Will Netflix remain a disruptive player through innovation?

14

October

2018

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Netflix recently announced that viewers will soon be able to choose the next storyline in an episode of one of their favorite TV shows or movies. The company is working on a couple of special episodes whereby the viewer decides how the story will continue. The first of these projects will be released before the end of this year. Will this innovation further disrupt the television industry? And how will Netflix’ competitors such as Amazon and HBO Go react according to their business strategies?

A key factor of Netflix’s business strategy is personalization. Netflix provides the users specialized content and recommendations based on the user’s interests, preferences and previous watched shows or movies. When it comes to customer experience, they are now extending their service as they let viewers decide how the story will unfold and even end.

Netflix has already offered this experience with children’s shows, but the next interactive show will be for adult viewers. At the end of 2018, viewers will be able to personalize an episode of the sci-fi show Black Mirror. By adding a ‘game-element’ in the shows or movies, Netflix also tries to lure a group of new viewers: gamers.

However, there are certain challenges Netflix has to deal with. To create such an interactive experience, the shows and movies need to have longer scripts. Thus, more work for writers, actors and crew. As a result, production processes will become longer and more expensive.

It will be a great challenge for Netflix to pull this off. But when they do, they can become the first player in the field who successfully integrated interactivity in their shows. Moreover, they could play a significant part in the further disruption of the traditional television and online-streaming industry.

Do you think this innovation will pull off? Will other companies rethink their business strategies and also start to adapt to changes when it comes to interactivity? What do you think will happen?

References
Burks, B. (2018). Netflix Letting Viewers Choos their own Ending for Some Shows. Retrieved 14-10-2018 from https://screenrant.com/netflix-tv-shows-interactive/.

Rele, A. (2018). Je kunt straks zelf kiezen hoe je Netflix-serie eindigt. Retrieved 14-10-2018 from https://nos.nl/artikel/2253075-je-kunt-straks-zelf-kiezen-hoe-je-netflix-serie-eindigt.html.

Shaw, L. (2018). Netflix is Planning a Choose-Your-Own-Adventure ‘Black Mirror.’ Retrieved 14-10-2018 from https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-10-01/netflix-is-said-to-plan-choose-your-own-adventure-black-mirror.

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‘The Internet is broken.’ How will ‘the new Internet’ shape business and society?

7

October

2018

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Tim Berners-Lee is a well-known computer scientist. If you have never heard of him, you at least know what he invented. Tim Berners-Lee is known as the man who invented the World Wide Web. Now in 2018, almost thirty years after he wrote the first web client and server, Berners-Lee is creating ‘the new Internet.’ He believes that the (old) internet has evolved into “an engine of inequity and division; swayed by powerful forces who use it for their own agendas.” Is this true? And who are those powerful forces?

Berners-Lee stated in an article published on Medium that he always believed the web is for everyone. In the last couple of years, the changes he and his colleagues made, managed to create a better and more connected world. But to his horror, he saw the internet changed into a malicious inversion with fake news, hate and Internet-giants (Facebook, Google, Amazon for example) as the operating factor. Berners-Lee is done with these high-tech companies and wants to return the power to the users.

How does he want to do this? Well, by creating the new Internet: Solid. Solid is an open-source project and changes the current model where users hand over their personal data in exchange for value. As Berners-Lee says, “Solid is how we evolve the web in order to restore balance — by giving every one of us complete control over data, personal or not, in a revolutionary way.”

Technically seen, Solid is a decentralized platform based on linked data principles. Every user of Solid will be able to choose where to store their data and with whom they will share their data.

This ‘new Internet’ can be an interesting way to overcome certain privacy and power issues. However, an important question is if the Internet-giants such as Google and Facebook will accept Solid. What changes will they make according to their business strategies? And will users leave the well-known social platforms and start to make use of Solid? Will the network-effects change? Time will tell.

How do you think business and society will transform?

References
Berners-Lee, T. (2018). One Small Step for the Web… Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://medium.com/@timberners_lee/one-small-step-for-the-web-87f92217d085.

Invests. (2018). Tim Berners-Lee is Creating the New Internet. Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://www.invests.com/2018/10/05/tim-berners-lee-is-creating-the-new-internet.

Shankland, S. (2018). Interest surges in Tim Berners-Lee inrupt startup to remake the web. Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://www.cnet.com/news/interest-surges-in-tim-berners-lees-inrupt-startup-to-remake-the-web/.

Verhagen, L. (2018). Week in techno: macht weer bij de gebruikers. Retrieved 06-10-2018 from https://www.volkskrant.nl/wetenschap/week-in-techno-macht-weer-bij-de-gebruikers-~b92f5b15/.

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