As you probably know already, I'm not a fan of Hulu Plus. I thought I would share with you my reasons for this. Then you can make up your mind on their service.
Let's start with the difference between Hulu.com and Hulu Plus. They are both Hulu services. Hulu.com is their free video streaming service. Hulu Plus is a subscription based service that competes directly with Netflix and Amazon Instant Prime. In both Hulu services you watch ads to supplement the income to Hulu.
We'll start with this ad supported television model. Hulu is owned by Universal who also own NBC and other stations. They are running with a business model very similar to the cable companies. Customers pay Hulu to access their content. Then advertisers pay Hulu to show ads to their customers. Hulu is getting money from both ends of the service. To me it seems a lot like selling a mailing list. How do you feel when you subscribe to a magazine and then the publisher sells your mailing address to another company who uses that to fill your mailbox with direct mailing advertisements? Hulu is selling their viewership to advertisers to fill your TV and your time with direct advertisements. It doesn't feel fair and it isn't what Netflix or Amazon Instant Prime do. Those services offer commercial free television programs to their subscribers.
The other major reason I don't like Hulu Plus is the way the company has treated partners. When I first cut the cable around 2006, I was one of the first members of Hulu.com. The first thing I watched was Master and Commander. It was ad supported, which I didn't mind because Hulu.com is free to users. The ads help them gain the revenue they need to purchase rights to the content they were providing. It seemed like the same business model that local over the air television stations use.
At the time Hulu had the content and were getting the name recognition. They were struggling with the user interface, particularly making the bridge from the computer to the living room. This has been the ongoing struggle for mainstream adoption of Internet television. Along come a handful of programmers working on a Free and Open Source platform known as boxee. They were developing software that could run on Macs, Apple TVs, and Linux to help users build their own Home Theater PCs (HTPCs).
boxee had figured out the user experience and had one of the most popular HTPC media centers available. Hulu was gaining popularity and so some of the open source developers built a bridge between Hulu and boxee. Hulu was still getting to run their ads on their content and finally users were able to watch Hulu in the living room. It seemed like a partnership that could have real power over Netflix. Netflix had a large subscriber base with their DVD by Mail service and Netflix was building apps for every piece of hardware available, like game consoles and set top boxes. The boxee team even talked with the Hulu folks. Hulu told them that Hulu wasn't interested in building a lean back interface to their website. They were focusing on getting content. They were happy that boxee could add that functionality.
About six months after that arrangement things started to change. Hulu started blocking access to the boxee app. The boxee team updated their app and Hulu blocked it again. This continued a few more times. Then Hulu added a button on the website that would dim the background while you were watching a show. This was clearly intended to enhance the viewing experience away from the computer. About six months later Hulu announced Hulu Plus. They would continue to provide Hulu.com content for free. Now you could get a premium subscription to Hulu Plus which would increase the content available to subscribers. With the announcement of Hulu Plus access to Hulu.com was cut to only computers. Media centers like boxee and web browsers designed for a HTPC environment like Kylo were blocked from accessing Hulu.com. This included standard browsers like Safari if they were running on a mobile platform. Hulu decided overnight that long time members could not access Hulu content from a mobile device or HTPC unless they paid for a subscription to Hulu Plus and watched ads in the programming.
In my opinion this collapsed the Open Source home theater. It left the doors to Internet television wide open to companies like Netflix and Apple. boxee continued to develop their set top box, the Boxee Box. At twice the cost of the Apple TV, it really hasn't caught the attention of the mainstream public. It is a shame too because they had all of the great ideas in the area of set top boxes. They offer more content than anyone else and have one of the easiest user interfaces. Unfortunately their focus was drawn to the set top box environment and they've allowed their HTPC software to languish. It stopped keeping pace with changes to video websites, particularly the television network sites. This left many of them unwatchable from an HTPC.
Hulu.com has all but disappeared since you can only watch it on a computer and with all of the other choices, no one is doing that. Everyone is moving Internet television to the living room.
