Starting now, it will cost Canadians $23.99 to subscribe each month to Netflix’s premium service.
That’s a three dollar increase, (their first in two years). The US-based media giant claims that this increase is needed, goes the release, “so that we can re-invest to further improve Netflix.” Plus CEO Ted Sarandos need a new hot tub in his Bentley.
Fact is, television is a goofy, expensive business. Success is unpredictable. You can spend millions on a series and find it is a dud; then you could have a series in your back catelogue from 35 years ago, as Paramount+ does this week, that suddenly becomes the most-streamed TV series in America — Twin Peaks. All it took for that to happen was David Lynch’s passing.
Netflix spends more than most on original content, $17 billion in 2024 alone according to one estimate. It helps to have 300 million subscribers worldwide, but few internationally pay anywhere close to $23.99 per month Canadians will now have to pay.
What Netflix does do is make sure their spend is on a diverse variety of programming offers. They have a high volume strategy, with the goal of having at least three or four or five shows a month that will keep subscribers hooked.
On Wednesday I was asked to weigh in on the price increase by speaking with 19 individual stations along the CBC radio syndication network. Hosts in Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal and Calgary, as well as in Kamloops, Whitehorse, Sudbury and Cape Breton, wondered if Canadians will have finally reached the breaking point and dump their streaming subscriptions.
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That monthly price point does seem high, but I doubt it. Most of us vent on social media and then forget to cancel when another month rolls around and the amount is automatically deducted. Some will figure another three bucks a month for commercial-free, 4K quality Netflix is worth it.
In our house, we finally mothballed our 15-year-old, 42-inch Toshiba in favour of a 65-inch Samsung SmartTV. No point in watching blurry movies now that you finally have a higher definition screen.
What I told the radio hosts, however, is that it all comes down to content. No one streaming service always has the hottest hand. This month I’m glad I subscribe to Paramount+ (full disclosure — a sponsor here at brioux.tv) because Landman with Billy Bob Thornton is so damn entertaining. A few months ago I would not give up AppleTV+ to keep watching Slow Horses as well as HBO’s Shrinking, with the biggie for me on Netflix being The Diplomat. Every fall, Disney+ is a must to enjoy every episode of Only Murders in the Building, plus whatever sliver of “unseen” Beatles footage has somehow been unearthed and digitized.
If you keep all these services all year round, plus cable, your TV bill is at least $150 a month. At that point, the phrase “Netflix and Chill” takes on a whole new meaning. The chill is because you can no longer afford both Netflix and heating oil.
The smart move for consumers, therefore, is to subscribe sequentially. Narrow it down to two premieum services a month. Be part of the churn. Then suppliment your active household menu with less expensive movie channels such as Hollywood Suite and Super Channel (yes, also sponsors, but they also carry exclusive series) as well as FAST channels thart cost nothing per month such as Tubi and PlutoTV. Other options include CBC Gem, which has a deep library of main network titles, and YouTube, which has an inexpensive pay tier as well as a hell of a lot that is free (provided you have an internet subscription of course.) If you have Bell Fibe, spent a few dollars and checkout shows by Ron James and Mary Walsh on FibeTV.
Where streaming services are trying to lock you in is with their aggressive move into live TV sports. Need your NHL hockey fix Monday nights? Better have Prime Video. Looking for Friday night baseball this coming spring? Welcome back, AppleTV+.
More and more NFL streaming rights are migrating over to streaming services, although the Super Bowl seems safe for now. One hundred million viewers would crash almost ever down on, say, Netflix, which saw a few hiccups when 64 million caught that overhyped boxing tilt between Mike Tyson and whats-his-name.
Finally, where Netflix and the others have you right now is this one indisputable fact: we are all terrified of turning on TV’s and acidentally landing on a news channel. Ratings on services such as CNN (which just announced layoffs) and MSNBC have plummeted since the first Tuesday in November.
The spectre of four years of daily horrors spewing up from political coverage, not to mention wild fires and polar vortexes, can only be anethesized with video distractions. Netflix has them for $23.99 a month now in Canada. Put in perspective, it seems a small price to pay.
