing to license their content to upstarts who can't match its capabilities.

In the same vein, it can be rational behavior for a market leader who deals in private information (most online advertising companies) to advocate for consumer privacy protections. It "hurts" them, but if the resulting regulations are so onerous that only incumbent(s) can comply, it can restrict the competitive landscape and paradoxically be advantageous to the existing leaders.

View on HN

Fun fact: the EU funded a study which ended up showing piracy has no effect on sales, then tried to bury it.

https://juliareda.eu/2017/09/secret-copyright-infringement-s...

There is a different incentive at play here. Netflix wants to track individuals. I wouldn't be surprised if some other agreement were behind this move, perhaps like other secret agreements:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/23/nsa-prism-cost...

> There is a different incentive at play here. Netflix wants to track individuals.

Maybe this is naive, but doesn't Netflix already have enough information from the account already? Credit card info, name, address… what does having an IP address get them in addition to all that?

It gives you a lot more information. Where you travel, who you travel with, what types of content you associate with different regions, how much you share with friends, how your preferences change as you hang around different areas and individuals.

Information is deceptive because it's exponential. Detectives often make or break cases on a single lucky clue. Data mining on the Internet is no different. Information goes massively further than most people realize.

The study you linked was a survey, not an experiment. Why would you take into account what pirates tell strangers they would do?

Excellent point, but if you spend time looking into this area, you will find there is not a lot of good research published.

Yes, and Netflix knows about that report,too.

No, the second idea is silly. They already have buckets of information. In fact, they have a whole team dedicated to making sure they don't hold onto certain types of PII (Personally identifiable Info)

They have their flaws, but they don't waste time doing useless shit (once they have figured that out).

I mean, obviously they notice which accounts are breaking whatever rules are currently in force.

And of course, extensive DRM and geo-blocking drives people to pirate.

>If Netflix can build a sophisticated VPN-detection service, copyright holders will be much less willing to license their content to upstarts who can't match its capabilities.

Have you missed the events of the last few years? Netflix's future competition isn't going to be scrappy startups, it's going to be content providers with their own streaming service.

This is a super interesting take and I wonder how closely this reflects Netflix's actual strategic thinking. If so it's an interesting game theory question, because the whole reason rightsholders would want this is to guarantee the value of splitting up distribution to multiple local distributors, most of whom would be well outside the realm of matching Netflix capabilities. But if those players can't match Netflix's DRM and thus rightsholders won't license to them, then all they are doing is giving Netflix is a discount for restricted rights without any additional profit.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com