Hulu Plus will continue for many years, even though it is the worst option available. It will continue because Universal will pump huge amounts of money into advertising on traditional broadcast services. Everyone still watching cable TV and satellite TV will only know about Hulu Plus. No one else is advertising there. Netflix has some name recognition because they killed off Blockbuster and because they have an App on every device that connects to a television set: game consoles, DVD players, Blu-ray players, set top boxes, and smart TVs. The Boxee Box is priced too high for someone making the transition.
People new to Internet television have never watched TV without commercials. It is normal to them. It is also normal for them to pay for access to television. I dare say that a Hulu Plus subscription is far less per month than a cable subscription, and the user experience relative to commercials is the same. These people don't realize that they can have their cake and eat it too with services like Netflix and Amazon Instant Prime. These subscription services offer the TV shows in high definition without the commercials.
Universal and Hulu will bombard the cable and satellite system with advertisements about Hulu Plus to keep people from realizing that they can get commercial free, high quality TV programs and more for the same price. With that they will continue to draw people across to Internet television. I think that over time these people will realize they are getting less for their money and will eventually transition to other services. Universal will need to continue to draw in new subscribers because they will always be losing subscribers to the other subscription services.
If you do have a HTPC, make sure there is a standard browser on it. It is a bit more difficult to navigate from the couch. With a standard computer browser, you will still be able to watch Hulu.com content for free. It has the ads, but at least you're not paying for the privilege to watch Hulu ads.
Sunday, July 20, 2014
Saturday, July 19, 2014
Amazon Instant Prime Keeps Getting Better
In the world of cord cutting there are three big names: Netflix, Hulu Plus, and Amazon Instant Prime. Most people know them in that order. Netflix was first. Hulu Plus bought Super Bowl ads. Amazon is for books and gifts that can be sent to your mother-in-law so you don't have to visit.
I've got to say that I love Amazon Instant Prime and it keeps getting better. There is a lot to be said about the others, and I'll leave that for another rant. I do want to be up front in that I don't have a lot of time with Netflix. I have briefly used it at other people's houses and played around a little on the mobile apps, but that is it. There is a very simple reason for this. I'm too cheap to pay for two competing television services that have roughly the same content.
I started with Amazon Instant Prime when they ran a deal with Revision3 and HD Nation. With a special HD Nation coupon code, I was able to rent Avatar for $1. To explain how cheap I really am, it took me the better part of half a day to decided to spend that dollar. I still wasn't sure after the movie started and it was too late to go back. I even watched the movie twice during the rental period just to make sure I got my money's worth.
I enjoyed the movie and I enjoyed the Amazon Instant Video experience. It was simple to use. It integrated with my Amazon.com account for all my information, including payment preferences. The video played well in full screen mode. It was great.
Even with that it did take a while for me to get back. At the time I didn't have an Amazon.com Prime account. It was a few years later when I realized the at least half of my retail purchases for the year were done through Amazon.com and all of my gift purchases were through Amazon.com. That was when I decided to get a Prime account. I made the decision wholly for the free two-day shipping. I think it was another six months before I learned that with my Prime membership, I could also get streaming videos. For me that was videos for free. Even with the recent cost increase, an Amazon Prime membership is less than Netflix or Hulu Plus, so you can get the membership for the instant videos alone.
Ever since that first experience, the folks at Amazon have continued to improve the user experience for streaming video. They need to because they have very good competition and the cable cutting world is about to explode.
Probably the coolest and most useful thing that Amazon has done is the Next Episode button. On my Home Theater PC (HTPC), I watch Amazon Instant Video through my web browser. A while back they added a button on the playback controls for when you're watching a TV Series. As one episode ends you wiggle the mouse and the controls appear. Then you see in the lower right a button for Up Next. When you click this as the credits are rolling for the last show, it immediately goes to the next episode and starts playing it. It even works across seasons. When you're on the last episode of Season 4, this button will take you to the first episode of Season 5. One click and you're continuing. You never leave fullscreen mode.
