Tens of thousands of movies, television shows, and other titles are available for instant viewing to Netflix subscribers who opt in to video streaming.
That's not good enough for some, who point out that a good 140,000 movies are available to subscribers of the Los Gatos-based DVD-by-mail service. And that situation is likely to continue, according to the Associated Press.
Many movie studios do not want to license new releases, the AP reported. And many cable channels like Showtime and HBO don't want to give their new shows to streaming, for fear of losing channel subscribers, the AP reported.
As it is, Netflix is paying top dollar to provide the content currently available to its 23 million streaming subscribers, who pay $8 a month for access to 60,000 titles: Netflix is slated to spend up to $4 billion in licensing fees over the next few years, according to reports.
Netflix subscribers lost content from channel Starz on Feb. 29, when the channel demanded an increase of up to ten times the $30 million annually Netflix had been paying, according to reports.
There is talk that Netflix will raise its streaming prices, as subscribers consume an average of 30 hours of online video a month -- a mere 27 cents per hour, the AP reported.
Neftlix Won't Stream Everything Anytime Soon
High cost of licensing, low cost to consumers limit Netflix selection.
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