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Economy

unhappycamper

(60,364 posts) Fri Jan 24, 2014, 06:48 AM Jan 2014

Netflix warns ISPs: We’ll mobilize our 44 million customers if you slow down our streams

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/01/23/netflix-preps-customer-base-as-their-army-in-a-war-over-net-neutrality/

Netflix warns ISPs: We’ll mobilize our 44 million customers if you slow down our streams
By George Chidi
Thursday, January 23, 2014 9:26 EST

You want a war? We have the bigger army.

This is Netflix’ message to shareholders, customers and the Internet service providers ready to charge content streaming firms a higher rate for bandwidth than other customers, in a shareholder letter released Wednesday, a week after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia struck down the FCC’s long-standing network neutrality rules for cable service providers.

“In principle, a domestic ISP now can legally impede the video streams that members request from Netflix, degrading the experience we jointly provide,” wrote Reed Hastings, Netflix’ CEO, in the quarterly shareholder letter. “The motivation could be to get Netflix to pay fees to stop this degradation. Were this draconian scenario to unfold with some ISP, we would vigorously protest and encourage our members to demand the open Internet they are paying their ISP to deliver.”

Netflix, the letter notes, currently has more than 44 million members, 33 million of whom live in the U.S. Strong subscriber growth drove Netflix share prices up 16 percent Wednesday afternoon.

14 replies

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Highlight:

Netflix warns ISPs: We’ll mobilize our 44 million customers if you slow down our streams (Original Post) unhappycamper Jan 2014 OP

If they believe in a principle other than greed, they should mobilize their merrily Jan 2014 #1

This is the only thing that can save us from Net Neutrality liberal N proud Jan 2014 #2

Save us *from* net neutrality? Isn't net neutrality what we want? Demit Jan 2014 #3

Yes liberal N proud Jan 2014 #4

We do? yeoman6987 Jan 2014 #6

Yes, we do GOTV Jan 2014 #8

I was kind of wondering Liberalynn Jan 2014 #5

OK, I'm mobilized. Now what do I do... TreasonousBastard Jan 2014 #7

So net neutrality is about streaming video, Progressive dog Jan 2014 #9

The real danger of losing net neutrality it not to Netflix/Youtube GOTV Jan 2014 #10

Streaming The West Wing in HD on Netflix right now. onehandle Jan 2014 #11

Nationalize the internet, it's critical infrastructure, do it now. nt bemildred Jan 2014 #12

+ 10,000 n/t truedelphi Jan 2014 #14

And where are our "Congresional Leaders" on this? truedelphi Jan 2014 #13

merrily

(45,251 posts)

1. If they believe in a principle other than greed, they should mobilize their

Reply to unhappycamper (Original post)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 07:23 AM

Jan 2014

customers anyway.

liberal N proud

(60,336 posts)

2. This is the only thing that can save us from Net Neutrality

Reply to unhappycamper (Original post)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 07:44 AM

Jan 2014

Netflix, Amazon and other businesses who have built their model on high speed internet access.

Demit

(11,238 posts)

3. Save us *from* net neutrality? Isn't net neutrality what we want?

Reply to liberal N proud (Reply #2)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 07:52 AM

Jan 2014

liberal N proud

(60,336 posts)

4. Yes

Reply to Demit (Reply #3)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 08:00 AM

Jan 2014

yeoman6987

(14,449 posts)

6. We do?

Reply to liberal N proud (Reply #4)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 09:17 AM

Jan 2014

That surprises me. I need to know your thoughts.

GOTV

(3,759 posts)

8. Yes, we do

Reply to yeoman6987 (Reply #6)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 09:55 AM

Jan 2014

We don't want ISPs to determine which legal services we are allowed to access and which we are not. Neither do we want them to artificially degrade the performance of a legal service we want to consume.

Liberalynn

(7,549 posts)

5. I was kind of wondering

Reply to unhappycamper (Original post)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 09:01 AM

Jan 2014

whether there would be a strong pushback from other businesses and consumers(once more become aware of the potential impact)? I'm hoping Verizon may have won the court battle only to have their sheer greed cost them far more in the public perception of them, thus costing them customers, than whatever they thought they were going to gain by picking this fight in the first place. I have a year left on my contract wit them, then I'm switching to a Trac phone.

TreasonousBastard

(43,049 posts)

7. OK, I'm mobilized. Now what do I do...

Reply to unhappycamper (Original post)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 09:49 AM

Jan 2014

because I have no, nada, zilch, options besides Cablevision for internet access.

Progressive dog

(6,905 posts)

9. So net neutrality is about streaming video,

Reply to unhappycamper (Original post)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 09:58 AM

Jan 2014

of course only if the video is provided by Netflix.

GOTV

(3,759 posts)

10. The real danger of losing net neutrality it not to Netflix/Youtube

Reply to unhappycamper (Original post)

Fri Jan 24, 2014, 09:59 AM

Jan 2014

Those are extremely popular services that have the resources to fight back.

The real loss is the new services you will never see because they can't raise the funds to assure access to their product.