The Amazon Instant Video website also keeps track of which TV episodes you've watched. When you open a season page, the episodes you've seen have a light grey background. It is a little hard to make out from the couch. The good news is that I don't have to. As the season opens, Amazon opens to the next unwatched episode. I don't have to worry about it. I can hit the big green button and know that I'm not going to watch something I've seen before and I'm not going to miss an episode in the season.
These are great and only part of the reason I decided that at this moment I would write a new post. That came from my iPad. I'm watching an episode of Top Gear and needed to get a refill on my drink. I knew I could tap anywhere on the screen to pause the playback, so I did and that is when I saw them. First all of the playback controls are large overlay buttons on the screen. Unlike other apps and even earlier versions of the Amazon Instant Video app, the controls are not little buttons at the bottom of the screen next to the scrub bar. They are huge and right on top of the playback, which is great. It makes it hard, if not impossible to hit the wrong button, which I'm prone to do in other players.
The other thing is that Amazon has created a 10-second back button and a 10-second forward button. I'm still trying to figure out why I would go 10-seconds in the future, instead of 30-seconds. I do often miss something is a program and want to jump back 10-seconds to hear it. Sadly I haven't found this on my HTPC. It is great on the iPad.
I also noticed that Amazon has added the Next Episode button to the iPad app. I'll be using that a lot.
Amazon Instant Video is not without its faults. Most people will talk about the content. They don't have as much as Netflix or Hulu Plus. That is fair, though I've easily been able to fill up my Watch List with days worth of content, so I don't feel like I'm going without. They do have Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, which is great. It is a week delayed, but there are no commercials.
Amazon still down't have an Apple TV app. I have been waiting for at least two years on this one. This is going to hurt them as cable cutting becomes more mainstream. The Apple TV is the Internet TV device to buy, and I'll explain that better in another rant. Most mainstream users won't bother with Amazon's current work around, and I'll get to it. Most people will do with what they get and they get Netflix and Hulu Plus.
To work around Amazon Instant Prime not being on the Apple TV, you have to have another Apple device. If you have a Mac or MacBook, AirPlay a multiple monitor to your Apple TV. Then open Safari and you're into the world of an HTPC. If you have an iOS device, open the Instant Video app and AirPlay that to your Apple TV. It works well and now your iOS device becomes your Instant Video remote. (It does limit your ability to have IMDB running while you're watching a program.)
[Update: When I first wrote this post I said that Netflix doesn't have a Next Episode button. I found out later that they don't need one. When you let an episode play out, after the credits roll, Netflix on Apple TV and on iPad begin playing the next episode, even if it is the next season. This type of Continuous Play is something that I've enjoyed on Hulu.com. I can see the usefulness of both. A next episode button does require some interaction. A continuous play function can let episodes continue to play after you fall asleep or walk away from the television. Hopefully there are settings that allow you to opt in or opt out so you can get the functionality that you prefer.]
I've got to say that I love Amazon Instant Prime and it keeps getting better. There is a lot to be said about the others, and I'll leave that for another rant. I do want to be up front in that I don't have a lot of time with Netflix. I have briefly used it at other people's houses and played around a little on the mobile apps, but that is it. There is a very simple reason for this. I'm too cheap to pay for two competing television services that have roughly the same content.
I started with Amazon Instant Prime when they ran a deal with Revision3 and HD Nation. With a special HD Nation coupon code, I was able to rent Avatar for $1. To explain how cheap I really am, it took me the better part of half a day to decided to spend that dollar. I still wasn't sure after the movie started and it was too late to go back. I even watched the movie twice during the rental period just to make sure I got my money's worth.
I enjoyed the movie and I enjoyed the Amazon Instant Video experience. It was simple to use. It integrated with my Amazon.com account for all my information, including payment preferences. The video played well in full screen mode. It was great.
