The fact that television viewers can watch their favorite shows via online content streaming services like Hulu and Netflix (Nasdaq: NFLX) just a few hours after the shows air will negatively impact broadcasters' bargaining power when it comes to negotiating retransmission rights, a media analyst with BTIG Research says.
As reported in Home Media Magazine, Richard Greenfield, an analyst noted as a "frequent critic" of the practice by media companies of repurposing content via "low-margin channels" like streaming and big red vending kiosks. He thinks broadcasters need to emulate the TV Everywhere platform model that cable and satellite operators are following, as well as put embargoes on content being made available for streaming or rental, the way that major movie studios do.
"Consumers must be made to realize that nothing is for free anymore (at least legally)," Greenfield wrote--making this editor wonder exactly what hole he's been hiding in for the past decade.
One wonders if he's also aware of the content deals Netflix and Hulu are making with movie studios like Sony to whittle down those embargo times, particularly on the streaming side.
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