By Aliza Snow, Social Media Editor
Netflix has gathered over 150 million subscribers since introducing its streaming service in 2007. In total, these subscribers spend almost 170 million hours a day streaming the thousands of TV shows and movies the service offers.
The crazy thing is that these numbers don’t even account for the amount of time people spend on other streaming services like Hulu, Disney Plus and Amazon Prime Video.
I love all of these services and think they will continue to grow in the future as traditional TV will slowly decline in popularity.
The idea that you can watch whatever you want, whenever you want is appealing to almost everyone. On top of that, it’s supposedly a cheaper alternative to services such as cable TV or satellite, which starts at about $20 a month but can be as much as $100 or more.
The one downfall behind streaming services is that the idea began as a one-stop-shop for all your favorite TV shows and movies, but over time, TV channels have pulled their shows off of other streaming platforms so they can start their own services.
This creates a problem because people have to start paying for more streaming services if they want to watch all their favorite shows, and that can end up making it more expensive than cable.
I understand why companies might want to start a service of their own. Using streaming services has become so popular as opposed to traditional TV, so it’s a good way to make money. However, I think it’s ridiculous how much money consumers are now spending on the services they want.
The basic Netflix subscription costs $9 a month, Hulu costs $5.99 a month, Disney Plus costs $6.99 a month and Amazon Prime Video cost $8.25 a month (but also includes a few other perks such as free two-day shipping on Amazon and a music streaming service).
So, just having these services alone costs about $360 a year, and some people pay for more services – even network stations are streaming, with CBS All Access another $5.99 a month – or have more than just the basic version of the ones listed.
As much as I enjoy binge-watching shows on Netflix or Hulu, I think it’s insane how much these prices have increased over time.
Netflix started with an $8 basic subscription, and that same subscription now costs $9. However, there was a bigger price increase for the standard and premium packages. The standard subscription started at $8 and has risen to $13, while the premium subscription has risen from $8 to $16.
It would be much nicer for consumers if these companies could work out a deal where all the shows we want are on one platform.
This would obviously be a little more expensive than the individual services that are available now, but it would be much less expensive in the long run and overall more convenient for the average user to have everything in one place.
Unfortunately, I don’t think it’s going to get any cheaper any time soon. As time goes on, prices, as well as the number of streaming services, will probably continue to increase.
Although I think the prices are insane, the idea of a service that allows you to watch your favorite shows whenever you want is amazing. It’s because of this that most people – including me – will just continue paying for the entertainment until something better comes along.
Junior Aliza Snow can be reached at 21snowal92@daretolearn.org.
