Verizon Shuts Down Netflix Competitor

It was reported this week that Verizon’s Redbox Instant service – a streaming video service designed to compete with Netflix – would shut down operations on October 7. Verizon is not alone; other large companies such as Comcast have made plays in the online streaming space and also faced challenges. It’s interesting that in a market where ability to source quality content would seem to be the key success factor that such large companies with deep pockets have not been able to find success. In particular, cable companies and service providers engaged in net neutrality debates need to decide whether they want to attempt to benefit from the high levels of bandwidth usage by Netflix and similar companies or commit more to facing this competition head on.

Along these lines, Deborah Yao of SNL predicts that Redbox Instant could potentially become a component of Verizon’s own branded  standalone over-the-top service, following Verizon’s acquisition of the property Intel had been developing some time. It looks as though even though investments in content by these various entrants to the market have been minimal, that they are still committed to making a significant play in this space. It will be interesting to see whether or not these players can leverage its users data, preferences for content, etc. in new and interesting ways from a digital marketing perspective.

Source: http://arstechnica.com/business/2014/10/verizons-netflix-competitor-dies-from-lack-of-customers-criminal-activity/

SNL