Even with that it did take a while for me to get back. At the time I didn't have an Amazon.com Prime account. It was a few years later when I realized the at least half of my retail purchases for the year were done through Amazon.com and all of my gift purchases were through Amazon.com. That was when I decided to get a Prime account. I made the decision wholly for the free two-day shipping. I think it was another six months before I learned that with my Prime membership, I could also get streaming videos. For me that was videos for free. Even with the recent cost increase, an Amazon Prime membership is less than Netflix or Hulu Plus, so you can get the membership for the instant videos alone.
Ever since that first experience, the folks at Amazon have continued to improve the user experience for streaming video. They need to because they have very good competition and the cable cutting world is about to explode.
Probably the coolest and most useful thing that Amazon has done is the Next Episode button. On my Home Theater PC (HTPC), I watch Amazon Instant Video through my web browser. A while back they added a button on the playback controls for when you're watching a TV Series. As one episode ends you wiggle the mouse and the controls appear. Then you see in the lower right a button for Up Next. When you click this as the credits are rolling for the last show, it immediately goes to the next episode and starts playing it. It even works across seasons. When you're on the last episode of Season 4, this button will take you to the first episode of Season 5. One click and you're continuing. You never leave fullscreen mode.
The Amazon Instant Video website also keeps track of which TV episodes you've watched. When you open a season page, the episodes you've seen have a light grey background. It is a little hard to make out from the couch. The good news is that I don't have to. As the season opens, Amazon opens to the next unwatched episode. I don't have to worry about it. I can hit the big green button and know that I'm not going to watch something I've seen before and I'm not going to miss an episode in the season.
These are great and only part of the reason I decided that at this moment I would write a new post. That came from my iPad. I'm watching an episode of Top Gear and needed to get a refill on my drink. I knew I could tap anywhere on the screen to pause the playback, so I did and that is when I saw them. First all of the playback controls are large overlay buttons on the screen. Unlike other apps and even earlier versions of the Amazon Instant Video app, the controls are not little buttons at the bottom of the screen next to the scrub bar. They are huge and right on top of the playback, which is great. It makes it hard, if not impossible to hit the wrong button, which I'm prone to do in other players.
The other thing is that Amazon has created a 10-second back button and a 10-second forward button. I'm still trying to figure out why I would go 10-seconds in the future, instead of 30-seconds. I do often miss something is a program and want to jump back 10-seconds to hear it. Sadly I haven't found this on my HTPC. It is great on the iPad.
I also noticed that Amazon has added the Next Episode button to the iPad app. I'll be using that a lot.
Amazon Instant Video is not without its faults. Most people will talk about the content. They don't have as much as Netflix or Hulu Plus. That is fair, though I've easily been able to fill up my Watch List with days worth of content, so I don't feel like I'm going without. They do have Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, which is great. It is a week delayed, but there are no commercials.
Amazon still down't have an Apple TV app. I have been waiting for at least two years on this one. This is going to hurt them as cable cutting becomes more mainstream. The Apple TV is the Internet TV device to buy, and I'll explain that better in another rant. Most mainstream users won't bother with Amazon's current work around, and I'll get to it. Most people will do with what they get and they get Netflix and Hulu Plus.
To work around Amazon Instant Prime not being on the Apple TV, you have to have another Apple device. If you have a Mac or MacBook, AirPlay a multiple monitor to your Apple TV. Then open Safari and you're into the world of an HTPC. If you have an iOS device, open the Instant Video app and AirPlay that to your Apple TV. It works well and now your iOS device becomes your Instant Video remote. (It does limit your ability to have IMDB running while you're watching a program.)
[Update: When I first wrote this post I said that Netflix doesn't have a Next Episode button. I found out later that they don't need one. When you let an episode play out, after the credits roll, Netflix on Apple TV and on iPad begin playing the next episode, even if it is the next season. This type of Continuous Play is something that I've enjoyed on Hulu.com. I can see the usefulness of both. A next episode button does require some interaction. A continuous play function can let episodes continue to play after you fall asleep or walk away from the television. Hopefully there are settings that allow you to opt in or opt out so you can get the functionality that you prefer.]
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