All of the major media outlets are calling for “Netflix taxes” – here is your chance to be different. Just in time for Netflix’s newest release, David Simon’s “The Deuce”, its tax on cable television is showing up around the country. Anyone with an Internet connection should be familiar with it already. It is a tool that allows viewers to “surf”view” a series after they have finished watching their current program.
Many people have been watching the show from the beginning, as it is an original series that has been airing for four years now. Its success has led to an influx of original programming on the Internet.
The results have been particularly overwhelming to local cable providers who have been trying to maintain control over their audience. What they have found is that the people who are “surfing” the show can leave their TV on while they are out at work, driving, shopping or simply relaxing. While most people who watch the show can be seen when they come home, those who stay glued to their television screens during its run end up increasing their viewership by hundreds of thousands every single day.
Shows like this are helping to make those who own a television one of the most expensive pieces of equipment in a household. You really have to get up early to catch the latest episode of “House of Cards” or the other popular shows that are airing on cable channels and other channels across the country.
As a result, cable providers are worried that people are really starting to download episodes of shows as they are aired online. If these movies are downloaded without a cable subscription, they are charged on a per-download basis, which is why local channels are afraid of losing viewers in the future.
This is why all of the big networks are calling for the government to act against these businesses because it is both unfair and illegal for cable providers to charge consumers for using the Internet. The “Netflix Tax” is a new idea that may be worth checking out.
These cable companies could force Netflix to pay for the additional cost of broadcasting their programs. The payment would come from the amount of money they make off of their programming fees. So far, the loss of revenue has not been big enough to keep them from staying on the air.
So, from the differences between cable and Internet programming fees to the “Netflix Tax” that is going to be introduced soon, the differences in programming are few and far between. With all of the industry players talking about change, we will see how things go in the coming years.
